Let's look at how the first overall drafts in the last ten seasons have fared since WNBA debut.
Image Credit: Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images
The countdown has officially begun for the 2025 WNBA Draft! With the conclusion of the NCAA women’s tournament and Minnesota Golden Gophers being crowned the National Champions, spotlight has now shifted to the WNBA. Like every season, fans anticipate which player their favorite franchise would pick.
The WNBA Draft 2025 is scheduled to take place on April 14 at The Shed in New York City. While there are a total of 13 teams participating in the forthcoming season of the WNBA, the first round will see only 12 picks, as the Las Vegas Aces were stripped for violating the league’s policy. The Dallas Wings have received the No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft lottery. It is to be seen which player they will choose.
With less than two weeks to go for the D-day, it is pretty obvious that the teams have almost finalized their strategy. There will be a tussle between the franchises to select notable names. All eyes will be on star collegiate players including Paige Bueckers, Dominique Malonga, Sonia Citron, etc. who are likely to receive top picks.
The past editions have seen notable collegiate athletes receiving top picks, and while some of them went on to continue their momentum, others have had a rough journey. Having said that, let’s look at the last ten overall No. 1 picks and how they fared since making their debut in the league.
2015- Jewell Loyd
Jewell Loyd, who entered the 2015 WNBA Draft on the back of a solid resume, was picked by the Seattle Storm. There are certainly many expectations from a No.1 draft pick and Loyd exceeded them. She came up with stellar performances right from her debut season that got her the Rookie of the Year Award. In her sophomore season, she led the Storm to their first playoffs in three years as the number 7 seed.
Loyd made it to her first WNBA All-Star Game in 2018, and led the Storm to their first WNBA Finals since 2010 as well as a championship. She won her second championship in 2020. She was traded to the Las Vegas Aces ahead of the 2025 season.
Speaking about her stats, the 31-year-old averaged 10.7 points, 3.5 rebound and 1.9 assists per game in her rookie season. She finished the 2024 season averaging 19.7 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game.
2016- Breanna Stewart
The Seattle Storm once again received the No. 1 pick and they drafted Breanna Stewart. The former UConn star made an instant impact and won the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award. Not only this, but she also ended up breaking the league’s record for most defensive rebounds in a season with 277 defensive rebounds.
She made it to her first WNBA All-Star Game in 2017, and earned second All-Star Game call-up in 2018. Stewart ended the season with career highs in scoring, steals, field goal percentage and three-point percentage. Not only this, but she also won the MVP Award. As she won the Finals MVP in that season, Stewart became the sixth player in league history to win both league MVP and Finals MVP in the same year.
She had to miss the entire 2019 season due to a torn Achilles but made a sound comeback. The Syracuse-born won her second championship in 2020 as well as was named the 2020 WNBA Finals MVP. She signed with the New York Liberty in free agency in 2023 and led the side to its first-ever championship in 2024. She ended the season with an average of 20.4 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists.
Kelsey Plum, who set as many as six freshman records for Washington, was drafted as the first overall pick by the San Antonio Stars (later Las Vegas Aces) in the 2017 season. While her season average of 8.5 points, 1.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists got her a spot in the All-Rookie Team, her team finished as the second worst team in the league that season.
After a few rough seasons, she finished second on the list of the WNBA Most Improved Player Rating in 2021. Plum made it to her first WNBA All-Star in 2022 and ended up winning the All-Star MVP. She guided the Aces to their second finals appearance as well as the first championship in franchise history. She also played a significant role in the Aces’ second championship win. Wilson finished the 2024 season with an average of 17.8 points, 2.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists.
Ahead of the 2025 season, she was involved in a three team trade and was moved to the Los Angeles Sparks. She helped the side win another championship in 2023.
2018- A’ja Wilson
A’ja Wilson, who led the Gamecocks to their first NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship in 2017, was drafted as the first overall pick by the Las Vegas Aces. Wilson took on the WNBA by a storm when she made it to her first WNBA All-Star Game as well as earned the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award. She then led the side to their second WNBA Finals appearance and while the Aces lost, Wilson earned the WNBA 2020 MVP honors.
