Aliyah Boston (born December 11, 2001) is an Americanprofessional basketballpower forward andcenter for theIndiana Fever of theWomen's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and for thePhantom ofUnrivaled. She was named2023WNBA Rookie of the Year in a unanimous vote and theAP Rookie of the Year. She played college basketball at theUniversity of South Carolina.
Born inSaint Thomas,United States Virgin Islands, Boston attendedWorcester Academy inWorcester, Massachusetts, where she was aMcDonald's All-American and a three-time MassachusettsGatorade Player of the Year.[1] Boston has won several gold medals representing theUnited States.
Boston led South Carolina to their second national championship in school history in 2022 and was named theNCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player (MOP). That year, she also won Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year honors. Boston won theLisa Leslie Award as the best center in NCAA women's basketball in four consecutive years.
On April 1, 2023, Boston declared for the2023 WNBA draft. Boston chose to forgo her extra year of eligibility granted to college athletes due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] She ended her four-year collegiate career with a record of 129 wins and 9 losses.[3] Boston was thefirst overall pick in theWNBA draft on April 10, 2023, selected by theIndiana Fever.[4]
Boston was born on December 11, 2001, to parents Cleone and Al inSaint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. Boston fell in love with basketball at age 9 while watching her older sister Alexis play. At age 12, Aliyah and Alexis moved from their home in the Virgin Islands, to New England to live with their aunt, Jenaire Hodge, and her cousin, Kira Punter. Boston would only see her parents a few times over the following years, mostly to watch Aliyah's AAU basketball games.[5][6]
"When I first started playing, it was kind of just for fun, but then I realized how much you could get out of playing. So we've all had faith in God that I could; my goal is to go to college with a scholarship. God has helped us with that".
— Aliyah Boston[5]
Boston attendedWorcester Academy inWorcester, Massachusetts, winning Gatorade Massachusetts Player of the Year honors in 2017, 2018, and 2019. Boston led her team to a 24–1 record and a second straight New England Prep School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) Class A championship in 2019. That year, she was a consensus All-American, averaging 17.3 points, 10.6 rebounds and 3.2 blocks per game. Boston was selected to play in theMcDonald's All-American Game and theJordan Brand Classic in 2019.[7]
A five-star recruit, Boston was ranked third in the ESPN HoopGurlz 2019 class.[8] Boston committed toDawn Staley and theSouth Carolina Gamecocks overUConn,Ohio State, andNotre Dame, giving the Gamecocks the consensus number one recruiting class for 2019.[9]
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In her first game at theUniversity of South Carolina on November 5, 2019, Boston posted the firsttriple-double by a freshman in program history and the first by anyNCAA Division I player in her career debut againstAlabama State, including a school-record tying 10 blocks.[10] Boston helped lead the Gamecocks to a big early season road win against No. 4Maryland scoring eight of the team's first 10 points and blocking five shots in the opening quarter.
In the2019 Paradise Jam, Boston wonReef Division MVP after she had 20 points, and 13 rebounds in a win against No. 2Baylor clinching the tournament championship. On January 20, 2020, Boston notched her eighthdouble-double of the season finishing with 12 rebounds, and 21 points in a win over No. 9Mississippi State. Boston played a huge role in the No. 1 Gamecocks first-ever victory over theUConn Huskies on February 10, capturing her tenth double-double.[7]
AgainstLSU, Boston blocked five shots to become the program's all-time freshman blocks leader in a win. Boston would finish the regular season averaging a double-double against SEC competition (13.1 PPG/10.3 RPG) as the No. 1 Gamecocks (32–1) swept theSEC regular season andtournament championships.[7]
Boston was named consensus Freshman of the Year, and was part of the first team in Gamecock history to end the season ranked No. 1 in the nation, claiming that spot in both theAP Poll and theUSA Today Coaches Poll, before theNCAA tournament was canceled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[7]
Boston started off the season hot against 23rd rankedIowa State, recording five of the team's first 10 points which included a 3 pointer, she then scored four of her season high 13 points off offensive rebounds. AgainstFlorida, Boston continued to show her all around game when she hit three 3's and recorded 28 points, 16 rebounds, and 4 blocks. Scoring 19 points, and 11 rebounds in the first half and became the 11th fastest Gamecock to score 500 points in her career. On January 10 in a win at 10th rankedKentucky, Boston put up 20 points and 12 rebounds, scoring her fourth double double of the season and also included seven blocks, she would earn SEC co-player of the week honors. Boston helped secure a 104–82 win over 17th rankedArkansas; she finished with 26 points and 16 rebounds. she scored six points, six rebounds and three blocks in the game's opening five minutes. On January 21 in a win vs. Georgia, Boston made history the program's first triple-double in SEC play finishing with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 blocks. AgainstLSU, Boston notched her third straight double-double with 20 points, 14 rebounds. Facing a tough double team againstAlabama, Boston remained poised and handed out a career high 6 assist to go with 13 rebounds. In a road game against UConn, Boston completed her eighth double-double on the season, pulling down 15 rebounds, including eight in the final 15 minutes.
