Greetings my peeps and welcome to the all things basketball podcast with your boy G D.
In this episode, I'll be doing my WNBA recap.
I'll go through all the teams.
I'll go through all the picks.
Well, just about all the pics and break it all down.
Plus a little sidebar about a few things that's happened after the draft.
So just sit back, relax and enjoy the show.
Okay guys, it's your boy G D. Back with all things basketball with G D.
Podcasts and guys in this episode, I'll be doing my WNBA draft recap.
Go through every single team and we'll talk about all the pics.
We'll delve into it a little bit because you know, with the WNBA, some of these pics will
get cut because of roster space.
We haven't expanded yet, but well, the league hasn't expanded yet.
And actually I'll talk about that as well.
So let's get right into it guys.
So Monday evening was the draft on April 15th.
A draft I actually attended.
I was there guys.
It was great.
You know, the place was electric.
I got my guy, Rafael of the white label American podcast, the one who did my 200th episode
live, got him to come with me.
So shout out to him for accompanying me on that.
And the place was electric guys.
There was such a buzz in the room about the WNBA and the things moving forward for them.
Kathy Engelberg, she was up there touting how perhaps they may expand to 16 teams.
So it's a lot of buzz as far as that goes.
Whether it comes to fruition, we'll see what happens.
But yeah, the place was dynamite guys.
Got to see a few of the players there actually on my way out leaving.
I saw Satoh Sabali of the Dallas Wings and you know, she has the shoulder injury.
So of course, my phone, the battery went out because I was taking all the videos.
You can see all I posted all the clips just about on my IG, on my Facebook and on YouTube
as well.
Still in the process of doing that.
So but yeah, so I saw on the way to leaving the venue.
I said, you know, wish you well with your shoulder.
Get well soon.
She's like, oh, thank you.
So yes, that's a tall girl boy.
She's like six three and she was towering over me.
Well, mine is she had her high heels on as well.
Yeah, so I was able to see some players and so forth.
But nonetheless, like I said, the night was electric.
Everything went all well and good.
So I was glad to be in the building for that.
So with that said guys, let us break down the draft.
So here's how I'm going to play this guys.
I'm going to talk about each of the 12 teams.
I'll talk about, you know, well, bunch of them have multiple picks, obviously, you know,
whether it be in the first round, the second round and going on and so forth.
So I will just break it down that way.
What each team did the roster currently and things like that moving forward.
All right.
So without any hesitation, let's get into it.
We will start with the Indiana fever.
And of course, we know they had the number one pick, which they use on Caitlyn Clark
of Iowa.
The town's all a buzz.
I saw some of her press conference.
I saw the press conference with coach Christie sides and also GM over there, Lynn Dunn.
So you know, everybody's raving about Caitlyn Clark and rightfully so.
She's a generational talent who should come in.
And you know, on the live, I talked about how the difference between critique and straight
hating.
And you know, it's it's running the gamut these days.
You get people saying she's going to come in the league.
She's going to do well.
You get some who say, you know, she may struggle a bit.
Well, we have to wait and see.
And if you think about the history of the WNBA, there has been stars from college coming
in.
Most recent example I could think of is even last year, Aliyah Boston.
I actually thought she wasn't going to win the rookie of the year, but she really proved
me wrong.
She played very well, guys.
She played very well.
She was very efficient.
And lo and behold, she ended up making the all-star game.
That's how well she played, guys.
So do I expect the same?
Actually, if form holds and Caitlyn, she will start over there and make no mistake about
that.
That's being captain obvious.
But I would say if she comes in and she plays to her abilities, she's not going to score
30 at night, guys.
So you can forget about that.
She's going to play within a team concept over there.
I would say she can probably drop 18 a game.
That's fine.
If she does that, that's enough to warrant you at least all-star consideration.
So I think she could do that.
I think she could come in and drop 18 a game.
I think that.
Because you got to remember, she's not going to be in a place like Iowa where it's pretty
mature and maybe a player here and there.
You got actually, you got two of their players who were all-stars last year between Aliyah
Boston and Kelsey Mitchell.
So this whole notion of her coming in and dropping 30 per game, I don't see that.
And then also, too, you got to remember besides Boston and Mitchell, they also have Melissa
Smith, who's a former number one pick herself in the draft.
Also Erica Willis, she's still there.
Grace Berger, remember Grace Berger last year?