She has been unstoppable since then. Overall, she has won three WNBA MVP honors as well as guided the side to their second championship in 2023. Statistically, Wilson recorded her best season in 2024, where averaged 26.9 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. She became the first player to score 1000 points in a single year. Wilson joined Lisa Leslie, Lauren Jackson, and Sheryl Swoopes as the only players with three MVPs.
2019- Jackie Young
Las Vegas drafted the Notre Dame Fighting Irish star Jackie Young as the first overall pick in 2019. On the back of a solid performance throughout the season, Young was named to the WNBA All-Rookie Team. However, her journey wasn’t filled with highlights as the other stars. Young earned her first WNBA All-Star call in 2022 as well as was part of the championship winning team in 2022 and 2023. Statistically, Young recorded her best year in 2023, where she finished the season with 17.6 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists.
2020- Sabrina Ionescu
Regarded as one of the greatest collegiate players of all time, Sabrina Ionescu made it to the WNBA as the 2020 first overall draft pick by New York Liberty. She went on to have a memorable debut rookie season and finished it with an average of 18.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.0 assists. Inonescu made it to three consecutive WNBA All-Star Games as well as the All-WNBA Team thrice. She helped the team qualify for the WNBA Finals in consecutive seasons in 2023 and 2024, and the first championship in 2024.
Till date, her rookie season remains her best season according to the statistics. However, she came up with a similar kind of performance in 2024. She finished the season with an average of 18.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 6.2 assists per game in 38 games.
2021- Charli Collier
Charli Collier was picked by the Dallas Wings as the first overall pick in the 2021 WNBA Draft. The former Texas Longhorns put on a dominating performance in her final year of college. However, her WNBA career couldn’t flourish as the other first drafts.
Collier had a struggling rookie season, where she could only manage to finish with 3.4 points, 3.6 assists and 0.2 assists per game. Her numbers dropped significantly in her sophomore season as she played only 17 games off the bench.
As a result, the Wings waived her in May 2023. The UC Capitals of the WNBL signed her in September 2024.
2022- Rhyne Howard
The Atlanta Dream drafted Rhyne Howard as the first overall pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft. She went on to have a remarkable rookie season, and her seasonal average of 16.8 points, 2.8 assists and 1.6 steals, got her the Rookie of the Year Award. She made consecutive WNBA All-Star appearances in 2022 and 2023.
Howard had an even better sophomore season where she finished with an average of 17.5 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. In 2024, she tallied 17.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists on an average in 30 games.
2023- Aliyah Boston
Former USC star Aliyah Boston was selected by the Indiana Fever, franchise’s first in the history. Boston continued her dominance on the court and finished the season with the Rookie of the Year honors as well as made her first WNBA All-Star Game appearance. She finished the season with an average of 14.5 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 40 games she played. Boston continued her momentum in her sophomore season as well and tallied 14.0 points, 8.9 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game in the season.
2024- Caitlin Clark
Caitlin Clark became the first overall pick of 2024 WNBA Drafts and was drafted by the Indiana Fever. The former Iowa Hawkeyes superstar, Clark played a significant role in popularizing women’s basketball, something which has been fondly termed as the “Caitlin Clark Effect”. After taking Iowa to unparalleled heights in college, Clark wreaked havoc in her WNBA rookie season.
She made it to her first WNBA All-Star Game after receiving the highest fan votes in the league. Not only this, but she also became the first ever WNBA rookie as well as the first player of the franchise to post a triple-double during the Fever’s 83-78 win over the New York Liberty.
Clark went on to set multiple records in her first season. She became the seventh WNBA rookie to be named an All-Star starter and set the rookie record for assists in the game. Clark went on to become the first rookie since Candace Parker in 2008 and fifth in the league’s history to make the All-WNBA First Team.
By the end of her first year in the league, the 23-year-old compelled multiple franchises to move 2025 season home games against the Fever to bigger venues. Such is the popularity of Clark!
Garima is a sports writer with around two years of experience in Indian sports and a newfound interest in the NBA. Inspired by the leadership of cricketing legend MS Dhoni, she wishes to bring in newer perspectives to the NBA fanatics with her writing.
WNBA 
