Bueckers brought the NCAA championship trophy back home to Storrs, Connecticut, caught up with Savannah Guthrie and Willie Geist on the “Today” show and crashed Jimmy Fallon’s “The Tonight Show” in New York City.
Next was the 2025 WNBA draft, where Bueckers was taken with the No. 1 overall pick Monday night by the Dallas Wings.
Just eight days after the 2024-25 women’s college basketball season concluded with the Huskies defeating the South Carolina Gamecocks, the next generation of superstars are set to enter the league, and many of them were at The Shed at Hudson Yards in New York City to hear their name called during the draft.
2025 WNBA draft grades: Who aced the night?
WNBA teams across the country added new talent to their rosters Monday night at the 2025 WNBA draft ahead of regular-season openers on May 16. Spectacular names like UConn’s Paige Bueckers, USC’s Kiki Iriafen, LSU’s Aneesah Morrow and TCU star Hailey Van Lith were called, along with so many other phenomenal athletes. Meghan L. Hall of For The Win (part of the USA TODAY Network) graded each first-round pick as they were revealed. See here grades below, and click here for her full analysis:
1. Dallas Wings: Paige Bueckers — Grade A+
Bueckers is a slam-dunk pick. She’s the most efficient player in the draft and the most pro-ready.
2. Seattle Storm: Dominique Malonga — Grade A
French center Dominique Malonga is one of the smoothest post-players in the entire 2025 draft class
3. Washington Mystics: Sonia Citron — Grade B+
Citron’s numbers aren’t flashy on the court, but what she does very well is score when asked (including from beyond the arc) and get after it defensively.
4. Washington Mystics: Kiki Iriafen — Grade B
Iriafen should provide immediate depth and rim protection to the Mystics frontcourt.
5. Golden State Valkyries: Justė Jocytė — Grade B+
Jocytė, 19, has a high basketball IQ that is far beyond most players her age.
6. Washington Mystics: Georgia Amoore — Grade C
While Amoore plays much larger than her 5-foot-6 size, it’s a cause for concern at the WNBA level.
7. Connecticut Sun: Aneesah Morrow — Grade B+
At 6-foot-1, Morrow is a board master, grabbing everything within her reach.
8. Connecticut Sun: Saniya Rivers — Grade A
Rivers’ length and size give her a rare combination and make her a prime candidate to be a guard or a forward.
9. Los Angeles Sparks: Sarah Ashlee Barker — Grade B+
Barker’s March Madness performance against Maryland — when she finished with 45 points in double overtime — catapulted her to the top of draft boards.
10. Chicago Sky: Ajša Sivka — Grade C+
Chicago could stash Slovenian forward Ajša Sivka for later use, and she helps a roster that wants to be in win-now mode but is still somewhat rebuilding.
11. Chicago Sky: Hailey Van Lith — Grade B
Van Lith got another fairytale story by reuniting former LSU teammate Angel Reese, and the pair could cause a lot of problems for opposing defenses once they re-establish their connection.
12. Dallas Wings: Aziaha James — Grade A
The Wings should enjoy that James is a player who can explode offensively at any moment, and she should provide Dallas with some much-needed relief off the bench.
2025 WNBA Draft winners and losers
The newest class of WNBA rookies has arrived. Here’s a look at the full list of winners and losers of the 2025 WNBA Draft:
Winner: Dallas Wings
Any team that lands a generational talent like Paige Bueckers is considered a winner in our book. She will team up with Arike Ogunbowale to form a dangerous backcourt in Dallas. The Wings also picked up Aziaha James out of NC State in the first round.
Winner: UConn
It was no surprise that Buckers was first off the board. After she was drafted No. 1 overall by the Wings, Bueckers turned the spotlight back onto her Huskies teammates who were pivotal in UConn’s title run.
Loser: Las Vegas Aces
You usually won’t find the ‘Aces’ and ‘losers’ in the same sentence as Las Vegas has won two of the last three WNBA titles, but the Aces landed themselves on this list after missing out on the first-round talent due to violating league rules regarding player benefits.
Winner: International players
As the global game continues to grow, so do the number of international players in the WNBA and NBA. It was a big night for overseas superstars.
Winner: Washington Mystics
After a relatively quiet offseason, the Mystics’ new GM Jamila Wideman and head coach Sydney Johnson took their first steps toward rebuilding their future with three first-rounders — yes, you read that right.
Loser: South Carolina
The Gamecocks had to wait a little longer to hear their name. Despite being projected first-round picks, South Carolina’s Sania Feagin and Te-Hina Paopao both dropped to the second round.
