Kaya Wagner
Staff Writer
An average of 1.25 million, peaking at 1.46 million, viewers tuned in to the WNBA draft Monday night, marking 2025 as the second-most watched WNBA draft of all time.
The draft started as expected with the Dallas Wings using their No. 1 pick to select UConn’s Paige Bueckers. A move that only adds to Bueckers’ 2025 success after she capped off her college career by winning the NCAA championship with the Huskies. This move is also likely to increase attendance and viewership for the Wings throughout this upcoming season.
The top ten picks then featured three international stars, with French player Dominique Malonga going to the Seattle Storm as pick No. 2, Lithuanian player Justė Jocytė becoming the Golden State Valkyries’ first-ever pick at No. 5, and Chicago Sky’s No. 10 pick selecting Slovakian player Ajša Sivka.
Throughout the three-round draft, the SEC led all NCAA conferences, with 10 players drafted. Meanwhile, the Big Ten had seven, the ACC had six, and the Big 12 had five.
The major shock of the night came when Sedona Prince, center of the Big 12 champion TCU, was not selected in any of the three rounds. While there is still a possibility of Prince competing in the WNBA, it is possible that she would be invited to a camp prior to the May 16 start of the season. Many factors apply towards her likely not competing, with her age (she will turn 25 prior to the start of the season), her lengthy college career (first enrolling in 2018), and her injury history all being concerns for potential WNBA teams. The biggest concern for the WNBA is Prince’s past allegations of sexual assault and intimate partner violence, all of which the TCU player has denied and never been charged with.
This year also featured two audience members getting drafted, with Kaitlyn Chen being picked by the Valkyries at No. 30, and Aubrey Griffin being drafted at No. 37 to the Minnesota Lynx. Both were in the audience to support their UConn teammate and No. 1 pick Bueckers.
While being drafted is an amazing career feat for most players, it is no guarantee of making a team. Draftees still may be cut, but will benefit from being cut sooner, rather than later, because then these players have a chance to join and play for another team.
Several changes may occur before the May 16 WNBA start, but rookie players to watch for throughout the season include Wings’ No. 1 pick Bueckers and the Storm’s No. 2 pick Malonga, both of whom are likely to make headlines throughout the season. LSU’s Aneesah Morrow (No. 7 pick, going to the Connecticut Sun) is also a player to watch for, drawing comparisons with last year’s No. 7 pick Angel Reese, and her successful rookie season with the Chicago Sky. Fans also look forward to Hailey Van Lilth and her reuniting in the Sky with former LSU teammate Reese.
38 athletes were drafted in total, with the Dallas Wings and the Washington Mystics leading with five picks each. Fans will now anxiously await the May 16 WNBA kickoff to see which rookies make a debut with their teams.
