The 2023 WNBA draft will be held on Monday, Apr. 10. It will be televised on ESPN from 7 to 9 p.m. EDT and be available on the ESPN app.
While notable players like South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston and Stanford’s Haley Jones have opted-in to the draft, other well-known players have withdrawn their declaration.
If a player has remaining NCAA eligibility then they must opt-in to the WNBA draft. Players who have exhausted their eligibility are not required, but are encouraged, to “notify the WNBA of their intent to be eligible for the Draft and may therefore be included in this list.” Eligible international players (as that term is defined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement) are not required to opt-in order to be selected.
The NCAA issued a memo on Mar. 7, 2023, to senior compliance administrators and women’s basketball head coaches related to information regarding agents, tryouts, and the 2023 Women’s National Basketball Association draft. It laid out the key points to remember about renouncing NCAA eligibility and opting into the draft along with rescinding prior opt-ins.
Many WNBA players urged college players with remaining eligibility to stay in school, reminding them that there are only 144 roster spots in the WNBA. It seems like some players recognized this and coupled with their ability to monetize in college, decided to use their remaining eligibility and COVID years. Many thought NIL would ruin college athletics, but it turns out athletes are opting to stay in school longer to monetize their NIL in school.
Here are the latest round of players to rescind their declarations and use their remaining collegiate eligibility.