2023 WNBA Draft
General information
SportBasketball
Date(s)April 10, 2023
LocationSpring Studios New York
Manhattan, New York City
Network(s)United States: ESPN
Canada: TSN3/5
Overview
LeagueWNBA
Teams12
First selectionAliyah Boston, Indiana Fever

The 2023 WNBA (Women's National Basketball Association) Draft, the WNBA's draft for the 2023 WNBA season and 28th draft in WNBA history, was held following the 2022–23 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The 2023 draft took place at Spring Studios New York on April 10, 2023. It was exclusively televised on ESPN in the United States and on TSN3/5 in Canada.[1]

Draft lottery

The lottery selection to determine the order of the top four picks in the 2023 draft took place on November 11, 2022, and was televised on ESPN leading into ESPN's women's college basketball game that evening featuring defending National Champion South Carolina at Maryland.[2] The four non-playoff teams in 2022 qualified from the lottery drawing: Indiana Fever, Atlanta Dream, Los Angeles Sparks, and the Minnesota Lynx. The Sparks made a trade in February 2022 that allowed their pick to ultimately end up with the Washington Mystics at the time of the drawing. Each team had a representative at the lottery drawing - Kelsey Mitchell for the Fever, Head Coach Tanisha Wright for the Dream, Natasha Cloud for the Mystics, and Napheesa Collier for the Lynx. The Fever won the lottery for the first time in franchise history and were awarded the top pick in the draft. The rest of the order went as the following: Lynx, Dream, and Mystics.[3]

Lottery chances

Team Combined 2021–2022 record Lottery chances (out of 1,000)
Indiana Fever 11–57 442
Atlanta Dream 22–46 276
Washington Mystics (via the Los Angeles Sparks) 25–43 178
Minnesota Lynx 36–32 104

The lottery odds were based on combined records from the 2021 and 2022 WNBA seasons. In the drawing, 14 balls numbered 1–14 are placed in a lottery machine and mixed. Four balls are drawn to determine a four-digit combination (only 11–12–13–14 is ignored and redrawn). The team to which that four-ball combination is assigned receives the No. 1 pick. The four balls are then placed back into the machine and the process is repeated to determine the second pick. The two teams whose numerical combinations do not come up in the lottery will select in the inverse order of their two-year cumulative record. Ernst & Young knows the discreet results before they are announced.[4]

The order of selection for the remainder of the first round as well as the second and third rounds was determined by inverse order of the teams' respective regular-season records solely from 2022.

Eligibility

Under the current collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the WNBA and its players' union, draft eligibility for players not defined as "international" requires the following to be true:[5]

  • The player's 22nd birthday falls during the calendar year of the draft. For this draft, the cutoff birth date is December 31, 2001.
  • She has either:
    • completed her college eligibility;
    • received a bachelor's degree, or is scheduled to receive such in the 3 months following the draft; or
    • is at least 4 years removed from high school graduation.

A player who is scheduled to receive her bachelor's degree within 3 months of the draft date, and is younger than the cutoff age, is only eligible if the calendar year of the draft is no earlier than the fourth after her high school graduation.

Players with remaining college eligibility who meet the cutoff age must notify the WNBA headquarters of their intent to enter the draft no later than 10 days before the draft date, and must renounce any remaining college eligibility to do so. A separate notification timetable is provided for players involved in postseason tournaments (most notably the NCAA Division I tournament); those players (normally) must declare for the draft within 24 hours of their final game.

"International players" are defined as those for whom all of the following is true:

  • Born and currently residing outside the U.S.
  • Never "exercised intercollegiate basketball eligibility" in the U.S.

For "international players", the eligibility age is 20, also measured on December 31 of the year of the draft.