She was supposed to be the local girl coming in, manning that point guard position, in
fact.
But now, of course, she has Caitlyn Clark.
So what happens with Grace Berger?
I'll be interested to see what happens with her in that regard.
Lexi Hall, you still have there.
Also Katie Lou Samuelson and also Emmanuel Zowie B.
So this team, you have some talent there.
And like I said, Caitlyn, I don't think she's going to be the 30 point a game person, but
she will drop, she'll drop 18 a game and that's fine.
That's fine for that system.
That's okay.
So that's what I see from Caitlyn Clark coming in.
I think the assists will be there because you're playing with much better players.
So the assists will be there.
I think she can average anywhere from six to eight assists with this team here.
And then also to they drafted Celeste Taylor and Celeste Taylor.
She is out of Ohio State.
Six, five, 11 actually guard and a person who can defend.
She's known for being able to defend and she can also score the ball.
So I think she'll be a perfect complement to Caitlyn Clark, definitely that.
So and then they had one of a pick in the third round, Lelani Korea out of Florida.
But here's what I want to address also guys.
It was like after the draft, I think it was sports tack.
They went out there and posted what Caitlyn Clark was going to make for the next four
years in terms of her WNBA salary.
I thought that was low taste.
I thought, okay, we had the draft.
We had the buzz.
We had the excitement.
And then now you're going to go out there and post her salary.
I thought that was weak sauce there.
What's the need to do that?
And let's let's let's keep it a buck, guys.
NBA draft last year, Wimby was the first pick.
And then the subsequent other players went.
Did we see his salary posted that very next day?
No, we only do this because we want to make light of the women's salaries.
We want to, I don't know if I want to say shame, but we want to cast aspersions on
the league itself for these salaries that these ladies are making.
And I, if you can't see there's a disparity in that, you got to open your eyes, guys,
because there's nothing cool about that.
So with that said, I just, I thought it was a weak move.
And, you know, now it's farther for the talking heads to opine about and so forth.
And do they deserve more money?
I would say so.
I would definitely say so, but it comes with revenue.
Are the owners kind of pocketing the money and not giving it to the players as they should?
You can make an argument for that too.
So, but it's all about eyeballs on the product.
And I was listening to nightcap with my guys, uncle, Shannon sharp and Chad old, Joe Cinco,
and they were talking about that.
And they were actually brought up a subject I parked on maybe a few weeks ago, maybe about
a month ago about women supporting the WNBA.
If enough, because I know guys who actually support it and, you know, that's fine and
good, but it's the women that need to support it, need to get behind it.
And I think if you have enough women to really support it, and I was actually listening to
Black saw a clip, rather, of the of a show blanking on the name.
And one of the callers said they should run a hashtag, turn on the WNBA to, you know,
to get women to watch.
Just turn it on, turn the game on.
You don't have to send them watch it.
Just have it on.
And I thought I was kind of ingenious, you know, because if you're in the house, you're
doing other stuff.
Just have the game on in the background.
You can mute it.
You can do whatever you need to do in the house, because they count the TV is that are
on turned on for the game.
So if you have enough TVs turned on for the game, that means revenue.
Revenue means more money for the ladies.
So I thought it was ingenious to be honest with you.
But yeah, so I definitely feel the ladies should get more money.
But all that comes with revenue.
Also buying a merchandise, buy the merchandise guys, you know, for the respective teams in
your town or town close to you, buy the merchandise.
That's another way to drive up revenue and get these ladies paid.
So it's a variety of things that one can do.
And before I leave the Indiana fever, I just want to say shame on you, Greg Doyle.
I heard the what he had to say in the press conference.
And it had to do with Caitlin Clark, you know, after each game, she does a heart emoji that
she does to her family.
And you know, whatever it means to them is between them.
And that's fine and good for you to go and do the heart emoji and ask her what, you know,
ask her about it.
You could have made it simple.
Because that Caitlin, I know I notice you do the heart emoji after every game.
What is the meaning behind that?
That's a legitimate question for you to go and say that you you would like her to do
it to you.
That is petto behavior.
And that's no good.
And it's unprofessional and it's inappropriate.
And then he goes on Twitter to make a apology.
I'll read it.
This is what he says.
Today in my uniquely Ophish way, while welcoming Caitlin Clark to Indy, I form my hands into
her signature heart.
Doyle wrote, my comment afterwards was clumsy and awkward.
