She was once a basketball player for Washington High School, then she moved on to Notre Dame. Now she has been declared the WNBA’s most improved player. The WNBA has officially acknowledged that Skylar Diggins, guard for the Tulsa Shocks, has come a long way.

The Chicago Tribune described her as struggling on a “weak team”. They pointed out that her scoring average more than doubled this season: 8.5 to 20.1. Her team this season did not improve as much as she did. Last year the Shocks were 11-23. This year they were 12-22. Both times they were in last place for the West, missing the playoffs in the process.

According to the South Bend Tribune, Diggins was number three in the overall draft pick of 2013. The panel described as “national and local sportswriters and broacasters”, voted to name her the WNBA’s most improved player, 29 out of 38.

Thank you to my inner circle for always having my side….I'm so blessed. The best is yet to come… pic.twitter.com/zTC7RWZGBp

— Skylar Diggins (@SkyDigg4) August 27, 2014

Diggins caught some publicity back in February by posing for the Sports Illustrated 50th Anniversary Swimsuit Issue. “I didn’t really know how I was going to approach modeling swimsuits,” she said, “I had never modeled in a swimsuit before. As the shoot went along, I got more and more comfortable. That really helped me get some great shots.”

Check out the Top 10 plays of the 2014 WNBA Most Improved Player @SkyDigg4: http://t.co/QLYMzCknsf

— WNBA (@WNBA) August 27, 2014

Even though her professional career is just beginning, the player has received so much recognition for her contributions to the sport. Her alma matter, Notre Dame, even has a plaque in her honor placed in the woman’s basketball section of Heritage Hall.