Draft invitees

On April 7, 2023, the WNBA released the names of the players who would be invited to be in attendance at the draft.[6]

Key

+ Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game
Bold Denotes player who won Rookie of the Year

Draft

First round

Pick Player Nationality Team School / club team
1 Aliyah Boston  United States Indiana Fever South Carolina
2 Diamond Miller  United States Minnesota Lynx Maryland
3 Maddy Siegrist  United States Dallas Wings (from Atlanta)[lower-alpha 1] Villanova
4 Stephanie Soares  Brazil Washington Mystics (from Los Angeles via Atlanta, traded to Dallas)[lower-alpha 2][lower-alpha 3][lower-alpha 4] Iowa State
5 Lou Lopez Sénéchal  Mexico/ France Dallas Wings (from Phoenix via Chicago)[lower-alpha 5][lower-alpha 6] UConn
6 Haley Jones  United States Atlanta Dream (from New York via Connecticut)[lower-alpha 7][lower-alpha 8] Stanford
7 Grace Berger  United States Indiana Fever (from Dallas)[lower-alpha 9] Indiana
8 Laeticia Amihere  Canada Atlanta Dream (from Washington)[lower-alpha 3] South Carolina
9 Jordan Horston  United States Seattle Storm Tennessee
10 Zia Cooke  United States Los Angeles Sparks (from Connecticut)[lower-alpha 10] South Carolina
11 Abby Meyers  United States Dallas Wings (from Chicago via Indiana)[lower-alpha 9] Maryland
12 Maïa Hirsch  France Minnesota Lynx (from Las Vegas)[lower-alpha 11] ESB Villeneuve-d'Ascq

Second round

Pick Player Nationality Team School / club team
13 Taylor Mikesell  United States Indiana Fever Ohio State
14 Shaneice Swain  Australia Los Angeles Sparks Cairns Dolphins
15 Leigha Brown  United States Atlanta Dream Michigan
16 Dorka Juhász  Hungary Minnesota Lynx UConn
17 LaDazhia Williams  United States Indiana Fever (from Phoenix)[lower-alpha 5] LSU
18 Madi Williams  United States Seattle Storm (from New York)[lower-alpha 12] Oklahoma
19 Ashley Joens  United States Dallas Wings Iowa State
20 Elena Tsineke  Greece Washington Mystics South Florida
21 Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu  Cameroon Seattle Storm South Florida
22 Alexis Morris  United States Connecticut Sun LSU
23 Kayana Traylor  United States Chicago Sky Virginia Tech
24 Brea Beal  United States Minnesota Lynx (from Las Vegas)[lower-alpha 11] South Carolina

Third round

Pick Player Nationality Team School / club team
25 Victaria Saxton  United States Indiana Fever South Carolina
26 Monika Czinano  United States Los Angeles Sparks Iowa
27 Destiny Harden  United States Phoenix Mercury (from Atlanta)[lower-alpha 13] Miami
28 Taylor Soule  United States Minnesota Lynx Virginia Tech
29 Kadi Sissoko  France Phoenix Mercury USC
30 Okako Adika  Denmark New York Liberty USC
31 Paige Robinson  United States Dallas Wings Illinois State
32 Txell Alarcón  Spain Washington Mystics Araski AES
33 Jade Loville  United States Seattle Storm Arizona
34 Ashten Prechtel  United States Connecticut Sun Stanford
35 Kseniya Malashka  Belarus Chicago Sky Middle Tennessee
36 Brittany Davis  United States Las Vegas Aces Alabama

