2025 WNBA Draft winners, losers: Paige Bueckers, international players have big night

The newest class of WNBA rookies has arrived.

Paige Bueckers was selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the Dallas Wings at the 2025 WNBA Draft on Monday in New York City, followed by Dominique Malonga of France going to the Seattle Storm at No. 2 overall and Notre Dame’s Sonia Citron being selected by the Washington Mystics with the No. 3 overall pick.

“Just an overwhelming sense of gratitude,” Bueckers said after her selection. “It’s super surreal just being here with other draft invitees. My teammates are here. My family’s here. Just super grateful. Been focusing on staying present. Staying where my feet are. And to be here right now I’m just extremely blessed.”

Bueckers and Malonga highlight the winners of the night. Here’s a look at the full list of winners and losers of the 2025 WNBA Draft.

WNBA DRAFT PICKS, GRADES: Paige Bueckers selected No. 1 by Dallas Wings

Winner: Dallas Wings

Any team that lands a generational talent like Paige Bueckers is considered a winner in our book. Bueckers’ shot-making and playmaking abilities are one-of-one as she showcased in UConn’s title run. She climbed up to the third spot on UConn women’s all-time leading scoring list (2,439 points) behind Maya Moore (3,036) and Breanna Stewart (2,676), who have both done great things in the league and have a combined seven WNBA titles. Will Bueckers be next? She will team up with Arike Ogunbowale to form a dangerous backcourt in Dallas. The Wings also picked up Aziaha James out of NC State in the first round.

Winner: UConn

It was no surprise that Buckers was first off the board. After she was drafted No. 1 overall by the Wings, Bueckers turned the spotlight back onto her Huskies teammates who were pivotal in UConn’s title run.

“They’ve change my life. Those are my sisters. Just extremely grateful for them. Two teams or one team would be genius to add Kaitlyn Chen and Aubrey Griffin to their team. I think they should get drafted tonight,” Bueckers said.

Add clairvoyant to her resume. Chen was drafted No. 30th overall by the Golden State Valkyries and Aubrey Griffin was selected No. 37th overall by the Minnesota Lynx in the third round. Chen and Griffin were on hand at The Shed in New York City to cheer on Bueckers, alongside the entire UConn squad fresh off a championship celebration, and ended up hearing their names called. That marked three Huskies off the board.

Loser: Las Vegas Aces

You usually won’t find the “Aces” and “losers” in the same sentence as Las Vegas has won two of the last three WNBA titles, but the Aces landed themselves on this list after missing out on the first-round talent due to violating league rules regarding player benefits. The Aces‘ 2025 first-round draft pick was rescinded by the WNBA in May 2023 following an investigation into allegations a player was bullied for being pregnant. Aces coach head Becky Hammon also was suspended two games without pay as a result of the probe.

Winner: International players

As the global game continues to grow, so do the number of international players in the WNBA and NBA. It was a big night for overseas superstars. Three of the top 10 picks in the 2025 WNBA Draft were international players. French teen sensation Dominique Malonga was the first international player off the board at No. 2 overall to the Storm, becoming only the fifth player from France to be selected in the first round of the WNBA draft. Justė Jocytė of Lithuania — Malonga’s teammate on France’s Lyon ASVEL Feminin — was drafted No. 5 overall to the Valkyries. Ajša Sivka of Slovenia was picked up by the Chicago Sky at No. 10 overall.

Anastasiia Olairi Kosu of Russia (No. 15; Minnesota Lynx) and Adja Kane of France (No. 38; New York Liberty) were also drafted in the second and third rounds, respectively.

Dominique Malonga poses with WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert after being selected with the No. 2 overall pick to the Seattle Storm.

Winner: Washington Mystics

After a relatively quiet offseason, the Mystics’ new GM Jamila Wideman and head coach Sydney Johnson took their first steps toward rebuilding their future with three first-rounders — yes, you read that right. Washington is stockpiling talent and drafted Sonia Citron (No. 3), Kiki Iriafen (No. 4) and Georgia Amoore (No. 6) in the first-round alone.

Loser: South Carolina

The Gamecocks had to wait a little longer to hear their name. Despite being projected first-round picks, South Carolina’s Sania Feagin and Te-Hina Paopao both dropped to the second round. Paopao was selected by the Atlanta Dream with the 18th overall pick. Bree Hall went to the Indiana Fever with the 20th overall pick, followed by Feagin’s selection by the Los Angeles Sparks at No. 21. It’s worth noting that a draft number does not equate to one’s success and Hhad coach Dawn Staley was on hand at the draft in New York City to cheer on her players.

“Trust your process, everyone’s process is different,” Feagin said.

Winner: Coach

The only thing bigger than Paige Bueckers’ bag of basketball skills is the actual Coach bag she wore on the WNBA Draft’s Orange Carpet. The WNBA announced a multiyear partnership with Coach on Monday and the luxury brand kicked off their collaboration by dressing WNBA draftees for the night, including Bueckers, Hailey Van Lith, Sonia Citron and Aneesah Morrow.

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