Record-Breaking WNBA Draft caps dominant season

By Chris Marler

Every year the Women’s NCAA Tournament feels pretty chalky. The No. 1 seeds and higher seeded teams tend to coast to the first few rounds and very rarely do we see anyone without a one next to their name as the last one standing in the bracket, aside from 2023 LSU of course. 

With NIL and the portal coming into effect over the last few years, that has changed. Until this year. 

This past season was one of the most dominant years for teams at the top in women’s basketball. Blue bloods like UConn and South Carolina reached the Final Four again while new bloods like LSU dominated the television ratings. UCLA’s loaded roster of senior draft prospects ended up cutting down the nets. It was truly one of the most talent rich years in the history of women’s college basketball. 

That was on full display last night at the WNBA Draft where records were shattered and future growth for the game was on full display. Here’s a look at some of the numbers from Monday’s Draft. 

3: With Flau’Jae Johnson being drafted No. 8 overall, this is the third straight season that LSU has had a top ten pick in the WNBA Draft. 

7: LSU has seven WNBA draft picks in Kim Mulkey’s five seasons. 

5: UCLA, the 2026 national champion, broke a WNBA Draft record with an astonishing five players drafted in the first round of the draft (14 picks).

1: UConn’s Azzi Fudd was the No. 1 overall pick to the Dallas Wings. It was the second consecutive season a UConn player was picked No. 1 overall by Dallas. The other, Azzi’s girlfriend Paige Bueckers, was from a season ago. 

10: South Carolina had a player drafted for the tenth time in the last 12 years. They had three players selected overall and one first rounder.

$421,000: This year’s No. 1 overall pick will make a first year salary of $500,000. Thanks to the new collective bargaining agreement in the WNBA, that’s over $421,000 more than last year’s No. 1 overall pick was slotted to make.