Trades

  1. ↑ January 21, 2023: Atlanta to Dallas[7]
    • Atlanta acquired Allisha Gray
    • Dallas acquired 2023 and 2025 first-round picks
  2. ↑ February 5, 2022: Los Angeles to Atlanta[8]
  3. 1 2 April 6, 2022: Atlanta to Washington[9]
    • Atlanta acquired 2022 (1st overall) and 2023 first-round picks
    • Washington acquired 2022 first- and second-round picks (3rd and 14th overall), and option to swap its own 2023 first-round pick with the 2023 first-round pick Atlanta acquired from Los Angeles
  4. ↑ April 10, 2023: Washington to Dallas[10]
    • Dallas acquired the rights to Stephanie Soares
    • Washington acquired 2024 second-round and 2025 first-round picks (via Atlanta)
  5. 1 2 February 3, 2022: Three-team trade among Chicago, Indiana, and Phoenix[11]
    • Chicago acquired Julie Allemand from Indiana and a 2023 first-round pick from Phoenix
    • Indiana acquired Bria Hartley, 2022 first-round pick from Chicago, 2022 and 2023 second-round picks from Phoenix
    • Phoenix acquired Diamond DeShields
  6. ↑ February 11, 2023: Four-team trade among Chicago, Dallas, New York, and Phoenix[12]
    • Chicago acquired Marina Mabrey and a 2024 second-round pick (from Phoenix)
    • New York acquired rights to Leonie Fiebich, a 2024 second-round pick (from Chicago), and the right to swap 2025 first-round picks (from Phoenix)
    • Phoenix acquired Michaela Onyenwere, 2024 third-round pick (from Chicago), and 2025 second-round pick (from Chicago)
    • Dallas acquired Diamond DeShields, 2023 and 2024 first-round picks (from Chicago), and the right to swap 2025 first-round picks (from Chicago)
  7. ↑ January 16, 2023: Three-team trade among New York, Connecticut, and Dallas[13]
  8. ↑ February 9, 2023: Connecticut to Atlanta[14]
    • Connecticut acquired rights to Tiffany Hayes
    • Atlanta acquired a 2023 first-round pick (6th overall)
  9. 1 2 March 8, 2022: Indiana to Dallas[15]
    • Indiana acquired two 2022 first-round picks (4th and 6th) and a 2023 first-round pick
    • Dallas acquired Teaira McCowan, a 2022 first-round pick, and Chicago's 2023 first-round pick
  10. ↑ January 16, 2023: Connecticut to Los Angeles[16]
  11. 1 2 April 10, 2022: Las Vegas to Minnesota[17]
    • Vegas acquired a 2022 first- and second-round picks (8th and 13th overall)
    • Minnesota acquired 2023 first- and second-round picks
  12. ↑ April 11, 2022: New York to Seattle[18]
    • New York acquired Lorela Cubaj
    • Seattle acquired a 2023 second-round pick
  13. ↑ January 31, 2022: Atlanta to Phoenix[19]
    • Atlanta acquired Kia Vaughn
    • Phoenix acquired a 2023 third-round pick

See also

References

  1. ↑ "WNBA Draft 2023 Presented By State Farm To Be Held On April 10th". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved February 24, 2023.
  2. ↑ "WNBA Draft Lottery 2023 Presented By State Farm To Take Place Friday, NOV. 11". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
  3. ↑ Philippou, Alexa (11 November 2022). "Indiana Fever earn No. 1 pick in 2023 WNBA draft for first time". ESPN.com. ESPN. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
  4. ↑ "Napheesa Collier to Represent Minnesota Lynx at WNBA Draft Lottery 2023 Presented by State Farm". Minnesota Lynx. WNBA. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  5. ↑ "Article XIII, Section 1: Player Eligibility" (PDF). 2020 Women's National Basketball Association Collective Bargaining Agreement. Women's National Basketball Players Association. pp. 110–111. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  6. ↑ "South Carolina's Aliyah Boston, Maryland's Diamond Miller And Villanov's Maddy Siegrist Headline Prospects To Attend WNBA Draft 2023 Presented By State Farm". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  7. ↑ "Atlanta Dream Land Allisha Gray". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
  8. ↑ "Dream Acquire Erica Wheeler, 2023 First Round Pick and 2022 Second Round Pick in Trade with Sparks". WNBA. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Dream Lands 2022 Number One Overall Draft Pick". WNBA. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
  10. ↑ DBragaSports (April 10, 2023). "Stephanie Soares selected 4th overall in WNBA Draft". SBNation. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  11. ↑ "Mercury, Fever & Sky Complete Three-Team Trade". WNBA.com. March 3, 2022. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  12. ↑ "Chicago Sky Acquires Marina Mabrey in Four-Team Trade". WNBA.com. February 12, 2023. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Connecticut Sun Acquire Rebecca Allen, Tyasha Harris and the No. 6 Pick in a Three-Team Trade". Connecticut Sun. WNBA. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
  14. ↑ "Connecticut Sun Acquire Rights to Tiffany Hayes". Connecticut Sun. WNBA. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Fever Acquire Draft Picks in Trade with Dallas Wings". WNBA. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Sparks Acquire Guard Jasmine Thomas". sparks.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
  17. ↑ "Aces Acquire No. 8 and 13 picks from Minnesota". WNBA. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
  18. ↑ "New York Liberty Select Nyara Sabally, Lorela Cubaj and Sika Kone in 2022 WNBA Draft". WNBA. April 11, 2022. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
  19. ↑ Atlanta Dream PR [@ATLDreamPR] (January 31, 2022). "Transaction: Atlanta acquires Kia Vaughn in a trade with Phoenix in exchange for a 2023 third round draft pick" (Tweet). Retrieved November 13, 2022 – via Twitter.
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