Winner: Coach
The only thing bigger than Paige Bueckers’ bag of basketball skills is the actual Coach bag she wore on the WNBA Draft’s Orange Carpet. The WNBA announced a multiyear partnership with Coach on Monday and the luxury brand kicked off their collaboration by dressing WNBA draftees for the night, including Bueckers, Hailey Van Lith, Sonia Citron and Aneesah Morrow.
2025 WNBA Draft selections — First round
No. 1 Dallas Wings
Paige Bueckers, guard, UConn
The 23-year-old guard, who overcame two serious knee injuries and led the Huskies to their first national championship in eight years, is the sixth UConn player to be drafted No. 1 overall in the draft’s 30th edition, following Sue Bird (2002, Seattle), Diana Taurasi (2004, Phoenix), Tina Charles (2010, Connecticut), Maya Moore (2011, Minnesota) and Breanna Stewart (2016, Seattle).
Bueckers, a three-time first-team AP All-American, is not only a walking bucket — she averaged 19.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 4.6 assists last season — but she is a walking advertisement with some of the nation’s most recognizable brand names vying for her services. — Scooby Axon
Click here to read more about Paige Bueckers.
No. 2 Seattle Storm
Dominique Malonga, forward/center, France
The 6-foot-6 center is the ultimate athlete — or unicorn, as some say — that can do it all with her speed, length and explosiveness. Malonga averaged a double-double for France’s Lyon ASVEL Feminin during the 2024-25 season, with 15.4 points, 10.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game, all while shooting 53.8% from the field and 28.9% from beyond the arc. Did we mention that she’s only 19?
Malonga says her ‘versatility’ is her superpower. ‘The fact that I can play in and outside and sometimes I can be really disruptive on defense,’ she said leading up to the WNBA Draft.
She only the fifth player from France selected in the first round of the WNBA Draft.
Click here to read more about Malonga.
No. 3 Washington Mystics
Sonia Citron, guard, Notre Dame
The 6-foot-1 New York native was the only player in Notre Dame history with 1700 points, 700 rebounds and 300 assists. She ended her career in South Bend with the fifth-best shooting percentage in program history. Additionally, her 173 made career 3-pointers was eighth in Notre Dame history. — Meghan Hall
Click here to read more about Citron.
No. 4 Washington Mystics
Kiki Iriafen, forward, USC
After four years as one of the best post players in the West Coast, Kiki Iriafen heads into the WNBA as one of the best forwards in the 2025 draft class. The Los Angeles native started her college career at Stanford and burst on the scene in her junior year, winning most improved player in the Pac-12. She decided to return home for her final season and joined a talented Southern California team. At USC, Iriafen and JuJu Watkins were a force as the two led the Trojans to a Big Ten regular season title and a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. — Jordan Mendoza
Click here to read more about Iriafen.
No. 5 Golden State Valkyries
Justė Jocytė, forward, Lithuania
Another international player is off the board. Nineteen-year-old Justė Jocytė of Lithuania averaged 11.9 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists 21 games for France’s Lyon ASVEL Feminin during the 2024-25 season, where she played alongside Malonga. She shot 37.5% from the field and 33.9% from three. — Cydney Henderson
No. 6 Washington Mystics
Georgia Amoore, guard, Kentucky
The 5-foot-6 Australian point guard started her collegiate career at Virginia Tech, where she played four seasons from 2020 to 2024. She led Virginia Tech to its first Final Four in 2023. Amoore followed head coach Kenny Brooks to Kentucky for her fifth and final year and put up career-highs in points per game (19.6), assists per game (6.9) and field goal percentage (42.3%) in 2025. She scored double digits in all but one game this season and earned first-team All-SEC honors, joining her first-team All-ACC selections in 2023 and 2024. Amoore joined Clark and Sabrina Ionescu as the only D-I players to record 2,300+ points and 800+ assists in their career.
Click here to read more about Amoore.
No. 7 Connecticut Sun
Aneesah Morrow, forward, LSU
Click here to read more about Morrow.
No. 8 Connecticut Sun
Saniya Rivers, guard, NC State
After starting her college career with a national championship at South Carolina, Rivers transferred to North Carolina State in hopes of doing the same in her home state. While the Wolfpack didn’t win a title, Rivers was a key piece in NC State remaining an ACC powerhouse, and led the team to its second ever Final Four in 2024. She showed off what she could do in her senior season as she averaged 11.9 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, while leading the team with 3.8 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.3 blocks per game. The guard/forward turned it up toward the end of the season, and heads into the professional game with plenty of momentum, and scouts noticed.
— Jordan Mendoza
Click here to read more about Rivers.
