Introduction
Teaira McCowan (born September 28, 1996; first name pronounced /tiːˈɛərə/ tee-AIR-uh) is an American professional basketball player with the Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association. She completed her college career with the Bulldogs of Mississippi State University in 2019.
2017–18
Following McCowan's junior season, she was named WBCA All-American, ESPNW First Team All-American and the Associated Press Third Team All-American. McCowan was also the inaugural winner of the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award.
2018–19
On January 10, 2019, McCowan was the projected first overall pick in the 2019 WNBA draft in an ESPN mock draft. However, this particular mock draft included only college seniors and eligible international players. Later that month, ESPN compiled another mock draft, this time including draft-eligible juniors, the most notable of whom was Oregon's Sabrina Ionescu. In this second mock draft, McCowan was projected as third, but with the caveat that "if Ionescu decides to stay and play her senior season at Oregon, the whole first round looks different." This qualification proved relevant as Ionescu announced that she would remain at Oregon for 2019–20.
On January 21, 2019, she was voted as the espnW national player of the week.
Professional career
McCowan was drafted by the Indiana Fever with the third pick of the 2019 WNBA Draft. In her first game for the Fever, she hit a buzzer-beating layup to deliver an 81-80 victory.
Personal
McCowan was born in Bryan, Texas and grew up in Brenham, Texas, where she graduated from Brenham High School. She is the daughter of Tracy Nunn and Dayronn McCowan.