2025 WNBA Draft Big Board

Final Version

Note this is my big board, not a mock draft. It’s who I think are the best players in the draft, not the order in which I think they will be drafted.

Positions listed are the primary position I expect for the player in the WNBA, which might not be where they mainly played in college.

Included are 25 players, to mirror the first two rounds of the WNBA draft. Golden State will participate in the WNBA draft as an expansion franchise. Las Vegas forfeited their 2025 first-round pick, so there will be 12 picks in the first around and 13 in the second round.

1.01: Paige Bueckers, Connecticut, PG, 5’11” - Bueckers doesn’t have a weakness. She can shoot, pass, dribble, rebound, defend on-ball and off-ball… the most complete college guard I’ve seen from the 2020-2024 high school classes. Her best position is PG with her plus-plus passing, yet played full seasons at SG when UConn needed her there, and played a little SF and PF in four-guard lineups. Deep shooting range, astonishingly clever at creating midrange shots and near the basket, can draw contact and finish through it, automatic free throw shooter. Good on-ball defender who can guard 1-3 in the W, excellent off-ball defender who can jump passing lanes and fight through screens, and is a bizarrely good shot-blocker for a 5’11” guard. In short, Bueckers is the best player in this draft, likely will play at an All-Star level as a rookie, with a ceiling high enough to someday be the best player on a team that could win a WNBA title.

1.02: Dominique Malonga, Lyon, C, 6’6” - an extraordinary athlete at 6’6” with long arms, Malonga can cover a ton of ground on defense vertically and horizontally, then beat opposing bigs down the court to the other end. On offense, she’s shown the ability to dunk off low-post moves, can shoot a little away from the basket. Her hands are a little slippery receiving passes and her all-around offensive game needs work, but the skillset she’s shown at age 20 with her athleticism makes her the second-best player in the draft. Malonga might have limited availability this season with France expected to be competitive in Eurobasket this June and Malonga good enough to make the France roster, but Malonga is worth the wait.

1.03: Kiki Iriafen, Southern California, PF, 6’3” - might be a little generous slotting Iriafen at third, but the dearth of quality bigs behind her increases her value a bit. Her offensive game translates pretty well to the WNBA, most comfortable operating out of the high post, a good sign given how many W teams run Horns all the time. Iriafen can shoot or drive from either elbow, moves well without the ball, occasionally makes a bad decision setting screens on PnRs, not much of a passer. On defense, Iriafen covers high PnRs well and is comfortable switching out to smaller players and guarding on-ball, could play some SF on teams looking to go big. She might fall a bit in the draft since she isn’t much of a rim protector, and with her height and reach and athleticism it seems like she should be.

1.04: Sonia Citron, Notre Dame, SF, 6’1” - Citron checks a lot of boxes at both ends, can fit in well with different sets of teammates. On offense, she’s a great shooter off the pass with three-point range, can drive on overcommitted defenders and finish, not a playmaker but makes good decisions with the ball and keeps it moving. Defensively, she’s well-suited for defense against WNBA wings, moves well while guarding off-ball and getting into passing lanes. As a wing who can score without dominating the ball while taking on difficult defensive responsibilities, Citron is a valuable asset, not a franchise player but the type of wing almost every team with title aspirations has.

1.05: Saniya Rivers, NC State, SG/SF, 6’1” - Rivers has an unusual, broad skill set that makes slotting her WNBA position difficult, but in a good way. Rivers has the size of a wing but is so good with the ball she played a lot of point in college. She’s not much of a shooter (the arc on her jump shot is too flat to be consistent), but her dribble-drive-pass game is strong enough to initiate offense from the top or wing, could start or finish the fast break. Defensively, she has All-Defense potential, a great athlete with speed and long arms, guarded every position in college and has potential to be shutdown defender against 1-3 in the W plus maybe a few stretch fours, great help defender who with the leaping ability to contest shots and steal rebounds.

1.06: Te-Hina Paopao, South Carolina, PG, South Carolina, 5’9” - probably the biggest beneficiary of Olivia Miles pulling out of the draft, now the second-best primary PG behind Bueckers. Paopao played off-ball a lot in college, but with her size and ability to get downhill, she’s better suited for PG in the W. On offense, a good attacker off PnRs, a good floater in the lane she can fire over much taller defenders, and a very good three-point shooter off the pass or dribble, with a quick release, would be a good fit with a high-usage SG/SF who initiates a lot of offense. Paopao’s defense improved a ton the last two seasons, not asked to guard the opposing best perimeter scorer a lot but shows defensive skill on- and off-ball, probably a better defender against SGs than PGs.

