2025 WNBA Draft Preview: Paige Bueckers Goes First, Then Who?

The Dallas Wings are expected to draft the UConn Huskies star first. The favorite to go second overall, to Seattle, is Dominique Malonga of France.

Paige Bueckers of the UConn Huskies celebrates in the fourth quarter of the title game against the South Carolina Gamecocks during the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla., on April 6, 2025. Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

Unlike the NBA Draft, which takes place two-and-a-half months after the conclusion of the men’s college basketball season, the WNBA Draft is held roughly a week after the women’s college basketball season ends. This year’s draft will take place on April 14 at The Shed in New York City.

There will be 38 total selections over three rounds, and while each round was set to have 13 picks, the Las Vegas Aces were forced to forfeit their first-round pick because league policy violation, so the first round will have 12 picks. The draft lottery determined the order with the top four, with the rest of the picks determined in inverse order by the teams’ regular-season records. The Dallas Wings hold the No. 1 overall pick, and just as the NBA Draft has a sure-fire top overall prospect in Cooper Flagg, the WNBA Draft has the same in Paige Bueckers.