The 2019 WNBA Draft is complete. The Las Vegas Aces, picking No. 1 overall for the third straight year, took Jackie Young out of Notre Dame. Coming off a loss in the national championship game, Young decided to forego her final year of eligibility. Tonight that proved to be a wise decision.
First Round Draft Picks
No. 1 overall pick: The Las Vegas Aces selected Jackie Young out of Notre Dame
Young is a big guard, who is very versatile, can get to the basket, rebound, play defense and more. She’s more of a wing player, who many consider less of a pure scorer than Durr. Young is also a couple inches taller. She put up better numbers in college as a rebounder and as a passer. She’ll likely play at small forward, since the Aces have an All-Star at shooting guard in Kayla McBride. Assuming she does make the starting lineup, Vegas will form a first five that includes the past three number-one overall picks, including Young, Wilson, and Plum.
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With the No. 2 pick: The New York Liberty selected Asia Durr, Louisville
Durr averaged 21.2 points per game during her senior season. It means she’ll go down with the fourth-highest scoring average in Louisville history. Her selection followed a four-year career filled with awards and accomplishments. This included four NCAA Tournament appearances, three Sweet 16s, two Elite Eights, a Final Four, back-to-back ACC Player of the Year honors, designated as the nation’s best shooting guard in 2018-19 and finishing as Louisville’s No. 2 all-time scorer behind McCoughtry.
With the No. 3 pick: The Indiana Fever selected Teaira McCowan, Mississippi State
Once on the clock, Indiana immediately made 6′ 7″ Teaira McCowan the No. 3 overall pick. McCowan led Mississippi State with 18.4 points and 13.5 rebounds per game in her senior season. She also scored at a school record 66.2% clip from the floor.
With the No. 4 pick: The Chicago Sky selected Katie Lou Samuelson, UConn
The 6’3 guard is able to get her shot off in an instant, create for others, and use her size to snag boards down low. She has all of the talents in place to become a WNBA all-star. In four years at UConn, she averaged 41 percent from deep, and 84 percent from the foul line. Her jumper is already elite.
With the No. 5 pick: The Dallas Wings selected Arike Ogunbowale, Notre Dame
Guard Arike Ogunbowale was the second Notre Dame player to be drafted. In this season’s Final Four she had 23 points in a win over Connecticut, and a game-high 31 points in the national title game against Baylor.
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With the No. 6 pick: The Minnesota Lynx selected Napheesa Collier, UConn
Collier averaged a double-double this season and led the Huskies to the Final Four, averaging 20.8 points per game. The 6-2 senior won the American Athletic Conference’s player of the year and top defensive player of the year awards this season.
With the No. 7 pick: The Los Angeles Sparks selected Kalani Brown, Baylor
After a season in which the Baylor big saw her team lose only one game and roll through the competition in the NCAA tournament and be crowned national champions, it’s been quite the senior year for her.
With the No. 8 pick: The Phoenix Mercury selected Alanna Smith, Stanford
The 6-foot-4 Smith was one of two collegiate women’s basketball players to average 19 points, eight rebounds and two blocks per game this season. She finished 10th on Stanford’s career scoring list and second in blocks to go along with 155 career 3-pointers. The only other collegians since 1999-00 to finish their careers with 1,600 points, 150 3-pointers and 200 blocks are now WNBA stars Elena Delle Donne, Maya Moore and Breanna Stewart.
With the No. 9 pick: The Connecticut Sun selected Kristine Anigwe, California
Anigwe was the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year her senior season. She averaged a team-high 22.5 points and 16.2 rebounds. She was a four-time All-American at Cal, and set a Pac-12 record with 33 straight double-doubles. Anigwe finished her career by scoring 32 points and grabbing 30 rebounds against Washington State.
With the No. 10 pick: The Washington Mystics selected Kiara Leslie, North Carolina State
Leslie averaged 15.9 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game for the Wolfpack in the 2018-19 season and was a regular starter in her two years with the Wolfpack. NC State went on a nation-high 21-game win streak to start last season as well and ultimately went to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.
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With the No. 11 pick: The Atlanta Dream selected Brianna Turner, Notre Dame
Turner was out with an ACL injury for the championship winning season. She averaged 14.3 points this past season with Notre Dame. She’s a good fit to compliment Griner there.
With the No. 12 pick: The Seattle Storm selected Ezi Magbegor, Australia
Eziyoda “Ezi” Magbegor is an Australian basketball player. Born in Wellington, New Zealand to Nigerian parents, Magbegor moved to Australia with her family at age six. One of Australian basketball’s most promising talents, she has already been compared as the next Lauren Jackson.
Second Round Draft Picks
13. Phoenix Mercury selected Sophie Cunningham, Missouri
14. New York Liberty selected Han Xu, China
15. Chicago Sky selected Chloe Jackson, Baylor
16. Minnesota Lynx selected Jessica Shepard, Notre Dame
17. Dallas Wings selected Megan Gustafson, Iowa
18. Minnesota Lynx selected Natisha Hiedeman, Marquette
19. Los Angeles Sparks selected Marina Mabrey, Notre Dame
20. Minnesota Lynx selected Cierra Dillard, Buffalo
21. Connecticut Sun selected Bridget Carleton, Iowa State
22. Dallas Wings selected Kennedy Burke, UCLA
23. Atlanta Dream selected Maite Cazorla, Oregon
24. Seattle Storm selected Anriel Howard, Mississippi State
Third Round Draft Picks
25. Indiana Fever selected Paris Kea, North Carolina
26. New York Liberty selected Megan Huff, Utah
27. Chicago Sky selected Maria Conde, Spain
28. Indiana Fever selected Caliya Robinson, Georgia
29. Dallas Wings selected Morgan Berstch, UC Davis
30. Minnesota Lynx selected Kenisha Bell, Minnesota
31. Los Angeles Sparks selected Angela Salvadores, Spain
32. Phoenix Mercury selected Arica Carter, Louisville
33. Connecticut Sun selected Regan Magarity, Virginia Tech
34. Washington Mystics selected Sam Fuehring, Louisville
35. Atlanta Dream selected Li Yueru, China
36. Seattle Storm selected Macy Miller, South Dakota State
WNBA Draft Day Trades:
- The Atlanta Dream traded draft rights for Brianna Turner (No. 11 overall pick) to the Phoenix Mercury for Marie Gulich
- The Minnesota Lynx traded draft rights for Natisha Hiedeman (No. 18 overall pick) to the Connecticut Sun for Lexie Brown
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