Who I Would Select in the 2026 WNBA Expansion Draft
On April 3rd, the WNBA will hold an expansion draft between two new teams, the Toronto Tempo and the Portland Fire. Since I have no idea who they would select given that I don’t know what their philosophies are, it doesn’t make sense for me to do a mock draft; instead, I did a draft based on who I would select for each of the two teams (I know that sounds weird to have me drafting for the only two teams, but I did have slightly different approaches with the teams).
I will refer to an excellent article by Her Hoop Stats to
discuss the rules (it’s a little tough to explain everything), but there are a
few rules I would like to highlight for those uninitiated to look at the
article. Each team can protect up to 5
players; while there were restrictions about non-coreable players being
eligible, these appear to be removed. The
draft is broken into two rounds, with Toronto and Portland each selecting up to
6 picks each round, with no WNBA team being able to have multiple players
selected in the same round (for example, if an Atlanta player is taken with the
first pick, no other Atlanta player can be selected in that round; they can be
taken in the second round); there are no known rules preventing Toronto or Portland
from taking multiple players from the same team. Due to the results of a coin flip, Toronto
opted for a higher pick in the WNBA Draft, meaning Portland gets the first
overall pick in the Expansion Draft.
Each team can select up to one unrestricted free agent.
The other fun twist about all of this is that the protected
players lists are not made publicly available, which results in several
surprises about who teams could pick (for example, Kate Martin was widely
expected to be protected by Las Vegas last year, but ended up being drafted in
the expansion draft, indicating that she apparently wasn’t protected). As such, I am using the aforementioned
article from Her Hoop Stats to determine who will be protected or unprotected
in this draft. While teams can stop
taking players whenever they would like, I am requiring that Toronto and
Portland select a player from each team (with one exception). As such, there ends up being some wackiness
with the second round, especially due to an odd effect of the protected players
chosen.
Round 1
1: Portland – Nyadiew Pouch, ATL, F
It might be weird to select a player who has never played in
the WNBA with the first overall pick, but I think she has higher upside than
most of the players available to be selected.
She has amazing size and has developed at both ends of the court
significantly while only 21. I wonder if
she would be more willing to come over to the W now that the salaries are going
to be higher.
2: Toronto – Bridget Carleton, MIN, F
This pick might seem weirder on first glimpse, but Carleton
is a solid player who is from Canada (she was actually born a few hours from
Toronto), instantly giving her the ability to be a hometown hero for the
franchise. She is a solid 3-and-D combo forward
who can fit in easily alongside other players while being 29. The other thing to note is that Minnesota has
several players that could be selected, but selecting her here means that Portland
cannot take a player from Minnesota until the next round if they wanted
to. While it might be a little reckless
to select Carleton as their unrestricted free agent and pay her a lot of money,
they will probably struggle to get free agents initially, so it makes sense to
spend their money on a hometown hero who will be loved.
3: Portland – Cecelia Zandalasini, GSV, F
As much as I wanted to take Emma Meesseman here, I figured I
probably shouldn’t select two players who might not play in the WNBA with the
first two picks. Zandalasini is a good
shooter who is a steady off-ball player and competes on both ends. While she doesn’t do a ton on the ball, I’d
be okay with that given how easily she fits in with other players due to
this. If Portland is able to convince a
big-name free agent who wants more touches to join the team, Zandalasini will
be valuable due to her ability to thrive without the ball a ton.
4: Toronto – Jacy Sheldon, WAS, G
After selecting an unrestricted free agent with the first
pick, it makes sense to select someone under contract. Even if Sheldon doesn’t end up being the ball
handler that a lot of people thought she would be when she entered the draft, her
jumper and competitiveness both were nice additions to Connecticut before she
was traded to Washington. I think those
elements of her game will allow her to find minutes throughout a WNBA career.
5: Portland – Makayla Timpson, IND, PF/C
While Timpson didn’t play a ton last season, she showed
glimpses of being the double-double machine that she was in college, especially
while demonstrating impressive finishing and defensive rebounding. On top of that, Portland could use somebody
that is under a cheap contract and is going to play in the W unless something
odd happens.
6: Toronto – Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, NYL, SG/SF
There is a bit of risk in drafting a player who is coming
off an injury that prevented her from playing last season, especially since she
is 32, but she is a talented player who will be reunited with coach Sandy Brondello,
who clearly trusted her. Even if she isn’t
as good as she was before the injury, she is a talented 3-and-D player with
playmaking ability who was an All-Star in 2021.
While a free agent, her contract was suspended last season, so she is
technically not an unrestricted free agent.
She has shown that she can be a better player or a supporting cast
starter on a playoff team.
7: Portland – Aziaha James, DAL, G
With several more-clear options not eligible in this round
due to other selections, they might as well swing for the fences with a raw
guard who showed some glimpses. While she was not efficient with scoring, the
fact that she was still willing to score aggressively and didn’t turn the ball
over often makes her worth a shot in my opinion.
8: Toronto – Rae Burrell, LAS, SG/SF
I was torn between Burrell and the player selected next, but
I leaned towards Burrell due to the offensive upside. While she hasn’t found consistency on either
end yet, I think she can develop as a shooter and defender due to her size and
skillset.
9: Portland – Kiersten Bell, LAV, F
I know her numbers aren’t something to write home about, especially
on the offensive end, but Bell is a good defender who can guard several
positions on the court. She’s a
restricted free agent who I don’t think will command a massive salary while
being extremely valuable on the defensive end.
10: Toronto – Kathryn Westbeld, PHX, F
I was torn between Westbeld and Lexi Held to be taken from
Phoenix in this round, but I think Westbeld is a better shooter with better
size, making her a nice fit with a Toronto team where I didn’t select as many
other bigs. I’m lower on her upside than
that of other younger players, especially since she’s 30, but she’s a good
player.
