WNBA Lottery Results 2024: Full Selection Order, Analysis and More

Perhaps the most consequential moment of the 2024 WNBA offseason unfolded Sunday with the Indiana Fever winning the draft lottery for the second straight year.

Fans have eagerly awaited this class to become draft-eligible almost from the moment the top stars debuted as freshmen. Any one of Iowa's Caitlin Clark, UConn's Paige Bueckers or Stanford's Cameron Brink could be a foundational cornerstone. Huskies star Aaliyah Edwards, Tennessee's Rickea Jackson, LSU's Angel Reese and South Carolina's Kamilla Cardoso have the talent to be productive starters for a long time.

The 2024 draft is poised to be one of the deepest the WNBA has seen in years. For the lottery teams that weren't the Fever, missing out on the No. 1 pick won't be the end of the world.

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2024 WNBA Draft First Round Order

1. Indiana Fever

2. Los Angeles Sparks

3. Phoenix Mercury

4. Seattle Storm

5. Dallas Wings (via Sky)

6. Washington Mystics

7. Minnesota Lynx

8. Atlanta Dream

9. Dallas Wings

10. Connecticut Sun

11. New York Liberty

12. Los Angeles Sparks (via Aces)

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A level of uncertainty remains about whether the top stars on the board will declare for the 2024 draft, though. Clark, Bueckers and Brink all have the extra year of eligibility they received during the COVID-19 pandemic. They're the last senior class that can exercise the option.

And unlike with every other major American sports league, the financial incentives on offer in the WNBA don't exactly make it an open-and-shut case when elite prospects weigh their next step.

Here are the guaranteed salaries under the rookie wage scale for the first-round picks in the 2024 draft class, per Her Hoop Stats:

• No. 1-4: $76,535 (2024), $78,066 (2025), $85,873 (2026) 
• No. 5-8: $73,439 (2024) $74,909 (2025) $82,399 (2026)
• No. 9-12: $70,344 (2024) $71,753 (2025) $78,929 (2026)

Jackson, Virginia Tech star Elizabeth Kitley and UCLA star Charisma Osborne all could've potentially been first-rounders in 2023 but decided to return to school.

The Fever were very thankful Aliyah Boston didn't follow suit. The 6'5" forward decided against chasing a second national title at South Carolina, and that could foreshadow how the likes of Clark, Bueckers and Brink are mentally approaching the 2024 draft.

Assuming there aren't any big surprises, Clark will likely be the first player selected on April 15. The reigning national player of the year is averaging 29.6 points, 6.7 rebounds and 7.6 assists this season. Her long-range shooting and willingness to spot up from anywhere inside half court have become the stuff of legend.

A few years ago, Bueckers would've been the shoo-in for the No. 1 pick. She averaged 20.0 points, 4.9 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 2.3 steals as a freshman en route to collecting multiple player of the year awards.

Since then, injuries have limited her to 25 combined appearances. The UConn star battled knee trouble as a sophomore before a torn ACL wiped out her entire 2022-23 campaign.

Still, Bueckers remains a dynamic scorer and playmaker and has stabilized her draft stock for the most part.

Brink could be a massive consolation prize for whoever gets the No. 3 pick. The 6'4" forward is putting up 18.6 points, 11.4 rebounds and 3.3 blocks in 21.7 minutes per game. She's also 5-of-12 on three-pointers, which is encouraging after she made only 10 of her 47 long-range attempts as a junior.

Reese might be the biggest wild card in the draft.

The LSU star was the most instrumental piece of last year's national championship squad, averaging 21.3 points and 15.2 rebounds to earn the Most Outstanding Player Award for the NCAA tournament.

Reese missed four games for undisclosed reasons, though, with her absence becoming one of the biggest stories in women's basketball.

As ESPN's Michael Voepel wrote, there were already some questions about how the 6'3" forward's gaudy numbers will translate to the WNBA. She hasn't displayed much range and like most bigs, she can be exploited on defense when dragged away from the basket.

Reese has the seventh-highest NIL valuation ($1.7 million) in college athletics, per On3. Depending on how the rest of the season unfolds, she could easily decide spending one more year in college is in her best interests.

A strong finish, on the other hand, could move her up draft boards and have her knocking on the door of the lottery.