The WNBA Draft Is a Big-Ticket Event Now

For the incoming WNBA class of 2024, Monday night’s draft was technically a new beginning—but it also felt a bit like a graduation party. This year, Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Kamilla Cardoso, and more were instrumental in bringing more eyes to women’s college basketball than ever before, making their draft night a well-earned (and fashionable!) culmination of all the hard work they put in on campus.

And for maybe the first time, the draft felt like a capital-E event—a tier-one sports-media circus, rather than a side note. The Indiana Fever—who had the first pick, and thus the privilege of making Clark one of the most obvious first picks in the history of sports—sent a veritable welcoming party to the draft to show how excited they are about their new prized player. It wasn’t just team staffers and local Indy news stations, though. Women’s hoopers have been the sports world’s main source of buzz basically since the Super Bowl, and people from all over flocked to the Brooklyn Academy of Music to see them.

When I pulled up to the historic venue, I saw throngs of fans old and young hoping to catch a single glimpse of their basketball idols—and I was also greeted by a line to pick up media credentials that spilled well out the door that started winding on to the streets of Fort Greene. While everyone knows that media coverage of women’s sports is at an all-time high, seeing the actual tonnage of humans responsible for it felt telling. Women’s basketball ain’t going anywhere, I thought, laughing about how the theater where I saw Past Lives had transformed into the place to be for any sports fan. For context: ten years ago the draft was held in the Connecticut Sun’s arena, which is inside a casino. In Connecticut. It was not open to fans. The first round was broadcast on ESPN2, with the second and third rounds relegated to ESPNU. If there were big fits to admire, there simply weren’t very many eyes on them. That is no longer the case.

Standing on the WNBA’s orange carpet after hearing her name called and officially joining the Fever, Clark took in the scene around her. “I think it can go even further than where it is now,” she said. “There’s going to be fans at every single draft for the rest of time. That’s exactly how it should be.” With high-profile guests from both the sports and entertainment worlds—Rose Lavelle, Kelley O’Hara, and Lynn Williams from the US Women’s National Team were in the building, as was the omnipresent, universally adored Jake from State Farm—the night came with unspoken instructions to see and be seen.

Clark was dripping in Prada, marking the first time the brand had ever outfitted a player for the NBA or WNBA draft. Reese, who was dressed by Vogue editor Naomi Elizee, wore a head-turning hooded gown by NYC designer Bronx & Banco. When Stanford’s Cameron Brink became the second pick of the night, she strutted across the stage in a Balmain slit dress and Jimmy Chu heels, later switching into a pair of sensible but always stylish New Balance 550s to protect her feet.

Satou Sabally—reigning winner of GQ’s Most Stylish WNBA player tournament, and thus the most qualified person on earth to discuss draft fits—was on hand as well, wearing an orange goddess dress from Berlin fashion house Lemanjá. After welcoming No. 5 pick Jacy Sheldon to her Dallas Wings squad, Sabally gave us a report of all the sartorial sights to behold. “They’re all stunning,” she gushed. “Everyone looked great. We had some Louis Vuitton on stage! I’m super proud of these young women showing their identity with their outfits on such a big day.” When it came time to crown the fit of the night, Sabally looked to the Bayou Barbie. “Angel was just…she is the moment.”

Outside of clothing, other elements made Monday night feel like something more than a draft. Drinks were flowing in BAM’s second-story event space, as New York’s first truly gorgeous day of the year splashed the room in evening sunlight, creating a vibe that felt much more cocktail party than anything basketball-related. There was even an appearance from the New York Liberty’s mascot Ellie, everyone’s favorite twerking elephant. “Enjoy it! You only get drafted one time,” Clark said. “Soak it in and have a lot of fun with it. That’s what I’m going to do.” Sabally was visibly moved thinking about the 2024 draft compared to her own. “This is monumental,” she expressed. “I was in the 2020 draft, so I had my draft at home! Seeing this, it’s just super amazing. I’m so happy.”

There were also some logistics to address. With so much excitement for women’s basketball, an obvious question is when the 12-team WNBA will expand. The Bay Area is getting a team for the 2025 season, and commissioner Cathy Engelbert specifically shouted out Philadelphia, Toronto, Portland, Nashville, and South Florida as places the league has its eyes on, with 16 teams as its near-term goal. There’s definitely enough talent to fill the pool. “I want to step back and say how blessed I feel to be in women’s basketball,” Engelbert said. “It’s not just this class, it’s next year, and the year after. JuJu Watkins, Hannah Hidalgo, Kiki Rice, Paige Bueckers. The list goes on. We’ll have a long run of household names and rivalries in this league.”

While the league is looking forward, it’s worth remembering that it’s been around long enough to have history, too. This crop of draftees—each of the first 22 picks were born in the 2000s—do not remember a time without the WNBA. Whereas ‘80s babies like Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi, who carried the WNBA torch for so long, grew up not knowing if they’d be able to play professionally in the States, the new kids on the block have always been able to dream about draft day. And when it finally arrived, they turned it into a sold-out fashion show in an opulent theater. The W is in good hands, even if the rookies, like anyone their age, have some learning to do. “Obviously, there’s still so much work to do,” Brink said. “But I’m just happy to be here talking to you. It’s nerve wracking, I’m not going to lie. But it’s a good challenge for us. We’re becoming young adults. New steps into a new world!”

The quote of the night, though, went to Engelbert. In six simple words, she summed up what an event like this means for the sport, for women, and for anyone who’s been screaming it for years: “Women’s basketball is not a fad.”