11: Portland – Lexi Brown, SEA, G
I originally would have gone with Nika Mühl, but her recent
ACL injury makes Brown be my pick instead.
She had an atrocious season last year, but has been a good shooter in
the past, is a decent secondary playmaker, and is a fine defender. The fact that she is on a cheap contract helps
make her my choice.
12: Toronto – Rayah Marshall, CON, PF/C
It’s tough to justify drafting Marshall earlier due to the
fact that she only played 90 minutes for a bad Connecticut team last year, but
she’s only 22 and is a good rebounder with some defensive upside; she probably
is the best player from Connecticut that Toronto is eligible to select.
Round 2
13: Toronto – Marine Johannes, NYK, SG
While a little streaky and already 31, Johannes is a good
shooter who has shown some glimpses of shot creation. She has shown that she can easily fit with
stars of all levels, which is beneficial if Toronto ends up outperforming the expectations
of most expansion teams. On top of that,
now Portland cannot take a New York player in this round, meaning that several
worthy players are off the board.
14: Portland – Kate Martin, GSV, SG
Despite a difficult year with her efficiency, Martin is a
good shooter, especially from the corner.
She is on a cheap contract and has always been willing to be a low usage,
so that makes it easy for her to fit with any team. I could see Toronto also being interested in
her for these reasons, so this means that Toronto can’t get her.
15: Toronto – Haley Jones, DAL, SG/SF
I was considering between Jones and Diamond Miller, who we’ve
seen glimpses of scoring from, but Jones looked a lot better than she ever had
in the W during her stint in Dallas, as she improved as a defender, playmaker,
rebounder, and finisher. If they resign
her to a short-term deal, they could see how legitimate this stretch was.
16: Portland – Lucy Olsen, WAS, G
Olson had an inconsistent year last year, but she showed
glimpses with her scoring, especially looking adept as a finisher. I think she will continue to improve as a
defender, so Portland could end up with a starter or high-level backup at this
point in an expansion draft if she improves her shot and playmaking.
17: Toronto – Sarah Ashlee Barker, LAS, G
I know that Barker had a disappointing rookie year in just
about all aspects on the court, but she is just one year removed from being the
9th pick in the draft. After
breaking out in her 4th of 5 years in college, she greatly improved
as a scorer, shooter, rebounder, and defender, so the hope is that she can do
at least one of those in the W.
18: Portland – Helena Pueyo, PHX, G
This might seem like a weird pick since the 2024 2nd
round pick has never played a game in the W, nor did she ever average 10 PPG in
a college season, but she’s a great defender who can shoot well and makes the
right plays on and off the ball. To me,
that’s worth taking a shot on. With the
new CBA, I’m curious if she would be more motivated to play in the W on a
higher salary.
19: Toronto – Chloe Bibby, IND, F
The rest of this draft is going to be a little tougher for
Toronto since they already drafted their unrestricted free agent, which is part
of why I’m having Portland take players who aren’t unrestricted free agents
since the player I want to take should be available at the end. At this point, they should be thrilled with
getting a forward who is a good shooter.
20: Portland – Anastasiia Kosu, MIN, F
Minnesota could have a lot of enticing players available, so
this might seem like a strange selection, but I think Kosu on her rookie deal
is worth a shot. While she didn’t play much
for Minnesota (to her credit, Minnesota had a deep team last year), she showed
potential in Russia, especially as an offensive talent, and is only 21. It’s worth a shot to see what she can do as a
power forward and potential small 5.
21: Toronto – Nikolina Milic, CON, F
Toronto is limited at this point and could very well opt to
not take any more players in real life, but that violates the rules I set up
here. Milic might be 32 and might not
have played in the W for the past few years, but she can shoot, so that might
be their best bet.
22: Portland – Maya Caldwell, ATL, G
I swear I know what I’m doing here with Portland; it will
all make sense with the last two picks. Caldwell
had her best year yet, demonstrating improvement as a shooter, so I think it’s
fair to give the 27-year-old a shot.
23: Toronto – Nika Mühl, SEA, PG
There are only two teams left to select from with Chicago
trading out of the draft, but there’s something interesting that I noticed
early in this process with the list I used: Las Vegas only has 1 unprotected player
who is not an unrestricted free agent, Kiersten Bell, who was already drafted,
meaning that Toronto cannot select a Vegas player. I’m honestly low on all the remaining
players, but Mühl is a good playmaker and defender. She did have another injury and will miss all
of this season (she missed all of last season as well), so they can suspend her
contract for the year and open a roster spot.
24: Portland – Jewell Loyd, LVA, G
First off, the reason I waited to select Loyd until now was
because Toronto couldn’t take another unrestricted free agent after taking
Carleton with their first selection (a decision I stand by given that she is Canadian
and a good player) and that Golden State had only one unprotected player who
wasn’t an unrestricted free agent (Kiersten Bell, who was taken in the first round). As such, it made sense to wait until Toronto
was done before taking their unrestricted free agent, which I think Loyd is a
great choice. First off, she was a star
for Seattle in her 10-year tenure there before being traded to Vegas, so she
could get some regional fans to follow her.
Despite my criticisms of her inconsistencies with her efficiency (especially
from 2), she is an impressive scorer who is also a good shooter; there is a
reason that she is 6-time All-Star, 3-time All-WNBA, and 3-time champ. After last season and given Vegas’ roster
construction, I don’t think that they will be offering Loyd a max contract, so it
makes sense at this point to take a chance on her, even if she cannot be
cored. On top of that, she is a
marketable name, which is a dream to end up as an expansion team, especially
since these players are almost never available.
Who would you select in this draft? Let me know in the comments!
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