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WNBA draft 2023: Date, time, TV, streaming, first-round order and key players to watch

ellen j. horrow, usa today
·5 min read
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Following an exciting and record-setting women's college basketball season, which culminated in the most watched NCAA women's championship game in history, it's time to turn our attention to the pros. Specifically the WNBA, which holds its 27th draft on Monday.

Indiana holds the No. 1 pick for the first time in franchise history, and the Fever will also have a chance to bolster their roster with the seventh overall pick. The Dallas Wings, meanwhile, have an opportunity to reconstruct their team with three first-round picks, including two in the top five. The Atlanta Dream and Minnesota Lynx will also select twice in the first round.

The draft consists of three rounds.

Here is all the information you need to get ready for the 2023 WNBA draft:

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When is the 2023 WNBA draft?

The draft will be held Monday, April 10 at Spring Studios in New York, beginning at 7 p.m. ET.

What TV channel is the 2023 WNBA draft on?

ESPN will televise the draft with Ryan Ruocco (host), Rebecca Lobo (analyst), LaChina Robinson (analyst) and Holly Rowe (reporter) on the broadcast.

Will there be a live stream of the 2023 WNBA draft?

The draft can be streamed on the ESPN website and the ESPN app.

What is the first-round draft order?

  • 1. Indiana Fever

  • 2. Minnesota Lynx

  • 3. Dallas Wings (from Atlanta Dream)

  • 4. Washington Mystics (from Los Angeles Sparks)

  • 5. Dallas Wings (from Phoenix Mercury)

  • 6. Atlanta Dream (from New York Liberty)

  • 7. Indiana Fever (from Dallas Wings)

  • 8. Atlanta Dream (from Washington Mystics)

  • 9. Seattle Storm

  • 10. Los Angeles Sparks (from Connecticut Sun)

  • 11. Dallas Wings (from Chicago Sky)

  • 12. Minnesota Lynx (from Las Vegas Aces)

Who are some key players to watch in the WNBA draft?

The only sure thing about the 2023 WNBA draft is that South Carolina forward-center Aliyah Boston, the consensus national player of the year last season, will be taken with the No. 1 overall pick. The only other near certainty is that plenty of Boston's teammates will also be selected Monday night.

South Carolina Gamecocks forward Aliyah Boston is almost certain to be the No. 1 pick in the 2023 WNBA draft.
South Carolina Gamecocks forward Aliyah Boston is almost certain to be the No. 1 pick in the 2023 WNBA draft.

Four other Gamecocks, who along with Boston won the 2022 national championship and helped South Carolina reach its third consecutive Final Four this month, have declared for the draft — F Laeticia Amihere, G Brea Beal, G Zia Cooke and F Victaria Saxton — and one or more could join Boston as first-round selections. Add in G Kierra Fletcher, who played for South Carolina in the 2022-23 season as a graduate student after four years at Georgia Tech, and the 2023 draft could be a monumental one for the Gamecocks.

But there will be plenty of other great athletes for the 12 teams to choose from. Among the other players to watch:

► G Diamond Miller: One of the most pro-ready players, she led Maryland to the Elite Eight after averaging 19.7 and 6.4 rebounds in her senior season.

► F Madison Siegrist: The nation's leading scorer with 29.2 points per game led Villanova to the Sweet 16 for the first time in 20 years.

► G Haley Jones: The versatile guard is an excellent passer and rebounder and won a national championship with Stanford in 2021.

► G Jordan Horston: One of only two Tennessee players all time to finish with at least 1,000 points, 700 rebounds and 400 assists for the Lady Vols.

► C Stephanie Soares: Tore her ACL just 13 games into Iowa State's 2022-23 season — her only one with the Cyclones after four years in the NAIA — but is a monster in the paint.

► F/G Ashley Joens: A three-time Cheryl Miller Award winner as the nation's best small forward, the Big 12 Player of the Year finished as Iowa State all-time leading scorer.

► G/F Lou Lopez Sénéchal: UConn's second-leading scorer and best three-point shooter this season became a primetime player on a team decimated by injuries.

► G Alexis Morris: The fifth-year senior, who averaged 15.4 points in 2022-23 and 24 ppg in the Final Four, led LSU to its first national championship.

► G Taylor Mikesell: A deadly three-point shooter, Ohio State's leading scorer in 2022-23 led the Buckeyes to their first Elite Eight in 30 years.

Who won't be in the WNBA draft?

If you are looking for some of the stars that made a big splash in the NCAA Tournament —  like Iowa's Caitlin Clark or LSU's Angel Reese — you'll have to wait at least one more year, if not two.

Clark, Reese, Virginia Tech's Georgia Amoore, Louisville's Hailey Van Lith, Stanford's Cameron Brink and Connecticut's Paige Bueckers were all juniors academically and have at least one more year of eligibility — if not two, if they decide to take advantage of the extra year the NCAA granted in 2021 because of COVID. Bueckers, technically, could have as much as three years of eligibility remaining since she missed her entire junior season after tearing the ACL in her left knee.

Three seniors who saw their stock rise in the NCAA Tournament did opt to take advantage of the extra COVID year and return to college for a fifth year. Virginia Tech center Elizabeth Kitley, a second-team AP All-American and the ACC Player of the Year, led the Hokies to their first ever Final Four and hopes to duplicate that feat; Ohio State guard Jacy Sheldon will be back in Columbus next year after leading the Buckeyes to the Elite Eight; and guard Charisma Osborne returns to UCLA after leading the Bruins in scoring and rebounding in 2022-23 and a berth in the Sweet 16.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: WNBA draft 2023: Time, TV, streaming, first-round order, key players