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The Indiana Fever drafted three players known for their defensive prowess Monday night in the WNBA Draft.
Unlike the last two years, when it had the top pick in the draft, Indiana was without a first-round choice this year after trading it away. Instead, the Fever had two picks in the second round (19th and 20th overall) and one pick in the third round (33rd overall).
- With the 19th pick, the Fever selected Makayla Timpson, a 6-foot-2 forward who played four seasons at Florida State University. Timpson earned Atlantic Coast Conference All-Defensive team honors three times and was a first-team all-ACC selections in her final two seasons at FSU. She finished her college career as the all-time leader in double-doubles at Florida State with 47. She set single-season program records in rebounds (350), blocks (103) and double-doubles (18).
- At No. 2o , the Fever took 6-foot guard Bree Hall from the University of South Carolina. Hall played in four Final Fours and won two national championships with the Gamecocks, including one in 2021 with the Fever’s Aliyah Boston. South Carolina coach Dawn Staley called Hall an ‘elite defender’ and put the guard on her personal all-time defensive team, which covers a quarter-century of coaching.
- With the 33rd pick, Indiana chose Yvonne Ejim, a 6-foot-1 forward from Gonzaga. Ejim was named the West Coast Conference’s player of the year and defensive player of the year the past two seasons. She’s also a member of the 2024 Canadian Olympic team.
The three draft picks will compete for a spot on the Fever’s roster in training camp before Indiana opens its season May 17 at home against the Chicago Sky.
The Fever used their No. 1 draft picks the past two seasons to select Boston and superstar Caitlin Clark. Those two, along with returning All-Star guard Kelsey Mitchell and a rebuilt lineup of standout veteran free agents, will make it difficult it to land a spot on the team’s final 15-player roster.
“I’m so excited [with the Draft results],” Fever General Manager Amber Cox said in written comments Monday night. “Obviously picking in the second and third round, you have to be prepared for multiple scenarios. Makayla Timpson was someone we had high on our draft board, so when she fell to us at No. 19 we were thrilled. At No. 20 with Bree Hall, she is an elite defender on the perimeter and does a lot of things really, really well. And then at No. 33, picking up Yvonne, she’s a versatile post player, great post-up game and brings a different look in the post.
“The name of the game tonight was to really shore up our defense, continue to bring in more versatility and continue to add more weapons to this potent offense.”
Bueckers goes No. 1
Paige Bueckers is ready for her next chapter after a whirlwind week that started with her helping UConn win its 12th national championship and ended Monday with her becoming the WNBA’s No. 1 draft pick by the Dallas Wings.
The versatile UConn star is the latest Huskies standout to go No. 1, joining former greats Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Tina Charles, Maya Moore and Breanna Stewart.
Seattle followed Dallas’ selection by taking 19-year-old French star Dominique Malonga with the No. 2 pick. The 6-foot-6 Malonga was part of the silver medal winning French Olympic basketball team. She’s the first French player to be drafted this high since 1997, when Isabelle Fijalkowski went second.
The Washington Mystics, with a new coach and general manager, then took Notre Dame’s Sonia Citron with the third pick, and Southern Cal’s Kiki Iriafen with No. 4. They also took Kentucky guard Georgia Amoore with the sixth pick.
The expansion Golden State Valkyries made Juste Jocyte of Lithuania with the first draft choice in franchise history.
Connecticut had consecutive picks and took LSU’s Aneesah Morrow seventh and N.C. State’s Saniya Rivers eighth.
Los Angeles took Alabama’s Sarah Ashlee Barker ninth. Chicago drafted Ajsa Sivka from Slovenia 10th, and then TCU’s Hailey Van Lith next.
Dallas closed out the first round by drafting Aziah James of N.C. State.
Six teams didn’t have picks in the opening round as New York, Indiana, Minnesota, Phoenix and Atlanta traded away their picks.
Las Vegas forfeited its pick following an investigation by the league in 2023 that found the franchise violated league rules regarding impermissible player benefits and workplace policies.
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