1.07: Shyanne Sellers, Maryland, SF, 6’2” - another projected WNBA wing who played a lot of point in college, Sellers is a three-level scorer and plus passer, the best wing scoring prospect in the draft with Azzi Fudd headed back to UConn. Has three-point range on her jumper with good form, a quick high release that makes her shot tough to block even in traffic near the basket, and is excellent at drawing contact and nearly automatic at the line. A good positional defender and decent help defense puts her in the first round. Sellers is a bit injury prone, which will keep her out of the lottery picks, but she’s a smart enough player to be effective if limited physically.

1.08: Juste Joctye, Lyon, SF, 6’2” - Lithuanian born in the United States and playing in France, qualifies as an International so eligible for the 2025 Draft in her age-20 year. Her offense is already WNBA ready: outstanding handle and attacker on PnRs, capable of passing through tight windows and shooting through contact, great three-point shooter off the pass and coming off screens. Limited ability to create in isolation, but set a good screen for her and she’s causing problems. Defensively, well… she’s poor enough on defense for some teams to pass on her in the first round. WNBA teams will have to stash her in the weakside corner and hope her mark doesn’t move. If Joctye were an average defender she’d be a lottery pick, but she will be taken in the mid-late first round. Note: Lithuania qualified for Eurobasket 2025, so Joctye might miss most of June to play for her national team. Between Eurobasket and her young age, the WNBA team drafting Joctye her might not bring her over until 2026.

1.09: Ajsa Sivka, Tarbes, SF, 6’3” - Slovenian playing in France, turns 20 in November so draft eligible as an International. Outstanding quickness for her height, more likely to play a tall SF than a short PF in the W. Strong three-point shooter off the pass, good passer for her size, minus handle but fast enough to cut and roll to the basket for layups. Active off-ball defender who can deny passing lanes and track back to help near the basket, forces a lot of turnovers and contests a lot of shots for someone primarily guarding wings. If she can add some on-ball attack to her offensive game and draw more fouls, she’s a potential All-Star. Note: Slovenia qualified for Eurobasket 2025, and Sivka has not committed to playing in the WNBA this year, so a team drafting her might stash her in Europe, let Sivka play for Slovenia at Eurobasket and take another year to develop before bringing her over.


1.10: Sania Feagin, South Carolina, PF, 6’3” - South Carolina players are difficult to evaluate because their teams are always so good and deep, there aren’t many opportunities to see how they play when they are tired or battling adversity, and they aren’t asked carry much responsibility on both offense and defense at the same time. In Feagin’s case, it’s difficult to assess her shooting range because South Carolina doesn’t need their bigs to step out and shoot threes. But Feagin’s form is so good and she’s such a good free-throw shooter, I think she can knock down open threes in the W, so a late upgrade for her from second round to first. Anyway, in college Feagin was mainly asked to post up or set screens. She’s not an overwhelming post-up player but is solid fundamentally, moves well enough to cut from the high post or roll on PnRs, and I’m taking a flyer on an unproven ability pick-and-pop for threes. Feagin is an active defender for her size and can get out and attack screens and handle switches to guards, can get beat on the low post and not a great rebounder for her size, so even though her playing profile is a center I’m listing her as a PF because I doubt she can anchor a WNBA defense.

1.11: Aneesah Morrow, Louisiana State, PF?, 6’1” - It hurts to list the best rebounder in the draft this low, especially a player who has such a high motor and so fun to watch. But, I’m not sure what offensive position she can play in the WNBA. Her skill profile is of a center: a lot of post-up points and putbacks, great on the glass, mediocre ball skills, but at 6’1” she can’t play the five in the W. Her vitals and measurables are consistent with SFs, but she’s not a good enough shooter to keep defenses honest that far away from the basket, and gets lost too often when defending in space to guard wings often right away. She’s powerful enough for PF and had some success in college challenging taller defenders and stealing rebounds, but PF is the deepest position in the W and 6’1” is still too small to play there. It pains me to say it, but I think Morrow’s WNBA future is as an energy player off the bench who will have a high rebounding rate and be a crowd favorite, but there’s a lot of work to be done to be a WNBA starter.


1.12: Aziaha James, North Carolina State, SG, 5’9” - a bit undersized for SG in the W, but her speed and quickness and body control is too good to ignore. Clever attacker with ball, capable of creating her own shot in tight spaces and changing direction multiple times on the same drive, can shoot from weird angles without losing control, to either initiate or avoid contact. Her three-point shooting was average accuracy in high volume, but it’s good enough to have to guard her close on the arc and not sag off. James’s passing isn’t strong enough to play PG full time, but not a liability at SG. On defense, James can stay with moving SGs off-ball and is quick enough to not give up too many drives, but won’t be a stopper or force a lot of turnovers, and will get overwhelmed by taller players. A good fit for a team looking to add a secondary offensive option who can create late in the shot clock and doesn’t have to guard the opponent’s best wing.