You think I sincerely apologize.
Please know my heart literally and figuratively was well intentioned.
I will do better.
So of course, he does a me a culpa after, you know, social media kills him.
And pretty much everybody else does.
So he doesn't be a culpa.
So is there a fireball offense?
I would say not.
But you got to be more mindful.
I'll just put it that way.
So with that said, I've spent enough time on the Indiana fever.
I think they'll be fine next year.
I'll give my predictions later on.
But that's how they're draft went.
Let's move on to the Los Angeles Sparks.
And they had a pretty, pretty fine draft guys with the second pick.
Now I know I had predicted that they should go with Rikia Jackson second and then come
back around for cam, camera and brink, but they did it in reverse and they still got
the right outcome.
So with the second pick, they take camera and brink of Stanford, of course, the defensive
dynamo, the star player over there.
And then with the fourth pick, they took Rikia Jackson.
And I tell you what, both of those ladies, I'll definitely be keeping an eye on the Los
Angeles Sparks to see those ladies there.
Rikia Jackson, she has a full offensive bag.
She can also defend as well.
So I think they form a formidable front court over there for the aces.
The aces who, not the aces, I'm sorry, the Sparks, the Los Angeles Sparks.
And on the roster, remember, Aneka Awumake, she's now with the Seattle Storm.
Her sister's still there, but I, is her sister still gonna play?
I mean, she's more of a media person now to me than anything else.
You know, and she's sustained injuries over these past couple of seasons.
So will she play over there again?
That remains to be seen.
She's ready to move on to greener pastures.
I don't know.
And still you have over there players like Azura Stevens.
You got the Erica Hamby, of course, coming over from the aces about a year ago.
So you have her there.
Zaya Cook, your point guard over there.
Also you have Kia Nurse.
Laesha Clarenin, also Monique Billings as well.
So you got some pieces there, but bringing in Brink and Jackson, that's gonna be a major
boost to that program over there.
And then in the third round, you stay local, bringing in a McKinsey Forbes of USC.
I thought it was really cool when actually it was Cheryl Miller who announced it for
the Sparks that they were picking McKinsey Forbes.
I thought that was really cool kind of full circle.
One of her own alumni going to the Sparks.
I thought that was nice.
So yeah, but all in all, I think they did find the Los Angeles Sparks and there'll
be a team I'll be keeping an eye on that for sure.
Moving on to Chicago Sky.
Chicago Sky, remember, they now have a new regime over there, Teresa Weverspoon.
I'm just excited about what's gonna happen over there.
They went out and with the third pick, they drafted Camilla Cardoza, of course, of South
Carolina, the sixth, seventh center, who's a presence inside to say the least.
And then with the seventh pick in the draft, they got Angel Reese, of course, of LSU, a
champion, walking double, double, if you will, and somebody who's definitely gonna bring
eyeballs to that program there.
So it is funny because you have two rival players.
They've been playing against each other since high school.
That's what Angel said in the press conference.
And the fact that they'll be teaming up together, I think that's pretty cool.
So I'll be definitely seeing those twin towers over there and how they play off each other.
Of course, Cardoza will be the center there and Reese will be more of the power for it,
which means she's got to get her face up, jump her game right, which she has been working
on.
So I give her a lot of credit there.
She hired herself a skills coach.
So it looked like she's doing the requisite things to improve in that regard.
So you got to give her a lot of credit, guys.
So with that also, they also picked in the second round, Brina Maxwell coming out of
Gonzaga, a six-foot guard there.
So you have some help in the backcourt there.
Already on the team, you have Elizabeth Williams, who was there center last year.
So I'd be interested to see how she fits in this mix.
Diamond De Shields, who they got back now with the sky.
Marina Marbury, you also have her there.
Marbury, that is.
You have her.
I think she'll have a bounce back season next season.
Breonna Turner, you have.
Dana Evans, your dynamo guard coming off the bench.
So.
Sheenity Carter.
And also me.
Micaela.
On a war a who you got from Phoenix.
In fact, in that Kalea copper deal, remember Kalea copper.
She got sent over to the Phoenix, the Phoenix Mercury.
Sorry, that's.
Yeah.
So Phoenix Mercury, she got sent to so she's one of the players that came back there.
So.
I expect.
Teresa Weverspoon, her first stint as a head coach.
I'm definitely looking forward to that.
