No one is more excited for the 2023 WNBA Draft than the Indiana Fever, but there is plenty of talent to be mined from the college ranks for the rest of the league as well. Three months into the 2022-23 NCAA season, we have a better picture of which college players are best suited to make an impact at the next level for our first mock draft of 2023.
A couple of caveats: Free agency takes place before the draft — and trade season is already upon us — so rosters can change in a major way from now until April 10. Teams at the top of the draft usually draft the best player available rather than for need, but that’s a general operating principle, not an exact science. Secondly, this mock draft of the first round will include players who have exhausted their eligibility or are in their fourth year of college; however, every current senior has the option to exercise an additional year of eligibility (the COVID-19 year), so they could return to school instead of declaring for the draft. We’re also choosing to exclude juniors who are theoretically eligible for the draft like Cameron Brink or Paige Bueckers. For what it’s worth, Bueckers told The Athletic in December that she intended to return to Connecticut for the 2023-24 season.
With that in mind, here’s our first stab at…