Boston was crucial in the GamecocksSEC Tournament Championship win, in the semifinals vs.Tennessee, Boston scored 15 points and 11 rebounds, and in the finals against Georgia scored 27 points, 10 rebounds. Boston was namedSEC Tournament MVP, she recorded double doubles in all three of the Gamecocks games. In her NCAA Tournament debut against no. 16th seededMercer, she would notch a 20-point and 18 rebound game. In the elite eight againstTexas, Boston scored six of her ten points the first quarter. Boston had 16 rebounds in the season ending loss against Stanford and missed a potential game winning lay-up at the buzzer as South Carolina lost 66–65. At the conclusion of the season, she was named Lisa Leslie award winner for the second straight year, was named consensus First Team All-American, and was named National Player of the year byThe Athletic.[7]
Boston is also the first sophomore ever to be named by theCollege Sports Information Directors of America as itsAcademic All-American of the Year in D-I women's basketball, being so honored in 2021.[11]
On February 24 she broke the SEC record with her 20th consecutive double-double in the win atTexas A&M.
In the Final Four, she had in a win against #4Louisville, 15 points and 10 rebounds. In South Carolina's64–49 National Championship win overUConn, Boston had 11 points and 16 rebounds for her 30th double-double of the season. It was the program's second national championship. She was named theNCAA Tournament MOP.[12]
Boston scored 14 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in South Carolina's 76–71 win at No. 2Stanford. On November 27, 2022, Boston suffered a leg injury in a win against Hampton. In the2023 NCAA tournament, South Carolina advanced to the Final Four but lost 73–77 toIowa which shattered their 42-game winning streak.[13]
She finished her senior year as a unanimous first-team All-American for the third consecutive year, and also won Naismith Defensive Player of the Year, the Lisa Leslie Award, SEC Player of the Year, and SEC Defensive Player of the Year.[14]
On April 10, 2023, Boston became thefirst overall pick in the2023 WNBA draft, selected by theIndiana Fever (first in franchise history).[4] After her first four games, Boston wonWNBA Rookie of the Month in May after averaging 15.8 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game.[15] On June 20, she was awardedWNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week.[16] At the end of June, Boston was awarded WNBA Rookie of the Month again while also being named a starter for the2023 WNBA All-Star Game – becoming just the eighth rookie in league history to start the game – finishing with six points and a team-high 11 rebounds.[17] Before theplayoffs started, Boston won the final WNBA Rookie of the Month award of the season averaging 14.6 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game in August.[18]
At the end of the2023 season, Boston was unanimously namedWNBA Rookie of the Year.[19] She was also named annual Rookie of the Year by theAssociated Press as well as earning AP All-Rookie Team recognition.[19] Furthermore, she became the first player in WNBA history to ever lead the league infield goal percentage (57.8%) as a rookie.[20]
On December 10, 2023, Boston represented the Fever at the2024 WNBA draft lottery, helping Indiana secure the first overall pick for the second straight year, where they selectedCaitlin Clark.[21]
On June 18, 2024, Boston was named theEastern Conference Player of the Week.[22] On July 2, 2024, Boston was named to the Team WNBAAll-Star team and received the second most fan votes of any player (618,680 votes).[23]
In April 2025, the Fever exercised their fourth-year option for Boston, extending her contract into the 2026 season.[24][25]
On June 30, 2025, Boston was named as anAll-Star starter for the third time in her career.[26]
On October 31, 2024, it was announced that Boston would appear and play in theinaugural 2025 season ofUnrivaled, the women's 3-on-3 basketball league founded byNapheesa Collier andBreanna Stewart.[27][28] She played for theVinyl in the2025 season.