And I was able to see her phone call that she made to Angel Reese.
I thought it was really nice.
They're very welcoming of Angel Reese.
And I thought that was.
That was nice.
So with that said, that's the Chicago sky.
Next we'll talk about the Dallas Wings.
They were able to draft J.C. Sheldon.
The guard.
Sixty.
Not six, five, 10 guard out of Ohio State star star player over there.
So you get somebody you could put in the back court along with Arique, a goomba Wale.
And I think she will play off a goomba Wale very well.
Also to you got also in that draft.
Carla Leitchie out of France.
She's a five nine guard.
She I was watching clips of her and she she reminds me of a fellow person from France,
Marine Johannes, but she doesn't have the three point.
Promise that Johannes has.
I think she's more between Johannes and like a Tisha Pinochero.
She has that kind of passing ability.
But I would be interested to see whether she will be with the club because remember this
is the year of the Olympics.
So could she possibly be with the Olympic club playing for the for the gold medal?
We'll see.
That's the case, she'll probably be a stash for them and then also to in the third round,
they got Ashley, a wusu, a never guard, six foot guard out of Penn State.
So it looks like the Dallas Wings went guard heavy guys, which I was kind of surprised,
but it is what it is.
I already talked about Goomba Wale, Crystal Dangerfield, you still have there.
Natasha Howard, of course, in the front court, Tierra McCowan, Kalani Brown, who came on
for them and of course, Sato Sabali.
Now we have to see with that shoulder guys how soon she comes back from that.
So two over there, you got Maddie Segras, the hydra, the hydra pick from a year ago.
Also Lou Lopez, Sena Chal, who you got from Yukon, another pick from last year and Veronica
Burton as well.
So this is a team that went to the playoffs last year.
They probably need a piece there here or there and I think Sheldon fits the bill for what
they need.
So we'll see what happens there.
Let us move on guys.
The Washington Mystics.
Now guys at pick number six, it could have went either way.
You could have went Reese, possibly bringing her home to Washington.
You could have went that route, but the Mystics chose not to do so.
They instead went with Aliyah Edwards out of Yukon, the 6-3 forward for them, who also
can play in the post also, a player who probably at this stage has a bigger offensive bag than
Angel Reese right now.
And I think that's probably the reason they lean more towards Edwards than Reese.
But you know, it could be one of those things where it comes back to haunt them one day,
but that's the choice they made.
But Edwards is a fine player nonetheless guys.
And then also in that draft, they were able to get, they got in the second round.
Kailin Truong out of Gonzaga, a 5-8 guard.
And then later in the draft, they drafted a player out of Belgium, a forward Natia Clausens.
They were able to get.
So but remember guys with Washington, you lost Natasha Cloud.
She's now with the Phoenix team now with the Phoenix Mercury.
So she's there.
You also have Elena Deladon sent out for the year.
So yeah, that in consideration as well.
So they need pieces guys.
They were able to bring in in free agency, Stephanie Dolson, the center who last played
with the New York liberties, a player with championship pedigree, whether it be in college
or in the pros also to you still have Shakira Austin there.
You have Ariel Atkins, Brittany Sykes, who was a great pickup for them last year.
Also you got via trade midseason, Queen Egbo.
You have Christie Tolliver, Maesha Hines Allen and DD Riches is making the comeback.
So you have her as well.
So that Washington team still will be formidable, I think, but you need a healthy Shakira Austin.
She missed about half of the season with an injury.
So you're definitely going to need her.
That's for sure.
But Washington still, they'll be in the mix, guys, they'll be in the mix.
You definitely know that.
So we'll just see how it all plays out for them.
Moving on, let's talk about Minnesota, the Minnesota Lynx.
They only had a couple of picks in this draft, guys, but the one pick I absolutely love,
Elizabeth Peeley, a player who six to forward for coming out of Utah and a player who for
her side, she gets a lot done inside guys.
She has outside game as well.
She has a absolute full offensive bag guys.
And I'll be very interested to see how she fits into that Minnesota program, but she's
a player who I think is going to screen for attention.
You're going to have to play her guys and her transition.
I think she can make an impact right away.
That's how good she is, guys.
And then remember too, you got a roster over there with Nafisha Collier, their fine player
over there.
Also you brought in Courtney Williams coming from the Chicago Sky, Dynamite Guard, Point
Guard, Natisha Heidelman.
