Tag: WNBA Draft 2023

Over half a million viewers tuned into 2023 WNBA draft

Women’s basketball at the collegiate and professional levels is garnering more respect from broadcasting companies and thus, being given the platform it always needed.

The 2023 WNBA draft was a star-studded event in which South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston was the No. 1 pick by the Indiana Fever. From the orange carpet to unforgettable fashion moments, there was a great deal to see.

The draft was televised on ESPN and watched by more than 500,000 people. It was the most viewed draft since 2004 as viewership was up 42% year-over-year. In addition to the broadcast of the draft, there was a “WNBA Draft Preview Show” on April 8 hosted LaChina Robinson with analyst Rebecca Lobo.

Women’s basketball at the collegiate and professional levels is garnering more respect from broadcasting companies and thus, being given the platform it always needed. With this additional investment, the viewership is steadily increasing which in turn means higher revenues and more fans.

For instance, we need only look to women’s March Madness to see the result of increased media coverage. The championship game was televised on ABC and garnered an average of 9.9 million viewers, peaking at 12.6 million. It was the most-viewed NCAA women’s college basketball game on record across all networks.

It was the most-viewed college event ever on ESPN+ across all sports, men’s or women’s. The viewership was up 103% and shows women’s basketball has been undervalued and under-resourced. This was the second year the NCAA allowed the women’s tournament to use the lucrative March Madness marks and logos.

It seems the old adage “if you build it, they will come” is the perfect way to describe this women’s basketball renaissance.

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WNBA to expand charter flights, Isabelle Harrison says it’s a start

Charter flights were discussed in the collective bargaining agreement and prohibited as an unfair competitive advantage if some teams have the resources to use them and others don’t.

On the morning of the 2023 WNBA draft, the league announced it “will be expanding its charter flights program for players this season.”

Players have been calling for this change for some time. The WNBA previously only approved charter flights in certain instances for select games. In 2022, the league expanded the program to include the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup championship game and all WNBA Finals games.

Now, the “program will include flights for all postseason games beginning with the start of 2023 WNBA playoffs through the WNBA Finals, the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup championship game, and select regular-season games where teams have back-to-back games on the schedule.

While this is a step in the right direction, more can and should be done. Some owners have even chartered for their players before the rule changes. New York Liberty owner Joesph Tsai discussed charters on social media in 2021.

Charter flights were discussed in the collective bargaining agreement and prohibited as an unfair competitive advantage if some teams have the resources to use them and others don’t. However, it seems the tides are turning. What many forget is that these players are used to chartered flights with many, if not all, of them being chartered at their universities as college athletes.

Players are willing to help the league get a charter sponsor that serves all 12 WNBA team markets.

This is a step in the right direction and as Chicago Sky forward Isabelle Harrison said, “it’s a start.”

Tune into the WNBA draft on ESPN at 7 p.m. CT to catch all the action.

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Destanni Henderson talks about Aliyah Boston as No. 1 pick in WNBA draft

While nothing is set in stone and the Fever could do a myriad of things with this draft pick, the odds point toward Henderson and Boston playing together once again.

The 2023 WNBA draft will be held on Monday. It will be televised on ESPN from 7-9 p.m. EDT and be available on the ESPN app. Many predict South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston will be the No. 1 pick in the draft.

The WNBA held its 22nd annual draft lottery on Nov. 11 to determine the order and the Indiana Fever received the first pick.

Former South Carolina player Destanni Henderson was the No. 20 overall selection, by the Indiana Fever, in the 2022 WNBA draft. She was fresh off a national championship with South Carolina, and, you guessed it, Aliyah Boston.

Henderson was asked what it is like knowing she could possibly play with Boston again. This is the first time the Fever have had the No. 1 pick in the draft and it seems like fate.

While nothing is set in stone and the Fever could do many things with this draft pick, the odds point toward Henderson and Boston playing together once again.

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Oregon’s Sedona Prince shared her plans for the future of her career

With the way the seasons are structured, there is no conflict for athletes to play in the WNBA and in Athletes Unlimited.

If you follow along with March Madness, you have heard the name Sedona Prince. She shined a spotlight on the NCAA’s inequitable treatment of the women’s and men’s basketball tournaments.

@sedonerrr

it’s 2021 and we are still fighting for bits and pieces of equality. #ncaa #inequality #fightforchange

♬ original sound – Sedona Prince

This brought a national spotlight to not only the women’s March Madness, but to Prince herself. She made headlines again when the Supreme Court of the United States ruled against the NCAA in Alston v. NCAA, which ushered in the era of college athletes being able to monetize their own name, image and likeness.

Prince told Boardroom in 2022 that “with the help of her representation at Wasserman, she’s made north of $500,000 across 18 business and partnership deals, with no plans of slowing down” in one year after the Alston decision. She has deals with notable brands Crocs, Uninterrupted, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Champs to name a few.

With her ability to make money in college through her platform, she opted to stay at Oregon for the 2022-2023 season. However, a season-ending elbow injury cut the season short.

