2025 WNBA Mock Draft: Los Angeles lands Paige Beuckers, and Caitlin Clark and Indiana get much-needed help

2025 WNBA Mock Draft: Los Angeles lands Paige Beuckers, and Caitlin Clark and Indiana get much-needed help (Source Paige’s IG, Indiana Fever)

With the WNBA regular season wrapped up and the playoffs in full force, it’s time for another WNBA mock draft. We now know the four teams that will hope to land the number one pick — the Sparks, Sky, Wings and Mystics. With elite talents at the top, the lottery balls will be as pivotal as ever. For this mock, we determined the lottery order via a Tankathon simulation.

The Golden State Valkyries, the WNBA’s newest expansion team, are slated to pick fifth overall. That’s just outside the lottery, before the other playoff teams. The Valkyries will begin the process of building their roster with an expansion draft in December following the 2024 season’s end.

2025 WNBA Mock Draft

NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament – Final Four – Source: Getty

1) Los Angeles Sparks – Paige Bueckers, G, UConn

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Bueckers is one of those truly special prospects. She’s a special two-way talent — a tall point guard who scores at all three levels, playmakers and defends. Bueckers has the tools to develop into a franchise-altering primary initiator capable of commandeering elite offenses. Bueckers’ feel for the game is elite, a hallmark of all elite guard initiators.

Every passing angle and window are accessible to her, regardless of her position on the court. She’s an elite shotmaker as well, punishing defenses out to the three-point line and scoring in the intermediate and floater range. Oh, and she defends, too, making plays on and off the ball.

Bueckers’ talent could change the course of Los Angeles’s franchise, ripping them out of their rebuild and vaulting them closer to contention. After the surprise firing of head coach Curt Miller following a losing season, the franchise is in desperate need of excitement.

Pairing Bueckers as a lead guard with two potential future stars in Rickea Jackson and Cameron Brink would give the Sparks one of the league’s brightest futures.

2) Chicago Sky – Kiki Irafen, F, USC

Chicago looks to add to a potential foundational 2024 draft with Kiki Irafen, one of the best scorers in all of college basketball. A sky team who struggled mightily to score at times this season would love to add one of the country’s most potent, versatile shotmakers and creators from the interior.

Irafen’s scoring should immediately translate to the WNBA, as she’s a dynamic mid-range, faceup, and post-up scorer. Irafen works with her back to the basket, winning with excellent touch, craft, and a deep bag of post moves. She’s a solid passer as well, capable of punishing defenses that overextends her as a scorer.

Adding another young big in Chicago might cause some friction after their 2024 draft, where the team added Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso. It’s understandable to worry about adding another shaky three-point shooter to the roster.

But Irafen is clearly the best player available, and betting on talent should be the goal for a still-rebuilding Sky team, even if a future trade comes down the line.

3) Dallas Wings – Olivia Miles, PG, Notre Dame

COLLEGE BASKETBALL: FEB 02 Womens Notre Dame at Boston College – Source: Getty

After missing the entire 2023-24 season with injury, Olivia Miles looks to return to elite form in 2025. She has the talent of a top prospect, winning with elite burst and quickness as a slasher. She pairs that slashing goodness with a high-end passing projection, as Miles makes plays with both hands to set up her teammates in positions to score. She’ll bother opposing players with her lightning-quick hands on the defensive end.

She’s a shorter point guard without a reliable jumper, so Miles will likely need to improve her outside shot to become a true star player. Everything else sits in place for her to succeed at the next level, though. Pairing Miles with Arike Ogunbowale and Satou Sabally should help the Wings improve their long-term offensive outlook.

4) Washington Mystics – Sonia Citron, G, Notre Dame

The Mystics made a late-season playoff push but still have plenty of room to grow, so they add an excellent complementary guard prospect in Citron. Citron makes her money playing off of the ball, playing off elite teammates in Olivia Miles and star freshman Hannah Hidalgo. Citron cuts, spaces and shoots off-ball like a seasoned pro, making her an ideal offensive building block for almost any team.

Citron is primarily a secondary option given her lack of elite explosion or burst, comfortable running second-side pick and rolls and finding teammates. That would pair well with 2024 draftee Aaliyah Edwards especially. She’s a solid defender as well, using her excellent team defensive feel and smarts to help her plug gaps off the ball and move her feet on the ball.

5) Golden State Valkyries – Aneesah Morrow, F, LSU

NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament – Second Round – Baton Rouge – Source: Getty

With their first pick in the history of the franchise, the Valkyries add a high-potential, two-way wing in Aneesah Morrow. She’s a stalwart on the defensive end and a versatile scoring option. Morrow’s touch in the mid-range area is excellent, as she creates her own shot inside the paint with regularity. Improving her three-point jumper is the clearest path for Morrow to reach her star ceiling.

Morrow is an excellent defensive prospect, racking up steals and blocks at a high level. She’s strong, explosive and fluid moving laterally, making her an ideal candidate to build your defense around as an on-ball stopper and off-ball disruptor. Her two-way presence on the wing would bolster Golden State’s fledgling rotation, making Morrow a logical pick here.

