Seattle Storm Selects Jewel Loyd as No. 1 Draft Pick at 2015 WNBA Draft

On Thursday night, 36 of the nation’s top women’s basketball players were drafted into the WNBA. The 2015 WNBA draft was held at the Mohegan Sun Arena for the second year in a row. It was an overall epic night for the 12-team league, each team made strategic decisions based on their team’s performance during the WNBA 2014-2015 season. As expected, multiple trades took place during all three rounds of the 2015 WNBA Draft. It was clear that the 12 teams knew exactly what kind of players they needed to help bring success to their team for the upcoming season.

The Seattle Storm selected Notre Dame’s shooting guard, Jewell Loyd as the No. 1 overall draft pick. The 5-10 junior waited until 5 days before the draft to declare her eligibility. The decision to end her college basketball career one year early was not an easy one; however it was a decision that is now known as one of the biggest game changers in the 2015 WNBA Draft. Lloyd was named espnW’s 2014-2015 National Player of the Year, was a First Team All American selection, and she was named the ACC Player of the Year. She also helped lead her team to the 2015 NCAA Division 1 Championship two years in a row. To top off her great accomplishments she scored 772 points this season, averaging 22 point per game.

The No. 2 draft pick Amanda Zahui B. also made the decision to wrap up her college career after just 2 seasons with the Minnesota Golden Gophers. She was chosen by the Tulsa Shock. Zahui B. broke records at Minnesota becoming the Golden Gophers first player to be named to the AP All-America First Team. She also set a record with 240 career blocks. During her final season she averaged 18.8 points, 12.9 rebounds and 4.1 blocks.

Amanda Zahui B of the Minnesota Golden Gophers selected No. 2 overall by the Tulsa Shock at 2015 WNBA Draft

With the third pick in the WNBA draft, the Seattle Storm chose NCCA Division 1 champion, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis of UConn. The 5’11 forward was named the NCAA’s all-time leader in made three-point shots, with a total of 398. Kaleena averaged 15.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.3 assist per game.

The Connecticut Sun selected Duke’s center/forward Elizabeth Williams for the No.4 overall pick. The No.5 pick went to the Chicago Sky who selected Cheyenne Parker, a forward coming out of Middle Tennessee State University. Dearica Hamby of Wake Forest was selected No. 6 overall by the San Antonio Stars. The Los Angeles Sparks selected the No. 7 pick, Crystal Bradford from Central Michigan. The University of Dayton’s shooting guard, Ally Malott, was selected eighth overall by the Washington Mystics. After a trade between the New York Liberty and San Antonio Stars, California’s all time record holder for steals and assist, Brittany Boyd was selected 9th overall by the Liberty. The Stars traded their 9th pick for Alex Montgomery, forward/guard of the New York Liberty. The Atlanta Dream selected Iowa’s shooting guard, Samantha Logic for the tenth overall pick. With a second trade of the night, the New York Liberty selected UConn’s center Kiah Stokes.

The Liberty traded its No. 16 and No. 35 draft picks along with Anna Cruz to the Minnesota Lynx. In return the Liberty acquired the No. 11, No. 23 and No. 28 selections.

New York Liberty guard Anna Cruz traded to Minnesota Lynx in exchange for the No. 11, No. 23 and No. 28 overall picks

Wrapping up the first round of the 2015 WNBA Draft with the No.12 overall pick, the defending champions, Phoenix Mercury, selected Isabelle Harrison from the University of Tennessee.

The final 24 draftees were selected in the second and third rounds of the 2015 WNBA Drafts. With a great mixture of raw and elite talent amongst the 2015 draft class, the WNBA was able to conduct another remarkable and memorable draft.

For a fun-filled conversation about the 2015 WNBA Draft, check out Naomi Grey's in-studio video.