Thirty-six new players were drafted into the WNBA in 2022, including 34 from NCAA Division I programs. Kentucky's Rhyne Howard got the party started when she went No. 1 overall to the Atlanta Dream as the Wildcats' first-ever top pick in the league.
It was a historic night for many schools, including Jackson State. The Tigers' Ameshya Williams-Holliday was the first HBCU pick in 20 years when she went with the 25th pick to the Indiana Fever. Jazz Bond became North Florida's first-ever WNBA pick when she was drafted by the Dallas Wings in the third round.
DRAFT HISTORY: The 8 players who went No. 1 in the WNBA draft right after reaching the NCAA title games
Top conferences led the way with several selections. With seven picks each both the SEC and the ACC tied for the most of any conference.
Top Cats 😼
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork)
Rhyne Howard joins an exclusive group of Wildcats to be drafted No. 1 overall‼️
Here's a full breakdown of the conferences:
| Rank | Conference | # of picks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | ACC, SEC | 7 each |
| 2 | Big Ten | 4 |
| 3 | Big 12 | 3 |
| 3 | Pac-12 | 3 |
| 3 | Big East | 3 |
| 5 | ASUN | 2 |
While the SEC and ACC's picks were spread across 11 teams combined, the Big 12 and Big East had just one team — Baylor and UConn. While both schools had three total picks the Bears led all with the most first round draft picks.
Here's a look at the schools with multiple picks:
| # OF PICKS | SCHOOL | ROUND(S) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Baylor | 1st-round: 2, 2nd-round: 1 |
| 3 | UConn | 2nd-round: 3 |
| 2 | Louisville | 1st-round: 1, 2nd-round: 1 |
| 2 | NC State | 2nd-round: 2 |
| 2 | LSU | 2nd-round: 1, 3rd-round: 1 |
Here's the complete 2022 WNBA draft:
| Pick | Team | Player | School/Country | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Atlanta Dream | Rhyne Howard | Kentucky | G |
| 2 | Indiana Fever | NaLyssa Smith | Baylor | F |
| 3 | Washington Mystics | Shakira Austin | Ole Miss | C |
| 4 | Indiana Fever | Emily Engstler | Louisville | F |
| 5 | New York Liberty | Nyara Sabally | Oregon | F |
| 6 | Indiana Fever | Lexie Hull | Stanford | G |
| 7 | Dallas Wings | Veronica Burton | Northwestern | G |
| 8 | Las Vegas Aces | Mya Hollingshed | Colorado | F |
| 9 | Los Angeles Sparks | Rae Burrell | Tennessee | G/F |
| 10 | Indiana Fever | Queen Egbo | Baylor | C |
| 11 | Las Vegas Aces | Kierstan Bell | Florida Gulf Coast | G |
| 12 | Connecticut Sun | Nia Clouden | Michigan State | G |
| Second round | ||||
| 13 | Las Vegas Aces | Khayla Pointer | LSU | G |
| 14 | Washington Mystics | Christyn Williams | Connecticut | G |
| 15 | Atlanta Dream | Naz Hillmon | Michigan | F |
| 16 | Los Angeles Sparks | Kianna Smith | Louisville | G |
| 17 | Seattle Storm | Elissa Cunane | NC State | C |
| 18* | Seattle Storm | Lorela Cubaj | Georgia Tech | F |
| 19 | Los Angeles Sparks | Olivia Nelson-Ododa | Connecticut | F |
| 20 | Indiana Fever | Destanni Henderson | South Carolina | G |
| 21 | Seattle Storm | Evina Westbrook | Connecticut | G |
| 22 | Minnesota Lynx | Kayla Jones | NC State | F |
| 23 | Las Vegas Aces | Aisha Sheppard | Virginia Tech | G |
| 24 | Connecticut Sun | Jordan Lewis | Baylor | G |
| Third Round | ||||
| 25 | Indiana Fever | Ameshya Williams-Holliday | Jackson State | F |
| 26 | Phoenix Mercury | Maya Dodson | Notre Dame | F |
| 27 | Los Angeles Sparks | Amy Atwell | Hawaii | F |
| 28 | Minnesota Lynx | Hannah Sjerven | South Dakota | C |
| 29 | New York Liberty | Sika Koné | Mali | F |
| 30 | Dallas Wings | Jasmine Dickey | Delaware | G/F |
| 31 | Dallas Wings | Jazz Bond | North Florida | F |
| 32 | Phoenix Mercury | Macee Williams | IUPUI | F |
| 33 | Seattle Storm | Jade Melbourne | Australia | G |
| 34 | Indiana Fever | Ali Patberg | Indiana | G |
| 35 | Las Vegas Aces | Faustine Aifuwa | LSU | C |
| 36 | Connecticut Sun | Kiara Smith | Florida | G |
*Traded draft rights of Cubaj to New York for New York’s 2023 second-round pick.