No. 9 Los Angeles Sparks
Sarah Ashlee Barker, guard, Alabama
Sarah Ashlee Barker averaged a career-high in points (18.2), field-goal percentage (51.4%), three-point percentage (37.5%), assists (3.9) and steals (2.0) in her third and final season at Alabama after playing the first two seasons of her career at Georgia. Barker’s draft stock shot threw the roof after she dropped a program-high 45 points in Alabama’s double-overtime loss to Maryland in the 2025 NCAA women’s basketball tournament.
No. 10 Chicago Sky
Ajša Sivka, forward, Slovenia
The versatile 6-foot-4 wing averaged 7.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists, while shooting 47.5% from the field and 33.0% from beyond the arc in 21 games for France’s Tarbes Gespe Bigorre.
No. 11 Chicago Sky
Hailey Van Lith, guard, TCU
Hailey Van Lith has an impressive resume. She’s led three different teams to the Elite Eight in five years and picked up an Olympic bronze medal in the women’s 3×3 basketball tournament at the 2024 Paris Games. Now, she can add WNBA player to the list. Van Lith burst onto the scene at Louisville, where she played for three seasons (2020–2023). She led the Cardinals to the Elite Eight (2021, 2023) and the Final Four (2022). She transferred to the reigning national champion LSU Tigers for the 2023-24 season, but the fit didn’t pan out well. Van Lith, however, had a renaissance season at TCU and was named the Big 12’s Player and Newcomer of the Year after averaging 17.9 points, 4.6 rebounds and 5.4 assists, while shooting a career-high 45.9% from the field.
She powered the Horned Frogs to their first Elite Eight appearance, while smashing program records. She set TCU’s single-season record for points scored (680 points) and single-season assist record (204 assists).
Click here to read more about Van Lith.
No. 12 Dallas Wings
Aziaha James, guard, NC State
The 5-foot-10 guard averaged career-highs in points (17.9), field-goal percentage (44.5%) and rebounds (4.9) in her fourth and final year at NC State. James is a threat from beyond the arc, shooting 33.3% from three. She led the Wolfpack to the Final Four in 2024 and the Elite Eight in this year’s tournament. She dropped 26 points in NC State’s second-round NCAA win over Michigan State, which included six threes.
2025 WNBA draft selections — Second round
No. 13 Las Vegas Aces
Aaliyah Nye, guard/forward, Alabama
Aaliyah Nye was on hand to support her teammate Sarah Ashlee Barker, but ended up hearing her name called. Nye set career-highs in points (15.2) and three-point percentage (45.5%), which led the entire SEC.
No. 14 Dallas Wings
Madison Scott, guard/forward, Ole Miss
No. 15 Minnesota Lynx
Anastasiia Olairi Kosu, forward, Russia
No. 16 Chicago Sky
Maddy Westbeld, forward, Notre Dame
No. 17 Golden State Valkyries
Shyanne Sellers, guard, Maryland
Shyanne Sellers did it all during an impressive four-year collegiate career for the Maryland Terrapins, becoming the first player in program history to clear 1,500 points, 500 rebounds, and 500 assists. While the 6-foot-2 combo guard saw more time at the two-guard for head coach Brenda Frese than any other position, the Aurora, Ohio native is comfortable at either guard or wing. With her athleticism, defensive prowess and ability to create a wide range of shots for herself, Sellers should be able to adapt to just about any WNBA system. — Jason Anderson
Click here to learn more about Sellers.
No. 18 Atlanta Dream
Te-Hina Paopao, guard, South Carolina
Under South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley, the 22-year-old took a significant developmental leap. During the Gamecocks’ undefeated 2023-2024 championship season, she led the nation in 3-point percentage (46.8) and made the most 3-point field goals in a single NCAA tournament (14). That same season, Paopao was also on the All-SEC Second Team and landed in the South Carolina record books with 87 made 3-point shots, good for third in program history and the fourth-best assist-to-turnover ratio during SEC games (2.7). — Meghan Hall
Click here to learn more about Paopao.
