Charisma Osbourne navigates bumpy road en route to first WNBA action
by Olivia Caesar
No one said it would be easy for Charisma Osborne.
But no one told the former UCLA women’s basketball standout that her journey to the WNBA would be filled with sleepless nights, gut-wrenching news and a twist ending either.
After being drafted by the Phoenix Mercury last month, Osborne’s professional career was in its infancy. That is, until she was unexpectedly cut by the Mercury prior to the finish of the WNBA preseason.
“I’ve wanted this since I was a kid,” the Moreno Valley native and recent Transformative Coaching and Leadership graduate had said following her third-round selection.
Just days later, she was back in the gym on her own, after being waived, hoping for a phone call from another WNBA team.
And that phone call did come. But once again, it came from an unexpected organization – the same one that crushed her heart less than a month prior.
This time they wanted her back.
Let’s rewind several weeks…
After a year of collegiate sport that saw women take center stage, it was no surprise that April 15th saw all eyes on New York as the 2024 WNBA draft got underway at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.
Every draft is filled in equal parts with nerves and excitement as players wait to find out if and where their dreams will become reality.
For Osborne, that dream was realized when she was drafted by the Mercury as the opening pick of the third round.
Her pilgrimage to the pros had been a long time in the making.
“And to have it finally happen is insane,” Osborne said the week of the draft.
A stalwart of the UCLA program the last five years, her final season in Westwood saw her ‘all-timer’ status cemented when she rose through the statistical ranks. Hitting the Lady Bruins’ No. 1 spot in 3-point field goals made, 3-point shots attempted, games played and games started. Osborne also vaulted her way into the Top Ten of nine other school benchmarks.
She headed to Phoenix for the preseason with an easy confidence in her ability, excited to bring her stellar defensive energy to the league. The Windward School (Los Angeles) product had proven her skills in the paint at Pauley Pavilion, showcasing her willingness to bring “anything my coach needs from me,” game after game for the Bruins.
It was a quick turnaround from draft day to preseason training camp, at which Osborne arrived on April 28th. She threw herself into training and preseason competitions, all the while soaking the opportunity to suit up alongside the franchise’s iconic veterans, among them, the likes of league champions Tasha Cloud, Kahleah Copper and Diana Taurasi.
“All three have been phenomenal players and leaders in the league and to be able to learn from them is going to be so much fun and it’s going to help me grow as a player,” Osborne noted.
Unfortunately, making a preseason WNBA roster doesn’t come with the security of a season-long contract like most might assume. Despite a solid preseason showing and putting points on the board in her first preseason appearance, Osborne was waived by the Mercury on May 12th, just days before the regular season began.
Disappointed, but still hopeful, she caught a flight back to California…
Back in Westwood, Osborne was finishing off her TCL coursework in person, knocking down shots in between classes, waiting to see if she might land a spot elsewhere in the league.
Developing her coaching and leadership philosophy through the TCL program, Osborne established her faith to be a key foundational principle. Through this setback in her career path, she leaned into her faith, noting she was “Trusting His timing, and His plan.”
And Osborne’s faith that her professional path would become clear was rewarded just three days before UCLA’s spring graduation when she was re-signed by the Phoenix Mercury – this time for the regular season. The week Osborne was supposed to put on a cap, gown, and hood to walk the stage at graduation, she instead donned the orange and purple of the Mercury, stepping out on the court at Phoenix’s Footprint Center for her first regular season game in the WNBA.
Being drafted may have been a dream come true for Osborne, but if the past month has made anything clear, it’s that this is only the beginning of an action-packed adventure for the McDonald’s All-American. Osborne’s professional journey has already seen trials and triumphs. Now that she’s headed back to the WNBA, she says she’s ready for the new challenges of the regular season.
“I’ve worked really hard and kept working hard for this moment,” Osborne notes. “So I’m thrilled to finally get the season rolling in Phoenix.”
The Phoenix Mercury have got a good one in Osborne and the Sonoran Desert certainly makes for a dramatic backdrop to a highly-anticipated, if slightly delayed, rookie season.
For Bruin fans, there’s plenty to keep track of this summer with Osborne set to take on 11 UCLA alumni on WNBA rosters. Osborne earned her undergraduate degree in Political Science from UCLA. She was named the LA Times’ Player of the Year three times after leading Windward School (Los Angeles) to a pair of Southern Section Open Division girls’ championships. Presented with the John R. Wooden High School Player of the Year Award for the CIF Southern Section Open Division, Osborne was a four-year honor roll student. A Pac-12 All-Freshman Team selection, she was also a Naismith Trophy Midseason Team honoree in 2021 and earned All-Pac-12 distinction every year as a Bruin.
Learn more about UCLA’s Transformative Coaching and Leadership Master of Education program.