Picking No. 1 overall in the WNBA Draft for the second-straight year, the Dallas Wings again turned to Storrs, CT and selected a UConn Husky: Azzi Fudd.
Reunited with Paige Bueckers, Fudd is the seventh Husky to be the top selection in a WNBA draft. Here’s more on how the rest of draft night unfolded, including a brief evaluation of all 15 first-round picks.
Share your thoughts about all the picks, your favorite fits (both on the court and on the carpet) and more in the comments.
1. Dallas Wings: Azzi Fudd (UConn)
The Wings’ flurry of
free agency moves hinted that Fudd was going to be the pick, as Dallas (over)spent to create a roster ready to accommodate her near-automatic 3-point shooting. Fudd might not profile as the high-upside offensive primary that usually is worthy of a No. 1 pick. Dallas, however, doesn’t need that from her.
2. Minnesota Lynx: Olivia Miles (TCU)
Even after inking Courtney Williams to a two-year regular-max contract and seeing much of their frontcourt depart in free agency, the Lynx locked in on Olivia Miles. Miles makes sense as the point guard of the future in Minnesota. But there’s also a place for her in the present, whether operating as a secondary ball handler next to Williams, as long as her 3-point shooting translates, or assuming primary responsibilities as Williams shifts back in the secondary role. Head coach Cheryl Reeve also must be confident she can coax better defense out of Miles.
3. Seattle Storm: Awa Fam (Spain)
The potential is high than the Space Needle! The re-tooling Storm must be thrilled to pair the 6-foot-6 Fam with the 6-foot-6 Dominique Malonga, a futuistic frontcourt that has the chance of becoming the foundation of the next Seattle dynasty.
4. Washington Mystics: Lauren Betts (UCLA)
Drafting Betts creates (another) frontcourt crowd in Washington, especially after the Mystics matched the restricted free agent offer sheet tendered to Shakira Austin. But, Betts was the best available. In DC, she also gets to slot in to a reasonable role, serving as a third big who fulfills the traditional rim protection archetype and alleviating Betts of too-high expectations.
5. Chicago Sky: Gabriela Jaquez (UCLA)
The renovated Sky go with Jacquez, a jack-of-all trades who can fill multiple roles. While her winning habits will be valuable in Chicago, the Sky need the lights-out 3-point shooting she demonstrated in the first half of her senior season to translate to the WNBA level.
6. Toronto Tempo: Kiki Rice (UCLA)
The Tempo’s inaugural roster already includes a surfeit of ball handlers. Yet, Rice’s track record suggests she can function alongside all of them, until it’s time for her to eventually take the controls. The credit Rice has received for being the culture changer at UCLA, which culminated in a championship, also had to appeal to the expansion team.
7. Portland Fire: Iyana Martín (Spain)
This selection is consistent with the strategy Portland demonstrated with their expansion draft selections, where fit with the team’s playing style and offensive system, along with international experience, is prioritized. Martín could form a dynamic, albeit a bit small, backcourt with Carla Leite .
8. Golden State Valkyries: Flau’Jae Johnson (LSU) [TRADED to Seattle Storm]
Golden State general manager Ohemaa Nyanin revealed after the draft that the two teams agreed to this swap before the Valkyries made the pick, as Seattle was looking to move up, presumably with their eyes on Johnson. (Seattle sent the No. 16 pick, Marta Suárez, and a 2028 second-round pick back to Golden State.) Flau’Jae enhances the high-upside team that the Storm are seeking to build, introducing scoring self-creation from the perimeter to complement a Fam-Malonga frontcourt.
9. Washington Mystics: Angela Dugalić (UCLA)
Rather than picking a prospect with more star potential, Washington, already overflowing with hoped-for stars, went with a perfect role player in Dugalić. With international experience on top of her collegiate record, she can slide in right away as a lower-usage contributor who can defend, shoot and take care of other dirty work.
10. Indiana Fever: Raven Johnson (South Carolina)
This might be the best fits of the draft. Johnson introduces needed perimeter defense to Indiana, while also possessing the point guard instincts that will enhance the Fever’s fast-paced transition offense. The 3-point progress Raven demonstrated over the course of her South Carolina career, however, needs to be real for her to really be a hit for Indy.
