Commissioner Cathy Engelbert speaks at the 2023 WNBA draft.
Adam Hunger/AP
The 2024 WNBA draft is being retooled.
The league’s 28th annual draft, taking place April 15 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, will mark the first time since the 2016 draft held in Uncasville, Connecticut, that fans will be in attendance. The 2024 draft also marks the first time since 2021 that the Sky will have a first-round pick.
“We are focused on creating elevated events that WNBA fans won’t want to miss, at a time when the energy for the WNBA has never been higher,” commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a statement.
Approximately 1,000 tickets will go on sale March 7.
The Indiana Fever owns the No. 1 overall pick, which they are expected to use to select Iowa guard and NCAA scoring leader Caitlin Clark. The Los Angeles Sparks own the second pick and the Sky acquired the third overall pick from the Phoenix Mercury in the Kahleah Copper trade at the beginning of the month. The Sky also acquired the No. 8 pick in a trade with the Sparks.
Australian guard Shyla Heal was the Sky’s last first-round selection when former coach/GM James Wade used the eighth overall pick in 2021 to draft her. Heal was with the team less than a month before Wade traded her to the Dallas Wings for guard Dana Evans.
The 2024 draft is currently marked by uncertainty with a number of top prospects still undecided on whether they will declare for the draft. UConn guard Paige Bueckers was the first player to announce her intention to return for her fifth year of eligibility. Others who could follow suit include Stanford’s Cameron Brink, South Carolina’s Kamilla Cordoso, LSU’s Angel Reese and Virginia Tech’s Georgia Amoore.
“It’s a little tricky right now not knowing who is going to declare and who is going to stay in school,” Sky GM Jeff Pagliocca said last week. “We’re considering all options. There’s a lot of strong players, players that we like and have regular discussions about.”
“We have different designs in place depending on who decides to stay in school and who declares.”
The Sky’s roster, as currently constructed, is guard-heavy.
A player like Tennessee forward Rickea Jackson, who has no more college eligibility, is who the Sky are projected to take with the No. 3 pick in a number of mock drafts. Jackson is currently averaging 18.8 points and eight rebounds and 2.2 assists for Tennessee.
The Sky currently have three players signed to training camp contracts: forward Taya Reimer, guard Chennedy Carter and guard Kysre Gondrezick. When training camp begins the Sky will likely have three available roster spots to fill between those training camp players and the rookies they draft on April 15.