Her performance in the last few rounds of the tourney absolutely raised her profile, and she's the best defensive guard in the draft. But she's only 5-foot-6 and has some real flaws on the offensive end. It will be interesting to see where she ends up going, and how much stock WNBA executives put into her hot streak to end the season. By Jack Maloney. Apr 14, at pm ET 2 min read. Getty Images. Beard leading push to bring expansion team to Oakland Jack Maloney 2 min read.
First and foremost, they need to address their frontcourt, which is quite thin. They also need help on the defensive end after finishing ranked No. The Fever lost their first game by 25 points last season, and that was some pretty good foreshadowing of what was to come for them in They were absolutely awful on the defensive end, and finished with the second-worst record in the league at Unfortunately for them, they didn't even get any lottery luck for their trouble, and wound up with the No.
They added a few veterans in free agency, including Jantel Lavender and Danielle Robinson, but overall it was an uneventful winter in Indianapolis. Without trying to be too glib, they enter the draft really just needing any help they can get. Save for perhaps Kelsey Mitchell, none of the young players they've drafted over the past few years have stood out, and there are a lot of questions about the present and future of the club.
Since , when their current playoff drought started, they've finished either 11th or 12th in defense, and never finished better than seventh in offense. Even without Liz Cambage and Kelsey Plum, the Aces were one of the few teams to put together a successful season. A'ja Wilson won MVP, they finished in a tie with the Storm for the best record in the regular season and made it all the way to the Finals.
Despite falling short of their first title in franchise history, they established themselves as one of the favorites for And that was before adding Chelsea Gray in free agency. The Aces are, without a doubt, one of the teams to watch this season. But despite being one of the leading contenders, they do have a few areas of need. The Aces only took Plum's return and the arrival of Riquna Williams should help them in that department, but another shooter would be useful.
In addition, they need some frontcourt depth. They have the best big unit in the league in Wilson, Liz Cambage and Dearica Hamby, but it's all question marks behind them. Add the Sparks to the list of teams who had things go awry in They finished with the third-best record, but were dumped out of the playoffs early by the Sun for the second straight season. They added Erica Wheeler and Amanda Zahui B in free agency, and both Kristi Toliver and Chiney Ogwumike will be back this season, so there's still some talent there, but things are going to look much different.
Heading into the draft, they have the No. Not the best selections, but there's a possibility for them to add a helpful player. They're pretty much set in the frontcourt, but could use some depth in the backcourt and on the wing.
The question is whether leaving for the WNBA early would work as well for less polished prospects. My research has suggested that men's players develop better in the NBA as one-and-dones than by returning for their sophomore season in the NCAA.
However, there are a few reasons to believe that might not translate in the women's game. The simplest issue is one of roster spots. Because of the league's hard salary cap, half of the WNBA's 12 teams might begin the season with just 11 active players -- leaving precious little room for long-term projects. There's also less in the way of developmental infrastructure. And by contrast to NBA coaching staffs that have exploded in the past two decades with the addition of multiple player development specialists , WNBA teams typically have no more than four or five total coaches, giving them less ability to work individually with young prospects.
Ideally, WNBA early entry would look something like the NBA's model during the early s prior to the preps-to-pros era, before the league put as much emphasis on player development. The very best prospects would have the option to come out early, giving them a chance to start their professional careers and strengthening the WNBA's talent base. Meanwhile, other players would stay at least three years in college, preparing them for the challenging battle to stick on a professional roster.
Skip to main content Skip to navigation. Is it time to change the early entry rules for the WNBA draft? Everything we know about new pro women's Athletes Unlimited Basketball league. WNBA players look to expand community support. The two teams who are not drawn in the lottery are given the Nos. As a result, the complete set of odds of each of the four lottery teams receiving any of the first four picks is as follows:.
The remaining picks, Nos. This means that for the remaining eight picks of the first round, the playoff team with the highest winning percentage that season gets No. This is also done with all 12 teams for rounds two and three. For example, starting on January 1, , teams can trade draft picks but not picks covering or later.
On January 1, , they can begin to trade picks. If the exclusive negotiation rights to a drafted player are traded, the new team retains the exact same rights as the drafting team. If a player goes undrafted, they immediately become an unrestricted free agent and are free to sign a rookie-scale contract at the undrafted base salary for either one or two years.
Our CBA FAQ section on rookie-scale contracts outlines many of the rules that will govern drafted and undrafted players. As a refresher, key rules include:. Undrafted players are rookie free agents, and therefore free to negotiate with multiple teams after the draft has concluded, but may only sign one or two-year minimum contracts.
Rookie Scale: Basics. Rookie Scale: Advanced. Assorted Contracts. Salary Cap: Basics. Salary Cap: Advanced, Part 1. Salary Cap: Advanced, Part 2.
0コメント