Who is Sarah Ashlee Barker? Get to know the newest Sparks draft pick

Here is a profile on the latest Sparks star, Sarah Ashlee Barker.

With the No. 9 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft, the Los Angeles Sparks selected Sarah Ashlee Barker from Alabama.

While Barker might not have been a lottery pick or have a household name like Paige Bueckers, the wing has a game that speaks loudly.

Here is a breakdown of everything you need to know about the latest member of the Sparks family.

Barker played five years of college basketball, and while she made her biggest impact with Alabama, she began her career at the University of Georgia. As a Lady Bulldog, she showed early signs of her promise, averaging 6.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.

She played for the Crimson Tide for three seasons. She wasn’t just representing Alabama on the court; that is her home. She was born in Birmingham, and that passion and fire she played with helped make her one of the best players in the country.

Barker absorbed knowledge like a sponge in Alabama. She improved every season and ended her senior year averaging 18.2 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game.

Despite her growth, before the start of the NCAA Tournament, mock drafts still didn’t have her as a lock as a first round selection.

It wasn’t until her collegiate finale, a 45-point masterpiece in the second round of the tourney, that the entire basketball world took notice.

Barker set an Alabama women’s basketball scoring record in their double overtime loss to Maryland, but even more impressive than her point total was how clutch she was in that game.

With 0.7 seconds left and down by three, she had a trio of free throws to make to force another overtime and she knocked down each shot with ice in her veins.

After the draft, Sparks general manager Raegan Pebley discussed her conversation with Barker regarding those clutch-time free throws.

“She talked about stepping up and hitting those three free throws, Pebley said. “And how she knew going into that, that if it was a part of God’s plan, she was going to hit them, if it wasn’t; she was going to be okay and she was going to continue to be the person that she needed to be and still, love on her family and her teammates and her university, all of that. Her humility was definitely something. To find people who are humble while still remaining confident and assertive and aggressive, is sometimes harder than you think. And we love that about her.”

This performance was the apex of Barker’s collegiate career and another example that, despite progress not always being linear, her star was ever rising.

For Sparks fans, adding another player on the wing who can be a scoring threat must be encouraging. She has shown an ability to improve year in and year out and is coming into a system under new head coach Lynne Roberts that will attempt to maximize her potential, adding her to their young core of Cameron Brink, Rickea Jackson and Rae Burrell.

With Los Angeles also adding star Kelsey Plum this offseason, 2025 is off to a good start for the Sparks and Barker is now a part of this road back to the playoffs for this legacy franchise.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.