WNBA Draft Lottery set for Dec. 10 with Indiana Fever holding best odds at No. 1 pick
Iowa star and National Player of the Year Caitlin Clark is projected to be the top pick in April, though she can return to the Hawkeyes for another season
The WNBA Draft Lottery is scheduled for Dec. 10 amid the Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase tripleheader, the league announced Tuesday.
The Indiana Fever, Los Angeles Sparks, Phoenix Mercury and Seattle Storm are the four teams that qualified for the WNBA Draft Lottery after missing the playoffs last season. Lottery odds are determined based on the teams' combined records over the past two seasons. The Fever have the best odds (about 44%) to earn the No. 1 pick after posting an 18-58 record, and they’re guaranteed at least the No. 3 overall pick.
The Mercury have the second-best odds (about 28%) at the No. 1 pick after their 24-52 record. The Sparks have about an 18% chance at the top pick, and the Storm have about a 10% chance.
The rest of the draft order is already set in reverse order of teams’ regular-season records from this past season only. The rest of the first round will go as follows:
5. Dallas Wings
6. Washington Mystics
7. Minnesota Lynx
8. Atlanta Dream
9. Dallas Wings
10. Connecticut Sun
11. New York Liberty
12 Los Angeles Sparks
The Wings received the No. 5 pick in a previous trade with the Chicago Sky. The Sparks received the No. 12 pick in a deal with the Las Vegas Aces, who won their second straight championship earlier this month.
Iowa guard and reigning National Player of the Year Caitlin Clark is a projected top pick in next year’s draft, though Clark is eligible to return to the Hawkeyes for a fifth season next season. UConn star Paige Bueckers, who is coming off an ACL injury, could be No. 2 even though she could stay at UConn through the 2025-26 season. Stanford forward Cameron Brink, UConn forward Aaliyah Edwards and LSU guard Hailey Van Lith round out the top five.
The lottery will take place at 4:30 p.m. ET that day, after the No. 5 Utah vs. No. 6 South Carolina game and before the No. 16 North Carolina vs. No. 2 UConn game — both of which are being played at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut. No. 18 Florida State vs. No. 4 UCLA is the third game in that event.
The actual WNBA Draft is set for April 15.
