Tall Fern Charlisse Leger-Walker. Photo: Photosport
Charlisse Leger-Walker's dream of becoming just the second New Zealander to play in basketball's WNBA has been put on hold, again.
Leger-Walker tore her ACL in January, which cut her 2023/24 NCAA season short and ruled her out of New Zealand's Paris Olympics qualifying campaign.
The Tall Ferns guard made a name for herself in women's college basketball in the United States during her four seasons with Washington State University, transforming the women's programme into a genuine force in the NCAA.
The knee injury has already put her shot at making basketball history in the WNBA on hold. Leger-Walker withdrew from consideration for April's WNBA draft.
The 23-year-old then announced she was transferring to powerhouse University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) to play her last season at college level, before declaring for the 2025 WNBA Draft.
But Leger-Walker hasn't played any games for her new team while she recovers from the injury and UCLA Women's Basketball Head Coach Cori Close has announced that the Kiwi will sit out the remainder of the 2024-25 campaign.
"Although we would prefer her to be fully health and playing with us right now, we are really excited to announce that Charlisse will be coming back for another year," Close said.
"She will be redshirting this year, but we're very excited for our Bruin fans to see her for the entire 2025-26 season."
Leger-Walker will utilize a medical redshirt for the remainder of the season and is expected to rejoin the Bruins' active roster in 2025-26.
Under NCAA rules, an athlete can be granted a medical redshirt if they have an injury that is deemed "season-ending".
Despite missing the final month and a half of the 2023-24 season, Leger-Walker was named All-Pac-12 (Coaches and Media) and was the Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar of the Year Second Runner-Up.
She recorded her two first-career triple-doubles during her senior campaign with Washington State.
Charlisse Leger-walker shapes to shoot. Photo: David Neilson/ Photosport
Leger-Walker, who tore her ACL against UCLA while playing with her former programme, said rehabilitation was taking longer than she would have liked.
"I had hoped I would be competing with the Bruins (UCLA) this season, but I've decided I need more time to get back," Leger-Walker said.
"I am looking forward to getting fully healthy, training at an elite level, and coming back to the court next year."
The Waikato prodigy first played for the Tall Ferns as a 16-year-old.
She is bidding to become just the second New Zealander to play in the WNBA after two-time Olympian and Tall Ferns legend Megan Compain played the inaugural season of the league in 1997 for the Utah Starzz.
In 2021, Leger-Walker led Washington State to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 30 years, averaging 18.8 points per game and earning Pac-12 Freshman of the Year honours.
They also went to the NCAA tournament in Leger-Walker's sophomore and junior seasons. In 2023, she was named the Pac-12 tournament's Most Outstanding Player, after leading them to that title.
In Washington States all-time career record books, Leger-Walker finished third in career points.
Her mother Leanne Walker, played for the New Zealand women's basketball team and competed in the Olympics in 2000 and 2004.
Leger-Walker is pursuing a Master of Education in Transformative Coaching and Leadership at UCLA.
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