You also brought her into your program.
Kayla McBride is still there.
Alana Smith.
And then remember the two draft picks you had last year, Dianna Miller, who I thought
she would be kind of a rookie of the year type.
She came along very slow.
Then she had the injury that kind of slowed her down a bit.
So she was kind of tentative early on and then even coming off of that injury.
So I'll be interested to see how she fits into what they do.
And then Dhaka Yuhas had a very good rookie campaign over there.
I expect her to do more of the same this year.
So that team is a team to watch, guys.
I think that and bringing in Apili definitely helps your program.
That's for sure.
So we'll see what happens there.
Moving on to the Connecticut Sun, who didn't have a first.
No, they did have a first round pick.
I'm sorry.
It was Leila Lacan.
And this is another French player, guys.
But from what I just read, she will not be playing in the W next year because she's preparing
for the Olympics for her French team.
So this is a player now that won't be in your program next year and will be kind of a stash
until next year.
And some people say, oh, that's great.
You know, there may not have been room for her anyway.
Perhaps perhaps.
But I'll say this.
You probably if you knew she was going to sit out for the Olympics, maybe you wouldn't
have drafted her.
Maybe you drafted a guard who you know will be available.
Somebody like a Nika Maul who, oh, by the way, played in Connecticut for Geno Ariama.
So that you kind of dropped the ball with that.
But who am I to say?
Anyway, but also to in that draft, they were able to get Tiana Jackson, a 6'6 center out
of Kansas.
And you definitely want some insurance just in case because Rihanna Jones, remember she
tore her knee last year.
So I haven't heard anything otherwise saying that she won't be ready for the season.
But you know, you always want to have insurance in that regard.
And then also they were able to pick a couple more players.
Some player Halina Pioi, Poyoy, I'm sorry.
And she actually she's from Spain, but she did play at the University of Arizona, a 6'
foot guard.
She has very quick hands, guys.
She can defend and she has great anticipation.
So this is a player who fits right into what Stephanie White likes to do, especially on
defense.
And the other player was Abby Sue, a player actually from Columbia.
So this is this is actually the first Ivy League player drafted in the WNBA.
Wow.
And she's a 5'11 guard.
But looking at that roster there, of course, you have the engine, Alyssa Thomas along with
Dewanna Bonner, who's coming back.
She resigned back with them.
Deja-nay Carrington, their fine player coming off the bench.
I imagine this year she'll probably start.
Mariah Jefferson, who's back in Connecticut again, Shay Patty is over there.
Jocelyn Willoughby, Tyasia Harris, and also Rachel Bannum.
And then remember guys, Tiffany Hayes, she retired.
So you no longer have her.
And then Rebecca Allen actually left in free agency and she went to Phoenix.
So you definitely have space for players to move up in that program.
So we'll see what happens there.
Moving on, my New York Liberty.
Well guys, they had an interesting draft.
Let's say that.
They did pick with the 11th pick Marquisha Davis out of Ole Miss.
This is a guard who played for Coach Yao over there at Ole Miss.
So you know this girl is going to be able to defend.
She's six feet tall, a guard.
So and I heard comparisons that she compares to a Kalia Copper.
If that's the case, you're on to something guys, if she has that kind of ability.
So and then remember two guys, the New York Liberty got absolutely destroyed by the Las
Vegas Aces backcourt.
So you're going to need somebody to come in there and defend that's for sure.
I think Marquisha fits that bill guys.
Also in the draft, they were able to get as Mary Martinez out of Arizona, a six two forward
out of the Dominican Republic by the way.
So now you have a fan base up there.
You'll see Washington Heights making a trip to Brooklyn to watch their girl play.
That's for sure.
And then also too late.
Now here's where I thought the Liberty kind of dropped the ball.
You took at the 23rd pick Jessica Carter, Jesus Center, six five out of Mississippi
State.
But right after that went Elizabeth Keatley, who we last saw she tore her knee late in
the season for the for Virginia Tech.
She's a six six center one who was dropping 22 points per game eight rebounds.
So I thought this was a perfect opportunity for the Liberty to draft a player like this
and stash her for the following season.
Because this kind of talent doesn't grow on trees guys to get a Keatley.
I thought that was the better move.
I understand I get it Jessica Carter.
She's more of a defensive presence inside.
Maybe you thought you need that more than you did maybe sitting and waiting for Keatley.