6) Washington Mystics – Rori Harmon, PG, Texas

Harmon’s absurd 6.2% steal rate fuels her prospect case, as she hounds constantly on the defensive end. Few prospects can match her defensive intensity, quick hands and constant defensive motor. Washington drafted an excellent off-ball scorer earlier in the lottery with the Sonia Citron pick.

Harmon’s defensive and creation-based skillset makes sense in Indiana. Because Harmon sits at just 5’6, she may struggle some to translate to the next level, especially without a reliable three-point shot. Her elite creation and playmaking will help keep her afloat until that happens, though; she’s talented enough to make it work regardless in the league.

7) New York Liberty – Yvonne Ejim, F, Gonzaga

Many college prospects must learn to scale down to more role player, complementary status in the pros. That will likely be the case for Ejim, who stars as one of college basketball’s most exciting and dominant post scorers and creators.

The Liberty won’t have much room for her to create full-time on the interior, but she’s elite facing up and blowing by defenders burning defenses as a scorer and a passer. Ejim will not see the same kind of usage she saw at Gonzaga, at least in the short term.

The Liberty don’t have the space to feed her post touches. Ejim could rely on her excellent defense early in her career, providing strong post-defense while blocking and contesting shots on the interior. Betting on Ejim’s talent, regardless of any role issues, will be a smart idea.

8) Indiana Fever – Te-Hina Paopao, G, South Carolina

Though Paopao’s profile may not blow anyone away with elite athleticism or isolation scoring, she’s a phenomenal complementary guard prospect. For teams like Indiana, with their initiators already in place, Paopao’s decision-making on the ball, floor spacing ability and defense should all be attractive.

Indiana, especially, could use more ballhandling talent on their bench. The Fever are one of the league’s weaker defensive rosters, making Paopao’s low-maintenance, two-way stile a logical fit next to Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell.

9) Seattle Storm – Azzi Fudd, G, UConn

Azzi Fudd is an exceptional floor spacer who can score at a high-efficiency rate. She’s shown her pedigree as a reliable off-ball option next to Paige Bueckers and Co. at UConn, suggesting she could do the same with a Storm team with a glaring weakness from long range.

For a team like the Storm featuring dynamic offensive players like Jewell Loyd and Nneka Ogwumike, Fudd’s cutting and off-ball movement will help her earn time early. She masterfully sets up her dives to the rim by shaking defenders and timing her cuts to beat help. She won’t need plays called for her to succeed, making her an attractive off-ball piece.

10) Chicago Sky – Georgia Amoore, G, Kentucky

The Sky finally add shooting with their second pick of the first round, selecting one of the highest-volume creators in college basketball. Amoore is another example of a prospect who should see her efficiency improve in a scaled-down role, as she won’t have to carry the Sky’s offense. Amoore can focus on her elite advantage and shot creation to open things up for herself and her teammates.

However, 5-foot-6 Amoore’s size could limit her at the WNBA level defensively. Nevertheless, her offensive toolkit with what Irafen brings to the table might turn solid enough to compensate for that. The Sky also have strong defenders like Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso to cover for the defensive issues.

11) Minnesota Lynx – Janiah Barker, F, UCLA

Minnesota boasts one of the league’s most stacked rosters and a proven infrastructure to develop players. It makes sense for the Lynx to draft a talented forward in Janiah Barker. She’s an incredible defensive player who creates turnovers and defends the ball well against multiple positions.

Barker still needs offensive development, but her flashes of shooting, playmaking and ballhandling as a 6-foot-4 big all make her an enticing project pick for a Lynx team that can afford to wait for her to develop into the player she can become.

12) Phoenix Mercury – Raven Johnson, PG, South Carolina

After Diana Taurasi’s likely retirement, the Mercury will look to load up on guard depth in the offseason. Phoenix has struggled on the defensive this season, especially in the backcourt. Johnson might be the best point-of-attack defender in this draft because of her quick hands, aggression, and lateral speed.

She has plenty of college experience against elite talent. That could translate to the WNBA. Adding a reliable three-point shot would help Johnson develop into a useful 3-and-D point guard, even if there isn’t a ton of offensive utility otherwise. Phoenix would love to add a defensive ace like her next to offensive stars like Kahleah Copper.

Projected Pick
Player
Team

1
Paige Bueckers
LA Sparks

2
Kiki Irafen
Chicago Sky

3
Olivia Miles
Dallas Wings

4
Sonia Citron
Washington Mystics

5
Aneesah Morrow
Golden State Valkyries

6
Rori Harmon
Washington Mystics

7
Yvonne Eljim
New York Liberty

8
Te-Hina Paopao
Indiana Fever

9
Azzi Fudd
Seattle Storm

10
Georgia Amoore
Chicago Sky

11
Janiah Barker
Minnesota Lynx

12
Raven Johnson
Phoenix Mercury