Looking Ahead at WNBA’s 20th Year: new president Lisa Borders, Diana Taurasi returns, and it’s the last season for 10-time WNBA all-star Tamika Catchings

Last week was a historic week for the world of sports. The Golden State Warriors set the best record in NBA history, Kobe Bryant dropped 60 points in his final career game and the 20th WNBA Draft took place at the Mohegan Sun Arena for the third consecutive year. Thirty-six of the nation’s best women collegiate athletes were selected into the WNBA on Thursday night. For the first time in the history of the WNBA Draft, the top three selections all came from the same school. The Huskies from the University of Connecticut took the top three spots and dominated the first round of the draft just like they dominated the NCCA Championship earlier this year.

As expected, Breanna Stewart was selected first overall by the Seattle Storm, this is the second year that the Storm has had the number one pick. Expectations are set high for the 6’4 forward, she is a 4-time NCAA champion, 3-time player of the year and she is the only player to be named the NCAA Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player four years in a row. The Storm has not won a championship since 2010, hopefully, Stewart can keep her championship streak going at the professional level. The No.2 pick went to the San Antonio Stars, who selected Texas native, Moriah Jefferson. The Huskie also has 4 championship titles under her belt and was named the American Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Jefferson set a school record with a total of 659 career assist not to mention she is a 46% 3-point-shooter. Her versatility on the court is just what the Stars need this season.

It was a big night for the Connecticut Sun, who went home with two consecutive first round picks. Coming in at No.3 was Morgan Tuck from UConn. Aside from becoming a champion for the fourth time in her career, Tuck finished her final year with an assist-turnover ratio of 2.1/1, which was the second-best in the league. The No.4 selection, also for the Connecticut Sun, was Rachel Banham from the University of Minnesota. She is most remembered for her 60-point game earlier in the season, a performance that was recognized and duplicated by NBA star Kobe Bryant. Banham was named the 2016 BIG 10 player of the year and has set the all-time scoring record with 3,093 career points. The Dallas Wings, formerly known as the Tulsa Shock had the No.5 pick and they selected Aerial Powers from Michigan State. Powers is a 3-time first team All-American and set a school record with 47 career double-doubles.

The Los Angeles Sparks selected Jonquel Jones of George Washington as the No.6 overall draft pick, Jones is the only player to average a double-double for 3 consecutive seasons. At No.7, the Washington Mystics selected Kahleah Cooper of Rutgers University. Cooper sits at No.3 on Rutgers all-time scoring list behind, Cappie Pondexter and Sue Wicks. Courtney Williams of the University of Southern Florida was selected 8th overall by the Phoneix Mercury. The Indiana Fever selected Tiffany Mitchell as the 9th overall pick. Mitchell played for the University of Southern California and led her team with 85 assists this season. The 10th overall selection went to the Chicago Sky who picked Imani Boyette. Boyette played for Texas State and was named the BIG 12 Co-Defensive Player of the Year. Boyette is the daughter of WNBA legend Pamela McGee, they are the first mother-daughter duo to have played for the league. The Atlanta Dream selected Bria Holmes of West Virginia 11th overall. The New York Liberty wrapped up the first round selecting Adut Bulgak 12th overall. Bulgak is a 6’4 center out of Florida State and was an Honorable Mention All-American in 2015.

Fans have a lot to look forward to this season as Diana Taurasi will make her return to the Phoenix Mercury, newly acquired WNBA president Lisa Borders will participate in her first active season and most importantly this will be the last season for 10-time WNBA all-star Tamika Catchings. The WNBA’s historic 20th anniversary season will kick off on May 14th.

In-studio Report About 2015 WNBA Draft with Naomi Grey

What’s The 411Sports correspondent, Naomi Grey, came to the studio to talk with What’s The 411Sports hosts Glenn Gilliam and Greg Alcala about the 2015 WNBA Draft.

In the video, Naomi gives us the “411” on the first five players selected in the draft; and the New York Liberty’s draft selections. Naomi also engaged in conversation with Glenn and Greg regarding what the WNBA and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver can do to give the WNBA more visibility.

In case you were wondering, the top five picks in the 2015 WNBA Draft were:

1. Notre Dame’s shooting guard, Jewell Loyd selected No.1 by The Seattle Storm

2. Minnesota Golden Gopher’s Amanda Zahui B. selected by Tulsa Shock

3. UConn’s Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis selected by the Seattle Storm

4. Duke’s center/forward Elizabeth Williams selected by the Connecticut Sun

5. Middle Tennessee State University center Cheyenne Parker selected by Chicago Sky

Oddly enough, the Daily News Journal reported that Parker was dismissed from her MTSU team in late February for repeated violations of athletic department policy.

Parker served a five-game suspension for an undisclosed violation of athletic department policy to begin this season. That suspension included both of the Lady Raiders' preseason games and the first three games of the regular season.

I guess the Chicago Sky were unfazed by Parker's athletic department policy violations, or her skills trump the violations. We'll get to the bottom of this later.

For more information about the WNBA Draft, read Naomi Grey’s detailed article about the 2015 WNBA Draft.

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.