But I I thought you should have went the other way with that.
That's just me.
But but hey, they took Carter.
We'll see if Carter even sticks with the program we'll see.
And then in the third round they got Caitlin Davis forward another six two forward out
of USC.
I thought here's why I thought the Liberty could have did at the top of that second round.
I would have reached out and made a trade with Chicago and try and swap spots with Chicago
and then with that pick pick Nika Nika mule out of Connecticut.
This is a guard who we saw on the biggest stage in the final four completely shadow
Caitlin Clark in that game.
I thought that was you could still have Marquisa because you still need a guard who can defend.
I thought you need another guard who can defend and also Courtney Vander Sluyf.
It's not going to play forever guys.
She's actually kind of long and two when it comes to point guard age.
So this mule would definitely been somebody you can look towards the future with.
You can groom her to step in when Sluity is done.
But what do I know.
But nonetheless I'm not the GM of the New York Liberty.
So who am I to say.
But nonetheless that's why I thought they could have did.
That's why I said it was pretty interesting what they did on draft night.
Let us move on guys got four more teams to talk about that I'm done.
The Atlanta dream.
They picked at the end of the first round and they took.
I'm going to try and pronounce this name here.
Park pouch.
And this is a player out of Australia a six three forward.
She played in the end.
The WNB L League over there in Australia.
Nineteen years old.
So this is a player with definitely some promise of head of her.
I watch clips of her guys.
And to me she compares to a shorter version of our year out of Finland who plays for the
Dallas Wings and actually she's actually sitting out the year because she's representing her
country of Finland.
But her game that's who her game reminds me of very long.
And get out there can run like a deer can definitely defend plays defense well she got
the long arms and she got a bit of an offense there as well she had has a little mid range
there as well.
So this is a player who definitely could fit into what Atlanta does.
Atlanta likes to run and gun.
So this is a pick where you know it's a role of the dice guys but she's so young so full
of promise so definitely a pick that can pan out down the road.
Already you have one that squad before I even go there.
Let me tell you who else they got.
They got another player from Australia.
Isabelle Borlaze.
They got her as well a 511 guard and she's a bit of a scrappy guard.
I was looking at the clips for her.
She gets in there.
She can defend.
She can get hands on.
And that's why I took from the clips I saw of her.
And then also to they were able to pick in the third round Matilda Villa out of Italy.
So basically the Atlanta dream went international with their picks.
But right now on the roster of course you have your star player Ryan Howard also Alyssa
Gray there Cheyenne Parker.
Oh by the way all three of them made the all star team.
So you brought in Jordan Canada much needed help to run the show over there.
You brought in a Tina Charles also a veteran who's still looking for that elusive WNBA
championship.
So you brought her in there also Asia Dora and then Haley Jones of course your draft
pick from last year.
Let's see how she develops this year guys.
And then also you still have Daniel Robinson over there and Leticia Armahir also another
player that was a draft pick from last year out of South Carolina.
So Atlanta they still poised to do some things over there.
Tanisha Wright the coach over there will see what she does in that regard.
The Seattle storm.
Seattle storm had a busy offseason bringing in the likes of a neck of a woman Kay and
also Schuyler digging Smith.
But in the draft they were able to get Nika mole of the Yukon Huskies.
Of course I just talked about her and oddly enough a point guard coming into a program
that had Sue Bird another Yukon guard who meant that position for many years over there
for them.
So it's funny how things work out right.
So she comes into your program and then also in the third round you pick Mackenzie Holmes
a 6 3 forward out of Indiana.
And as I said the storm brought in a woman Kay and in Schuyler you already have over
there Jewel Lloyd your sensational guard as the Maggore your fine defensive center over
there Jordan Horstin who was a rookie last year.
Let's see what she does this year now.
Gabby Williams is there Sammy Whitcomb who can your player who can launch it from three.
So so you have some solid pieces there but Nika mole I think will come in there and endear
herself with what's going on over there.
She'll be a solid guard coming off their bench and somebody you can groom for the future.
So kudos to the storm for that.
The Las Vegas aces you talk about the rich getting richer guys.
But gracious they made out like they were picking in the first round.
Mind you their first pick wasn't until pick 16 at pick 16.
They got the Asia fair out of Syracuse 5 5 Gar so a small small guard but she ends up
being the third highest scorer in CIA history.
That's how good she was guys.
