WNBA Mock Draft 2026 and Predictions for Lauren Betts, Full 1st Round After Lottery

For the second season in a row, the Dallas Wings will have the No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft.

The team had a 42 percent chance of winning the draft lottery and did just that, earning the right to pick the best player come Monday, April 13, 2026.

The best team in the league's regular season last year, the Minnesota Lynx , earned the No. 2 pick after a trade with the Chicago Sky, while the Seattle Storm slotted third.

The Washington Mystics received the fourth pick while the Sky finished fifth.

Who are the players who could land with any of those teams, or the others selecting in the first round?

Find out in this mock draft.

2026 Mock Draft

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The post-lottery mock draft for the 2026 WNBA season is:

1. Dallas Wings: Azzi Fudd, SG, UConn

2. Minnesota Lynx: Lauren Betts, C, UCLA

3. Seattle Storm: Olivia Miles, PG, TCU

4. Washington Mystics: Awa Fam, C, Spain

5. Chicago Sky: Flau'jae Johnson, SG, LSU

6. Toronto Tempo or Portland Fire: Gianna Kneepkens, SG, UCLA

7. Portland Fire or Toronto Tempo: Cotie McMahon, SF, Ole Miss

8. Golden State Valkyries: Serah Williams, PF, UConn

9. Washington Mystics: Ta'Niya Latson, SG, South Carolina

10. Indiana Fever: Madina Okot, C, South Carolina

11. Washington Mystics: Iyana Martin Carrion, PG, Spain

12. Connecticut Sun: Kiki Rice, PG, UCLA

13. Atlanta Dream: Janiah Barker, PF, Tennessee

14. Seattle Storm: Gabriela Jaquez, SG, UCLA

The Awa Fam Impact

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Representation for Awa Fam, the breakout center out of Spain, told ESPN that the WNBA is her "top priority," making her one of the most intriguing picks in the draft.

In six games for FIBA Women's EuroBasket, Fam has averaged 8.7 points per game with 4.2 rebounds per game, 2.3 assists per game.

A high-potential player who could be a dominant fixture for whichever team she ends up, Fam is a player who could easily find herself in the top five.

ESPN has her as the top player in their initial mock draft, a realistic spot if she continues to play up to her potential overseas. The combination of her and Paige Bueckers in Dallas could be exactly what the Wings need to climb back into playoff and championship relevancy.

A scenario in which she ends up in Minnesota, after the Lynx finished the 2025 season with the best record in the league (34-10), would be dangerous for the rest of the league, especially if the team can lock up free agent and bona fide superstar Napheesa Collier long-term.

A team that can build around her, like Washington, might be the best fit for Fam, especially given the team's three first-round picks and the potential to add her teammate, point guard Iyana Martin Carrion.

A UConn Reunion in Dallas?

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A year ago, Paige Bueckers was the undisputed No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft, the closest thing to a foregone conclusion since Caitlin Clark the year before.

This year, there is no such player.

There are three or four different competitors who could be that top pick, including Bueckers' former teammate at Connecticut, Azzi Fudd.

Though early in the 2025-26 college season, Fudd is averaging 20.4 points per game, 3.0 rebounds, and 3.8 assists.

An elite shooter, she is knocking down 46.8 percent from the field and 50 percent from beyond the arc. She is turning the ball over at a rate unfamiliar to her (2.4 per game), but she is a workhorse (30.2 minutes a night) and her offense makes up for it.

While there are potentially better players than her who could be the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft, a reunion with Bueckers and a Dallas team built around them and their offense would immediately improve the Wings and give them a chance to score on any team.

More importantly, it would provide one of the faces of the league a familiar teammate with whom she has instant chemistry and the ability to immediately improve upon Dallas' disappointing 2025 campaign.

Lauren Betts and her 15.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 4.2 assists for the UCLA Bruins are a potential fit, as well.

Ultimately, how much input Bueckers has could prove to be the difference.