2.01 (13 overall): Bree Hall, South Carolina, SG, 6’0” - checks a lot more boxes than her production suggests, excellent wing defender with enough length to play SF on defense, can shoot threes when left open, glass half-full she doesn’t force the action, glass half-empty she’s too passive

2.02 (14): Oliari Kosu, UMMC, SF, 6’1” - 20-year-old Russian eligible for draft as International, outstanding rebounder who can defend multiple positions, hasn’t developed much offensively but such a good athlete is worth a draft-and-stash pick in the 2nd round

2.03 (15): Hailey Van Lith, Texas Christian, PG, 5’7’ - outstanding handle, good finisher and passer, defensive lateral movement isn’t strong enough to guard PGs and too small to guard SGs, good enough offensively to make a roster but too limited to be a starter

2.04 (16): Madison Scott, Mississippi, SF, 6’2” - broad skill set, played several positions on offense and defense throughout her career, not much of a shooter but good handle for her size and a plus passer, but will get drafted on her defensive ability and versatility, capable of shutting down wings and comfortable switching to any position

2.05 (17): Sarah Ashlee Barker, Alabama, SF, 6’0” - probably more of an off-ball shooter and cutter in the W than the high-usage player she was in college, played a lot of PF defensively which inflated her rebounding numbers, would have to guard SFs in the W and that’s a question mark

2.06 (18): J.J. Quinerly, West Virginia, SG, 5’8” - great motor, great handle, good shooter, doesn’t create much for others so will have to play undersized SG in the W, excellent on- and off-ball defender who plays taller than her height and can disrupt drives and passing lanes, could make it as an uptempo bench guard

2.07 (19): Georgia Amoore, Kentucky, PG, 5’5” - super creative with the ball as a dribbler and passer but would lose some of that value in the more structured offenses of the WNBA, her midrange game is very good but will be tough to pull off in the W at her height, too inconsistent from deep to be a reliable three-point shooter, lousy defender, already 24 years old so probably really close to her ceiling, probably gets taken in the first round but with her height and defensive limitations I don’t see her doing much in the W

2.08 (20) Makayla Timpson, Florida State, PF, 6’2” - undersized for a WNBA big but an excellent rim protector in college who also won tough rebounds, nice scoring touch around the basket and enough ball skills to hope she might be able to play a little PF, bench player at best but finding a player who can make a roster in the second round is a win

2.09 (21): Serena Sundell, Kansas State, PG, 6’1” - best distributor available at this point, led Division I in assists per game, her size and length suggest she might be able to guard SGs, her handle and passing for her size could work on the second unit paired with a smaller SG

2.10 (22): Maddy Westbeld, Notre Dame, PF, 6’3” - took a step back this season after missing some time recovering from foot surgery, when healthy has a good all-around offensive game capable of directing traffic from the high post, can get beat down low defensively but decent on help

2.11 (23): Rayah Marshall, Southern California, PF, 6’4” - it’s so hard to find bigs who can play, and Marshall is an active enough defender and rebounder to at least get a look from WNBA teams. Not much of a scoring threat, but good enough to come off the bench and get a few offensive rebounds. Good help defender who can handle switches and block shots from help.

2.12 (24): Lucy Olsen, Iowa, SG, 5’9” - creative with the ball and space to create her own shot out of nothing, good passer for a SG but not at PG-level for the WNBA, inconsistent three-point shooter though finished the season hot, an indifferent defender, some teams won’t have her on their boards at all because of it

2.13 (25): Sedona Prince, Texas Christian, C, 6’7” - 5-10 years ago Prince is a lottery pick, and it feels weird putting a 17-and-10 with 3 blocks center buried in the Unlikely To Make A Roster section, but Prince is lousy at setting screens and is a poor roller, isn’t much of a passer, a liability defending PnRs, get disoriented defensively when more than 10 feet away from the basket, is really slow for a WNBA player, and will already be 25 years old when the WNBA season starts. She’s a great low post scorer and shot blocker around the basket, but she’s already at her ceiling and won’t be able to keep up with most WNBA players. If WNBA teams could limit Kamila Cardoso by going five-out, there’s no chance for Prince.




I’ll do a separate post to try to more closely reflect what I think WNBA teams will do on draft night.