(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Eight days after a record-setting women's college basketball national championship, the stage is set for the WNBA to hold its 2024 draft Monday night.
Caitlin Clark will go No. 1 to Indiana, and then comes the intrigue: Los Angeles holds pick Nos. 2 and 4, and right in the middle at No. 3 is General Manager Jeff Pagliocca and the Chicago Sky, who will also choose No. 8 and No. 13.
"I do believe, in this draft, there can be three players that will be able to help us and stick," Pagliocca said. "Adding three very solid picks now, we're just really excited with who we're going to end up with."
The Sky do not have any picks after No. 13 in the three-round draft, but for their purposes, that's fine. It's rare for later choices to stick in the small WNBA, and the Sky are looking to develop players in-house — not select the rights of someone who might stay overseas for a few seasons.
"You see what is happening in college basketball — the range that players have, the bigs that can shoot the ball, the way the game has evolved," he said. "The floor is being spaced differently now; you're seeing freshmen and sophomores doing things that, you know, 26- and 27-year-olds are doing in the WNBA. It's just an exciting time."
The Sky only has one player under contract beyond this upcoming season, so it's expected that the new draft picks will get plenty of time to shine.
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