11. Washington Mystics: Cotie McMahon (Ole Miss)
The already crowded DC frontcourt gets another entrant in McMahon. She, however, adds an outside shooting and creation element, as she is more adept at operating from the perimeter with the ball in her hands. At the same time, she increases the team’s interior physicality, as a rotation of McMahon, Austin and Kiki Iriafen will be ready to bang with all comers.
12. Connecticut Sun: Nell Angloma (France)
Going all in on upside of a French teenager is smart for the rebuilding Sun, especially considering the success they’ve experienced with Leïla Lacan. Expect Angloma’s transition to the WNBA to be slower and bumpier than Lacan’s, as she needs refined skills, in addition to her ready-to-go hustle and high effort, to hang at this level.
13. Atlanta Dream: Madina Okot (South Carolina)
Head coach Karl Smesko wants bigs that shoot 3s, and there’s no better bet than Okot. Light on basketball experience, she has the opportunity to reach her full potential in the Dream’s developmental system, from cultivating her 3-point shooting and face-up game on offense and shoring up her rim protection on defense. More immediately, she adds true size to the Atlanta frontcourt.
14. Seattle Storm: Taina Mair (Duke)
Mair might have been the most surprising first-round selection, as her physical profile, 5-foot-9 without outlier athleticism, and statistical markers, average 3-point shooting and an unremarkable assist-to-turnover ratio, do not scan as WNBA caliber. However, she spent three seasons learning from Duke head coach Kara Lawson, a tutelage that suggests that she’s ready to find a way to make an impact a positive impact in Seattle.
15. Connecticut Sun: Gianna Kneepkens (UCLA)
Kneepkens fills an obvious need for a young Sun team stocked with players who attack the basket: floor spacing. An elite 3-point shooter, the threat of her triple can open up opportunities for her teammates. She’s also capable of taking advantage of hard closeouts, putting the ball on the floor and rising into midrangers. The concerns about her foot speed on the defensive end can also be mitigated by her athletic teammates.
Second round
- Seattle Storm: Marta Suárez (TCU) [TRADED to Golden State Valkyries]
- Portland Fire: Frieda Bühner (Germany)
- Connecticut Sun: Charlisse Leger-Walker (UCLA)
- Washington Mystics: Cassandre Prosper (Notre Dame)
- Los Angeles Sparks: Ta’Niya Latson (South Carolina)
- Chicago Sky: Latasha Lattimore (Ole Mis)
- Toronto Tempo: Teonni Key (Kentucky)
- Golden State Valkyries: Ashlon Jackson (Duke)
- Los Angeles Sparks: Chance Gray (Ohio State)
- Indiana Fever: Justine Pissott (Vanderbilt)
- Toronto Tempo: Saffron Shiels (Australia)
- Phoenix Mercury: Ines Pitarch-Granel (France)
- Atlanta Dream: Indya Nivar (North Carolina)
- Las Vegas Aces: Janiah Barker (Tennessee)
- Washington Mystics: Darianna Littlepage-Buggs (Baylor)
Third round
- Dallas Wings: Zee Spearman (Tennessee)
- Chicago Sky: Tonie Morgan (Kentucky)
- Connecticut Sun: Serah Williams (UConn) [TRADED to Portland Fire]
- Washington Mystics: Rori Harmon (Texas)
- Los Angeles Sparks: Amelia Hassett (Kentucky)
- Toronto Tempo: Charlise Dunn (Davidson)
- Portland Fire: Taylor Bigby (TCU) [TRADED to Connecticut Sun]
- Golden State Valkyries: Kokoro Tanaka (Japan)
- Seattle Storm: Grace VanSlooten (Michigan State)
- Indiana Fever: Jessica Timmons (Alabama)
- New York Liberty: Manuela Puoch (Australia)
- Phoenix Mercury: Eszter Ratkai (Hungary)
- Atlanta Dream: Keija Ran (China)
- Las Vegas Aces: Jordan Obi (Kentucky)
- Minnesota Lynx: Lani White (Utah)
