WNBA mock draft: Who is No. 2 after UConn’s Paige Bueckers?

Draft day has arrived.

UConn’s Paige Bueckers is the runaway favorite to be the No. 1 pick by the Dallas Wings in Monday’s WNBA draft (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

ESPN’s final WNBA mock draft projects all three rounds and features one change in the first round: The Chicago Sky obtained the No. 11 pick in a deal announced Sunday with the Minnesota Lynx; with that move, TCU guard Hailey Van Lith shifts back into the first-round projection, slotting at No. 11 to the Sky.

The first round has 12 picks; the second and third rounds each have 13 picks. The Las Vegas Aces’ first-round selection was rescinded in 2023 after a WNBA investigation found the franchise violated league rules regarding impermissible player benefits and workplace policies.

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UConn Huskies | point guard | 6 feet tall | senior

Bueckers just added a national championship to her résumé, and she is the easy choice at No. 1. She finished her senior season averaging 19.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists while shooting 53.4% from the field and 41.9% from 3-point range. She can be a franchise-changing player.

France | center | 6-6

Malonga, 19, played for France in the Olympics last summer and dunked in a game in November. She has competed in France’s top professional women’s league since she was 15 and is currently averaging 15.4 points, 10.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists for Lyon Asvel Feminin. Her ceiling seems high.

USC Trojans | power forward | 6-3 | senior

The Mystics, who are in rebuilding mode with a new coach and a new general manager, have three of the top six picks. Iriafen had a breakout season as a junior at Stanford. As a senior at USC, she averaged 18.0 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists as the Trojans won the Big Ten regular-season title and made the NCAA tournament’s Elite Eight.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish | shooting guard | 6-1 | senior

Citron averaged 14.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists as a senior, helping Notre Dame win a share of the ACC regular-season title and reach the Sweet 16. She was a first-team All-ACC pick and was on the league’s all-defensive team. Her defensive versatility helps her case to be a lottery pick.

LSU Tigers | small forward | 6-1 | senior

Morrow led Division I in rebounding (13.5 per game) and double-doubles (30) this past season while also averaging 18.7 points. LSU advanced to the Elite Eight in both her campaigns there after she transferred from DePaul. Morrow made just 24 3-pointers during her two seasons in Baton Rouge, but the 53 treys she knocked down as a sophomore at DePaul show they can be part of her repertoire at the pro level.

Maryland Terrapins | point guard | 6-2 | senior

Sellers’ ability to play point guard at her size could be one of her best advantages for being picked in the first round. She shot a career-best 40.8% from 3-point range this past season while averaging 14.4 points, 3.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists for the Terps, who made the Sweet 16.

Slovenia | point forward | 6-4

The Sun are in rebuilding mode with new coach Rachid Meziane from France. Sivka, 19, plays for the Slovenian national team and competes professionally in France. She could either be a draft-and-stash prospect or play in the WNBA this season. Her size and shooting ability are assets.

NC State Wolfpack | shooting guard | 5-9 | senior

James is one of the most explosive perimeter scorers available in this draft. She helped NC State make the Final Four in 2024 and the Sweet 16 this year. As a senior, she averaged 17.9 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists. She has become a reliable 3-point shooter over her past two seasons, hitting 75 and 76 treys, respectively.

Kentucky Wildcats | point guard | 5-6 | senior

Amoore averaged 19.6 points, 2.3 rebounds and 6.9 assists while playing an SEC-high 36.7 minutes per game this past season for the Wildcats. She spent her first four seasons at Virginia Tech, which she helped lead to the 2023 Final Four. Amoore made 408 3-pointers in college, shooting 35.6% from behind the arc.

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South Carolina Gamecocks | power forward | 6-3 | senior

Feagin was a late bloomer in college, in large part because she was playing behind future WNBA lottery picks Aliyah Boston and Kamilla Cardoso. This past season, an injury to Ashlyn Watkins brought Feagin more to the forefront, and she responded as the Gamecocks advanced to the national championship game. Feagin might just be scratching the surface of what she can do and could join Cardoso with the Sky.

TCU Horned Frogs | point guard | 5-foot-9 | graduate student

The Sky traded with Minnesota on Sunday to add this pick. Van Lith could join Angel Reese, her teammate at LSU from the 2023-24 campaign, in Chicago. Van Lith also could be an understudy to one of the best point guards in WNBA history, Courtney Vandersloot, who returned to Chicago this year. Van Lith was Big 12 player of the year and league tournament MVP this past season. She averaged 17.9 points, 4.6 rebounds and 5.4 assists in leading the Horned Frogs to their first Elite Eight.

NC State Wolfpack | small forward | 6-1 | senior

Rivers is a do-it-all type of offensive player who also could develop into a strong defender at the next level. She won an NCAA title with South Carolina as a freshman before transferring to NC State. She helped lead the Wolfpack to the Final Four last season and the Sweet 16 this year, when she averaged 11.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.3 blocks.

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Second round

13. Las Vegas Aces: Madison Scott, Ole Miss Rebels, SG

14. Dallas Wings: JJ Quinerly, West Virginia Mountaineers, SG

15. Minnesota Lynx: Makayla Timpson, Florida State Seminoles, PF

16. Chicago Sky: Juste Jocyte, Lithuania, SG

17. Golden State Valkyries: Te-Hina Paopao, South Carolina Gamecocks, SG

18. Atlanta Dream: Serena Sundell, Kansas State Wildcats, PG

19. Indiana Fever: Harmoni Turner, Harvard Crimson, SG

20. Indiana Fever: DeYona Gaston, Auburn Tigers, PF

21. Los Angeles Sparks: Sarah Ashlee Barker, Alabama Crimson Tide, SG

22. Chicago Sky: Temira Poindexter, Kansas State Wildcats, SF

23. Washington Mystics: Maddy Westbeld, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, PF

24. Minnesota Lynx: Sedona Prince, TCU Horned Frogs, C

25. Connecticut Sun: Zaay Green, Alabama Crimson Tide, PG

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Rayah Marshall comes up with big block for USC

Rayah Marshall protects the rim with a strong rejection.

Third Round

26. Seattle Storm: Aaliyah Nye, Alabama Crimson Tide, SG

27. Dallas Wings: Bree Hall, South Carolina Gamecocks, SG

28. Los Angeles Sparks: Rayah Marshall, USC Trojans, PF

29. Seattle Storm: Taylor Thierry, Ohio State Buckeyes, SF

30. Golden State Valkyries: Aaronette Vonleh, Baylor Bears, C

31. Dallas Wings: Taylor Jones, Texas Longhorns, PF

32. Washington Mystics: Lucy Olsen, Iowa Hawkeyes, SG

33. Indiana Fever: Samara Spencer, Tennessee Lady Vols, PG

34. Seattle Storm: Diamond Johnson, Norfolk State Spartans, PG

35. Las Vegas Aces: Jewel Spear, Tennessee Lady Vols, SG

36. Atlanta Dream: Liatu King, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, SF

37. Minnesota Lynx: Madison Conner, TCU Horned Frogs, SG

38. New York Liberty: Deja Kelly, Oregon Ducks, SG