She graduated from the university in May 2022 and entered her name into the 2023 WNBA draft that takes place on April 10. It will be exclusively televised on ESPN from 7-9 p.m. EDT and available on the ESPN app.

However, in a short interview on March 11, Prince also revealed she wants to play in Athletes Unlimited basketball Season 3. With the way the seasons are structured, there is no conflict for athletes to play in the WNBA and in Athletes Unlimited.

While Prince’s college career was cut short, we could see her in the upcoming WNBA season and the upcoming Athletes Unlimited season. More Prince is good for all of us.

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Naz Hillmon records impressive record in Athletes Unlimited game

Naz Hillmon broke the Athletes Unlimited single-game leaderboard points record.

Naz Hillmon broke the Athletes Unlimited single-game leaderboard points record with 834 points. The scoring system for Athletes Unlimited is different from traditional scoring systems. This system allows players to earn points for more than just scoring, which rewards players with other skill sets such as ball thieves, bigs who block and rebounding gawds.

Hillmon played college basketball at Michigan and was its first All-American in its women’s basketball program. She was the first Michigan basketball player – male or female – in school history to score 2,000 points and grab 1,000 rebounds. Hillmon recorded a double-double in the team’s four games in the 2022 NCAA Tournament, finishing her career with 52 total.

She was drafted 15th overall by the Atlanta Dream in the 2022 WNBA draft and started in 12 of 24 games played in her first season. Before the start of the 2023 WNBA season, Hillmon joined Athletes Unlimited for its second season of play and she is turning heads.

Even her Atlanta Dream teammate Rhyne Howard, who was drafted first overall in the 2022 WNBA draft, noticed Hillmon’s stellar performance.

Since Hillmon was top four in points in Week 2 of Athletes Unlimited, she was selected as a team captain and drafted a new team for Week 3. To learn more about Athletes Unlimited and its scoring system, look at the video below:

The Athletes Unlimited basketball season ends on March 25. The WNBA 2023 season kicks off on May 19. Hillmon and the Dream play against the Dallas Wings on May 20 at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas.

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2023 WNBA draft is April 10 and to be televised exclusively on ESPN

This year’s draft class is exceptionally talented with South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston leading the way.

The 2023 WNBA draft will be held on Monday, April 10. It will be exclusively televised on ESPN from 7-9 p.m. EST and available on the ESPN app.

According to the WNBA’s website, fans have multiple ways to get involved with the draft and follow along:

Launching in March, Draft Central on wnba.com will enable fans to access multiple offerings in the days leading up to the draft. Elements will include an interactive draft board; prospect profiles with insights powered by SAP; in-depth features on the top draft prospects; coverage of all draft events; and more.

Fans will also be able to access an array of content across WNBA channels that will include the unique stories and personalities of the prospects via Instagram and TikTok; a Twitter Spaces mock draft debate; cross platform live coverage including the Orange Carpet and more.

The draft consists of three rounds and 36 picks. The WNBA only has 144 roster spots, so the higher a player is picked the larger likelihood they will make a roster. Only a small percentage of players drafted make a WNBA roster.

The league is looking to expand in the next few years, but has no concrete plans for expanded rosters. Leagues such as Athletes Unlimited provide 44 more roster spots for elite basketball players to play domestically, but many opine it is still not enough to harness the sheer talent of women’s basketball players in the United States.

However, the top picks of the draft are almost guaranteed a spot. The last 10 No. 1 overall draft picks were:

2013: Brittney Griner, Phoenix Mercury

2014: Chiney Ogwumike, Connecticut Sun

2015: Jewell Loyd, Seattle Storm

2016: Breanna Stewart, Seattle Storm

2017: Kelsey Plum, Las Vegas Aces (formerly San Antonio Stars)

2018: A’ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces

2019: Jackie Young, Las Vegas Aces

2020: Sabrina Ionescu, New York Liberty

2021: Charli Collier, Dallas Wings

2022: Rhyne Howard, Atlanta Dream

The WNBA held its 22nd annual draft lottery on Nov. 11 to determine the order. The Indiana Fever received the first pick. The Minnesota Lynx have the second pick. The Atlanta Dream are third and the Washington Mystics (via Los Angeles Sparks) have the fourth pick.

The full lineup of picks for the first round is below:

Pick Team
1 Indiana Fever
2 Minnesota Lynx
3 Atlanta Dream
4 Washington Mystics (via Los Angeles)
5 Chicago Sky (via Phoenix)
6 New York Liberty
7 Indiana Fever (via Dallas)
8 Atlanta Dream (via Washington)
9 Seattle Storm
10 Connecticut Sun
11 Dallas Wings (via Chicago)
12 Minnesota Lynx (via Las Vegas)

This year’s draft class is exceptionally talented with South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston leading the way. She is projected to go No. 1 in the draft and when you look at her 2022 accomplishments, not to mention her whole career, it is hard to disagree.

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