No. 19 Indiana Fever
Makayla Timpson, forward, Florida State
No. 20 Indiana Fever
Bree Hall, guard, South Carolina
No. 21 Los Angeles Sparks
Sania Feagin, forward, South Carolina
No. 22 Chicago Sky
Aicha Coulibaly, guard, Texas A&M
No. 23 Washington Mystics
Lucy Olsen, guard, Iowa
No. 24 Minnesota Lynx
Dalayah Daniels, forward, Washington
No. 25 Connecticut Sun
Rayah Marshall, center/forward, USC
2025 WNBA draft selections — Third round
No. 26 Seattle Storm
Serena Sundell, guard, Kansas State
No. 27 Dallas Wings
JJ Quinerly, guard, West Virginia
No. 28 Los Angeles Sparks
Liatu King, forward, Notre Dame
No. 29 Seattle Storm
Madison Conner, guard, TCU
No. 30 Golden State Valkyries
Kaitlyn Chen, guard, UConn
No. 31 Dallas Wings
Aaronette Vonleh, center, Baylor
No. 32 Washington Mystics
Zaay Green, guard, Alabama
No. 33 Indiana Fever
Yvonne Ejim, forward, Gonzaga
No. 34 Seattle Storm
Jordan Hobbs, guard, Michigan
No. 35 Las Vegas Aces
Harmoni Turner, guard, Harvard
No. 36 Atlanta Dream
Taylor Thierry, forward, Ohio State
No. 37 Minnesota Lynx
Aubrey Griffin, forward, UConn
No. 38 New York Liberty
Adja Kane, forward, France
2025 WNBA draft: Team-by-team picks
➤ Eastern Conference: Atlanta Dream | Chicago Sky | Connecticut Sun | Indiana Fever | New York Liberty | Washington Mystics
➤ Western Conference: Dallas Wings | Golden State Valkyries | Las Vegas Aces | Los Angeles Sparks | Minnesota Lynx| Phoenix Mercury | Seattle Storm
What time is the WNBA draft?
The 2025 WNBA draft is on Monday, April 14. Coverage begins with ‘WNBA Countdown’ at 7 p.m. with the draft following at 7:30 p.m. ET from The Shed at Hudson Yards in New York City.
What channel is the WNBA draft? TV, stream and how to watch
TV coverage of the event will be on ESPN with streaming avaiable on Fubo, which offers a free trial for new users.
Date: Monday, April 14
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
TV Channel: ESPN
Stream: Fubo
Watch the WNBA draft with Fubo
WNBA first-round draft order
Here’s the current draft order for Monday’s first round:
Dallas Wings
Seattle Storm (from Los Angeles Sparks)
Washington Mystics (from Chicago Sky)
Washington Mystics
Golden State Valkyries
Washington Mystics (from Atlanta Dream)
Connecticut Sun (from New York Liberty)
Connecticut Sun (from Indiana Fever)
Los Angeles Sparks (from Seattle Storm)
Chicago Sky (from Connecticut Sun)
Chicago Sky (from Minnesota Lynx)
Dallas Wings (from New York Liberty)
How many picks are in the WNBA draft?
The WNBA draft, which kicks off Monday night, will see nearly 40 players enter the league. The first round starts at 7:30 p.m. ET, continuing through three rounds and 38 total picks.
Players invited to Monday’s WNBA draft
Paige Bueckers, guard, UConn
Kiki Iriafen, forward, USC
Aneesah Morrow, guard, LSU
Hailey Van Lith, guard, TCU
Georgia Amoore, guard, Kentucky
Sarah Ashlee Barker, guard, Alabama
Sonia Citron, guard, Notre Dame
Sania Feagin, forward, South Carolina
Aziaha James, guard, NC State
Dominique Malonga, center, Lyon ASVEL/France)
Te-Hina Paopao, guard, South Carolina
Saniya Rivers, guard, NC State
Madison Scott, guard/forward, Ole Miss
Shyanne Sellers, guard, Maryland
Ajša Sivka, forward, Tarbes Gespe Bigorre/Slovenia
Serena Sundell, guard, Kansas State
WNBA draft predictions
Here is how experts see the draft going in the first five selections:
1. Dallas Wings
USA Today (Cydney Henderson): Paige Bueckers, G, UConn
The Athletic (Sabreena Merchant): Paige Bueckers, G, UConn
Sports Illustrated (Blake Silverman): Paige Bueckers, G, UConn
Yahoo (Maggie Hendricks): Paige Bueckers, G, UConn
2. Seattle Storm (via Sparks)
USA Today: Sonia Citron, G, Notre Dame
The Athletic: Dominique Malonga, F/C, ASVEL Lyon (France)
Sports Illustrated: Dominique Malonga, F/C, ASVEL Lyon (France)
Yahoo: Dominique Malonga, F/C, ASVEL Lyon (France)
3. Washington Mystics (via Sky)
USA Today: Dominique Malonga, F/C, ASVEL Lyon (France)
The Athletic: Sonia Citron, G, Notre Dame
Sports Illustrated: Sonia Citron, G, Notre Dame
Yahoo: Kiki Iriafen, F, USC
4. Washington Mystics
USA Today: Aneesah Morrow, F, LSU
The Athletic: Justė Jocytė, F/G, ASVEL Lyon (France)
Sports Illustrated: Kiki Iriafen, F, USC
Yahoo: Sonia Citron, G, Notre Dame
5. Golden State Valkyries
USA Today: Kiki Iriafen, F, USC
The Athletic: Kiki Iriafen, F, USC
Sports Illustrated: Hailey Van Lith, G, TCU
Yahoo: Aneesah Morrow, F, LSU
Paige Bueckers is her own star player in the making
Let’s hope the WNBA, and its new fans, learned something from the debacle of last season.