So she goes into this perfect situation for her with all these guards that she can learn
behind and I mean the Las Vegas aces over there they're playing chess and everybody's
playing checkers go figure.
So they bring her in then they also get Elizabeth Keatley who I was just talking about.
They pick her right after the Liberty take the center out of Mississippi State.
So they have this center now they can stash and keep away because remember to you got Candice
Parker coming back and you know she's probably on her on the back nine of her career.
So you have somebody you could stash away for the future.
And then also they were able to get in the draft Kate Martin who they got even before
that Kate Martin out of Iowa who you know she now gets to kind of stand on our own guys
coming into the Las Vegas Las Vegas aces program.
So she kind of gets a chance over there.
So we'll see what happens with her.
And then in the final pick of the draft they took a player out of a HBCU Angel Jackson who
played for Jackson State a 6-5 center.
So but you know the aces are so deep so we'll see what happens with her.
And of course that squad has Asia Wilson the best player in the WNBA pretty much.
Chelsea Gray your floor general over there Jackie Young the silent assassin.
Kelsey Plum the plum dog of course I talked about Candice Parker Alyssa Clark who's your
sixth player of the year.
We have her over there Kia Stokes their solid big upfront who just does the dirty work and
make Asia's life very much easy on the inside.
Kirsten Bell who seems like every year she seems to blossom over there.
Iqwana Williams who will be coming back she sat out the whole year last year guys.
So we'll see what happened with her.
And of course their main stay Sydney Coulson of course who brings comic relief to that
team but she stepped up when Chelsea Gray went down with the injury guys so she still
has value over there for that club.
But of course Becky Hammond running that ship over there doing a fine job but you're bringing
in all this rookie talent along with the talent you already got man.
Again the rich get richer.
And then lastly I'll talk about the Phoenix Suns.
I keep saying the Phoenix Suns the Phoenix Mercury with their two picks.
They were able to get in the third round charisma Osborn who I thought fell in this draft but
I think at the third round this is a steal guys.
Five nine guard out of UCLA she was one of the catalysts over there for that club.
So the Mercury was able to get her I thought that was a nice get that late in the draft
and then also in that same round Jazz Shelley who they got from Nebraska another five nine
guard.
So you have some back court help there.
Of course you have on the club already Diana Terase who another player on the back nine
of her career.
Brittany Griner of course who you were able to resign and bring back.
She traded for a Kalia Copper you got her from the Chicago sky.
I think she's going to be a fine addition over there guys.
Rebecca Allen who you got a free agency from the Connecticut Sun.
Sophie Cunningham who's still there.
Your sharpshooter over there.
And Natasha Clow who you got from the Mystics floor general for them.
And then Morgan Burch the promising young big as well.
So it'll be an interesting time over there.
You got new new coaching staff over there.
So we'll see what happens there.
But this is a team I wouldn't sleep on them.
That's for sure especially bringing in the likes of copper and Allen and cloud.
I think Phoenix could be in for a bit of a renaissance over there.
So I would keep an eye on them.
All right guys so I think that's going to do it for this episode here.
We're able to cover all the ground we needed to cover.
And guys I'm just excited for the season ahead.
Of course you know I'll do my WNBA season preview.
I'll give you that.
And then all the happenings that go along with that.
Of course you know it's going to be some significant cuts going up into the season.
So we'll see what happens there.
You got players that still playing overseas.
We'll see how they get incorporated in.
And then remember the Olympics will be played as well.
So you'll have that to think about in the All-Star game remember will be the actually
the US Olympic team versus the WNBA All-Star.
So I'll be very interested to see how that shakes out also.
All right guys so that is it for me as always.
I thank you for listening.
Always appreciate it.
All Things Basketball with GD.com that's the website.
That sportsdudegd.com.
That's how you can email me.
Of course I'm on all the platforms.
YouTube I'm there.
All Things Basketball GD.
IG that's where I mostly live and hang out there.
Facebook you know I'm on there as well.
I got my group there.
Twitter or X or whatever you call it.
We're in a love eight relationship.
Let's put it that way.
TikTok I do my little videos there and so forth.
All the podcast platforms you find me there.
Support the show guys.
There's many ways to do it on the website.
You could do it there.
My cash app GD that sportsdude if you want to send a love offering here.
We welcome that also and that's pretty much it.
I thank you for listening as always.
Always appreciate it and we'll talk soon.
Take care.