On November 5th, 2025, it was announced that Boston had been drafted byPhantom BC for the2026 Unrivaled season.[29]
Boston has represented the United States at various international competitions, including the2017 FIBA Under-16 Women's Americas Championship,2018 Summer Youth Olympics,2018 FIBA Under-17 Women's Basketball World Cup, and2019 FIBA Under-19 Women's Basketball World Cup winning gold each time, she was named MVP of the FIBA Americas U16 Championship. Boston also won gold at the2021 FIBA Women's AmeriCup.
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
| APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| TO | Turnovers per game | FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| Bold | Career best | ° | League leader |
| * | Denotes season(s) in which Boston won anNCAA Championship |
Stats current through end of 2025 season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Indiana | 40° | 40° | 31.2 | .578° | .400 | .745 | 8.4 | 2.2 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.9 | 14.5 |
| 2024 | Indiana | 40° | 40° | 30.9 | .529 | .269 | .736 | 8.9 | 3.2 | 0.9 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 14.0 |
| 2025 | Indiana | 44 | 44 | 30.2 | .538 | .207 | .762 | 8.2 | 3.7 | 1.2 | 0.9 | 1.8 | 15.0 |
| Career | 3 years, 1 team | 124 | 124 | 30.7 | .547 | .262 | .749 | 8.5 | 3.0 | 1.1 | 1.1 | 1.9 | 14.5 |
| All-Star | 3 | 2 | 15.2 | .563 | .143 | .000 | 6.3 | 1.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.7 | 6.3 |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Indiana | 2 | 2 | 32.5 | .577 | — | .750 | 15.0° | 3.0 | 0.5 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 16.5 |
| 2025 | Indiana | 8 | 8 | 31.5 | .441 | .111 | .680 | 11.4 | 4.1 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 1.9 | 12.5 |
| Career | 2 years, 1 team | 10 | 10 | 31.7 | .471 | .111 | .690 | 12.1 | 3.9 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 1.9 | 13.3 |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–20 | South Carolina | 33 | 33 | 23.8 | .608 | .167 | .738 | 9.4 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 2.6 | 1.1 | 12.5 |
| 2020–21 | South Carolina | 31 | 31 | 30.3 | .485 | .265 | .764 | 11.5 | 1.6 | 1.2 | 2.6 | 1.6 | 13.7 |
| 2021–22* | South Carolina | 37 | 37 | 27.5 | .542 | .292 | .771 | 12.5 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 2.4 | 1.5 | 16.8 |
| 2022–23 | South Carolina | 37 | 37 | 26.2 | .559 | .105 | .753 | 9.8 | 1.9 | .5 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 13.0 |
| Career | 138 | 138 | 27.2 | .546 | .242 | .759 | 10.8 | 1.7 | 1.0 | 2.4 | 1.4 | 14.1 |
Career
Senior (2022–23)
Junior (2021–22)
Sophomore (2020–21)
Freshman (2019–20)
Boston graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2023 with a degree in communications.[36] As of 2023 she planned to work in broadcast sports journalism after her playing career.[37]
She later joinedNBC Sports as a studio analyst for their Big Ten and Notre Dame women's basketball coverage after her rookie WNBA season.[citation needed]
In February 2024, Boston joined the WNBA Changemakers Collective and their collaboration with VOICEINSPORT (VIS) as a mentor, "aimed at keeping girls in sport and developing diverse leaders on the court and beyond the game."[38][39]
In October 2024, Boston appeared in aTikTok ad campaign for TOGETHXR andAflac alongside Fever teammate,Lexie Hull.[40][41] In July 2025, Boston joined the ownership group for theBoston Legacy FC.[42]
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