Barring some shocking turn or a kidnapping by aliens, Paige Bueckers is going to be the first pick of Monday night’s WNBA draft. She is a transformational player, one who will help drive attendance and attention to the Dallas Wings and the league overall.
What Bueckers is not is a “rival” of Caitlin Clark. Or Angel Reese. Or any other player, for that matter. (Not yet, anyway.) Nor is Bueckers some shrinking violet who needs protecting or hand-holding. She’s a hooper, and should be treated as such. — Nancy Armour
Click here to read Armour’s full column on Paigie Bueckers.
WNBA draft: Second- and third-round order
Here is the selection order for the second and third round of the 2025 WNBA draft:
Second round
Las Vegas Aces (from Los Angeles Sparks)
Dallas Wings
Minnesota Lynx (from Chicago Sky)
Chicago Sky (from Washington Mystics)
Golden State Valkyries
Atlanta Dream
Indiana Fever (from Phoenix Mercury)
Indiana Fever
Los Angeles Sparks (from Seattle Storm)
Chicago Sky (from Las Vegas Aces)
Washington Mystics (from Connecticut Sun)
Minnesota Lynx
Connecticut Sun (from New York Liberty)
Third round
Seattle Storm (from Los Angeles Sparks)
Dallas Wings
Los Angeles Sparks (from Chicago Sky)
Seattle Storm (from Washington Mystics)
Golden State Valkyries
Dallas Wings (from Atlanta Dream)
Washington Mystics (from Phoenix Mercury)
Indiana Fever
Seattle Storm
Las Vegas Aces
Atlanta Dream (from Connecticut Sun)
Minnesota Lynx
New York Liberty
WNBA No. 1 overall draft picks by year
There was no doubt who would be taken with the first overall pick in the 2024 WNBA draft. The Indiana Fever had their sights set on Caitlin Cark for months before making it official and taking the former Iowa star and NCAA career scoring leader with the No. 1 overall pick last year. It marked the second consecutive year that the Fever had the first selection in the draft; in 2023 Indiana picked former South Carolina star Aliyah Boston with the top pick. Clark and Boston joined an esteemed list of top draft picks that includes a number of future WNBA MVPs and Olympians. Here are the top five most recent No. 1 overall picks (with college team in parentheses):
2024: Indiana Fever, Caitlin Clark (Iowa)
2023: Indiana Fever, Aliyah Boston (South Carolina)
2022: Atlanta Dream, Rhyne Howard (Kentucky)
2021: Dallas Wings, Charli Collier (Texas)
2020: New York Liberty, Sabrina Ionescu (Oregon)
Click here to see every WNBA No. 1 overall pick by year, dating back to the first draft in 1997.
Gannett launches USA TODAY Studio IX, a new women’s sports vertical
For more than four decades, USA TODAY has provided our audience a front-row seat for some of the biggest moments in women’s sports – from the Olympic Games, FIFA World Cups, March Madness and beyond.
Now we’re kicking it up a notch with today’s launch of USA TODAY Studio IX presented by Cisco, our new content vertical that will highlight the power of women’s sports through in-depth and unique storytelling, dynamic events and expanded multimedia content. This new community for women’s sports draws upon the power of the USA TODAY Network, which includes USA TODAY and more than 200 local publications throughout the country.
WNBA Rookies of the Year
Sometimes, the top overall pick in the WNBA draft seems preordained to win Rookie of the Year honors at the end of the season, but there have been some surprises over the years. While the three most recent Rookie of the Year winners were, in fact, No. 1 picks, the 2021 winner was the No. 6 overall pick, and the 2020 winner was the fourth pick in the second round (and 16th overall). Here are the top five most recent WNBA Rookie of the Year winners (with draft selection in parentheses):
2024: Caitlin Clark, Indiana Fever (No. 1 overall)
2023: Aliyah Boston, Indiana Fever (No. 1 overall)
2022: Rhyne Howard, Atlanta Dream (No. 1 overall)
2021: Michaela Onyenwere, New York Liberty (No. 6 overall)
2020: Crystal Dangerfield, Minnesota Lynx (No. 16 overall)
Click here to see every WNBA Rookie of the Year, dating back to the first winner in 1998.