This past Monday, we attended the 2023 WNBA Draft in New York City, joining 36 hopefuls looking to land on a team roster. Last week I shared a forecast of what many expected, especially with South Carolina’s, Aliyah Boston, being called on as the first pick. And that’s exactly what happened. With the first pick, the Indiana Fever called Aliyah Boston’s name, which was met with a very enthusiastic response from the crowd. Also, as expected, the Minnesota Lynx drafted Maryland’s, Diamond Miller, as the second overall pick.
Rounding out the Top 5, Villanova’s, Maddy Siegrist, landed in Dallas with the Wings, along with Iowa State’s, Stephanie Soares – who was the fourth overall pick by Washington Mystics, and later traded to Dallas. UConn’s, Lou Senechal, rounded out the Top 5, also landing a spot in Dallas. Needless to say, the Dallas Wings came up BIG in the WNBA Draft!
Another notable from the evening was the unexpected landing of Brea Beal from South Carolina. Beal was projected to be a Top 10 pick, however, she fell all the way to the No. 24 overall pick. The Minnesota Lynx was able to call her name at the end of the second round.
Check out some quotes from the evening, along with my quick Reels recap.
WNBA Commissioner, Cathy Engelbert – on Brittany Griner: “Nothing more important than having Brittany Griner back here, and to have her return to the game that she loves.”
– on college seniors using 5th-year eligibility: “I totally understand it, and the opportunities to stay in college but again, I think we’re gonna have such depth in our next draft classes. So I’m not worried. I think it’s great these players have these options.”
– on expanding the League: “I believe that we needed more transformation in the League economics. The evaluations and our assets are going up. It’s the patch, the logo on the court, an ad buy. Now it’s time to get into the due diligence phase to see what an expansion draft looks like.”
“Basketball is on the rise for women” – Laeticia Amihere, (No. 8 Atlanta Dream)
“I’ve experienced a lot of winning throughout my college career. And I’m setting that as the standard in my professional career in Atlanta.” – Haley Jones, (No. 6 Atlanta Dream)
