WNBA draft 2024: Caitlin Clark drafted as No 1 pick — live updates | WNBA

LA Sparks select Rickea Jackson as the No 4 pick

Chicago Sky select Kamilla Cardoso as the No 3 pick

LA Sparks select Cameron Brink as the No 2 pick

Clark finished her college career with 3,951 points, 1,144 assists and 990 rebounds, leading Iowa to two NCAA championship games.

The consensus Division I Player of the Year for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, Clark joined Chamique Holdsclaw, Seimone Augustus, Maya Moore, Brittney Griner and Breanna Stewart as the only players to be named the AP Player of the Year multiple times.

The 6-foot guard is the NCAA men’s and women’s all-time leading scorer, eclipsing Pete Maravich (3,667) and Kelsey Plum (3,527), respectively. In her four seasons at Iowa, Clark led Division I in scoring in all but her junior season. This season, she became the only men’s or women’s player in NCAA history to score 1,000 points in back-to-back seasons and the first Division I player to lead her conference in scoring and assists in four straight seasons.

Her initial thoughts on what she is most excited for about joining the Indiana Fever:

The biggest thing is they have such a good roster. [Indiana] are a winning franchise. I am just excited to get there. I love playing basketball since I was a young girl and that is not going to change.

After the interview, Clark says hello to Aliyah Boston, last year’s No 1 pick and her new teammate.

Indiana Fever select Caitlin Clark as the No 1 pick

We are moments away from the 2024 WNBA draft starting!

Here is the projected top five. Let’s see if we get any early surprises.

1. Indiana: Caitlin Clark, Iowa

2. Los Angeles: Cameron Brink, Stanford

3. Chicago: Rickea Jackson, Tennessee

4. Los Angeles: Kamilla Cardoso, South Carolina

5. Dallas: Jacy Sheldon, Ohio State

A quick interview with Stanford’s Cameron Brink on the orange carpet.

On what her best attribute is that will translate well in the WNBA:

I think it will be guard my guards. My offensive game will be developed but I think I can switch 1 to 5. I mean we’ll see but I think that’s what I can bring immediately to the table.

Brink’s family is close friends with the NBA player Steph Curry, whose mother is Brink’s godmother. She tells us that she was speaking to her earlier today and that Steph came on the FaceTime call and hung up immediately. Classic.

Earlier, I mentioned that teams can swap draft places up until the day before the draft. And that actually happened this year. The draft order saw a last-minute shuffle yesterday, with Chicago and Minnesota exchanging positions in the first round. In the trade, the Lynx traded their No 7 pick and the rights to Nikolina Milić to the Sky in return for Chicago’s No 8 pick, a second-round pick in 2025, the option to swap first-round picks in 2026, and Sika Koné.

It is certainly interesting that Chicago made such a significant investment to move up one spot in the draft, a move that may seem surprising for a team in the early stages of rebuilding. This likely means that the Sky have a specific player in mind. Is it Angel Reese

With a rebuilding phase ahead, the Sky have ample time to nurture Reese’s talent. As Reese herself expressed in her draft announcement in Vogue, succeeding in the WNBA is a gradual process, and she is prepared to embrace the journey of growth from the ground up.

If Chicago are indeed going for Reese, this is certainly an interesting way to go about it. While they may have insights into other teams’ intentions, there’s no certainty that their desired pick will still be available when they make their second selection. It’s a bold move for Chicago, especially considering the high cost involved.

Angel Reese is up next to be interviewed. It was unclear until very recently that LSU player was going to declare for the draft. In true Reese fashion, she announced it in Vogue.

On her decision to leave college despite still having the option to stay another year:

It was a hard decision. LSU was good to me. The community embraced me. But I won a national championship and I got my degree. That’s all I wanted to do in college so it was time for a new beginning. I am a sponge. I am a sponge and I am so excited for this new level.

On what aspect of her game she will bring to the W:

Rebounding is something I know I can do if my shots are not falling. That’s something I know can bring to the table.

The draft itself does not start until 7.30pm EST but the pre-show is in full swing. Caitlin Clark was just interviewed inside the venue and here is what she had to say.

On how she thinks her game will translate to the professional league:

I think the biggest thing is my passing. I think that was overlooked during my college career. Don’t get me wrong, I love shooting the ball but I love playing with good post players and with good guards.

On her mindset heading into tonight:

I am ready for this chapter of my life. Maturity wise, confidence wise, basketball wise. This weekend has gone fast. I am just trying to soak it in.

Clark is also a self-proclaimed Swiftie and when asked what Taylor Swift song she’ll blast to celebrate tonight, she said:

Enchanted is my favourite song of all time but that’s kind of sad. But I’ll play it anyway.

How high are the stakes tonight? The college season showcased an exceptional level of talent, setting the stage for an exciting WNBA Draft, especially given the cutthroat nature of the league.

The jump from college to professional basketball is steep. There are only 12 teams in the WNBA compared to the NBA’s 30. Roster spots are incredibly limited. Consequently, the WNBA Draft, unlike its NBA counterpart, tends to favour players with proven collegiate records over those with solely theoretical potential. While projections can anticipate a player’s impact in a different team context, there’s a threshold where a lack of significant accomplishments over four years in college makes it difficult to justify taking a chance on them.

So, just because a player gets drafted tonight does not mean they will actually make a team roster once the season starts. Because of its size, the WNBA cannot afford to be a development league and it is not uncommon for rookies to get waived even after being drafted. Sometimes, players will spend a couple of seasons in Europe after college before playing in the W, just because they need those extra years of development.

But this is an incredibly talented class. And the WNBA does have an expansion plan set with a team from the Bay Area joining in 2025. So maybe we will see a record number of rookies this season come tipoff.

How does the WNBA draft work?

Tonight, we will get three rounds with 12 picks each, so only 36 total players are selected.

The first four picks have been determined by a lottery system. The four teams with the lowest cumulative records from the past two seasons are the ones eligible for the lottery.

The remaining eight franchises are ordered from the worst to best record. Teams can trade draft picks up until the day prior to the draft.

The draftees are currently walking the orange carpet at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York City before the official draft begins.

Earlier today, the draftees were together at the Empire State Building for a lighting ceremony to celebrate the draft.

Full WNBA draft order

Preamble