7:17 p.m. ET
Mechelle VoepelESPN.com
Conclude
- Mechelle Voepel covers the WNBA, women’s collegiate basketball and other collegiate sports for espnW. Voepel began covering women’s basketball in 1984 and has been with ESPN since 1996.
The Atlanta Dream picked guard Rhyne Howard of Kentucky with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 WNBA draft Monday night in New York.
The Washington Mystics won the draft lottery in December but traded the top pick to Atlanta last week when The Dream rose from No. 3 to guarantee they got Howard.
The 6-foot-2 Howard, the SEC’s player of the year as a sophomore and junior, averaged 20.5 points and 7.4 rebounds during her senior season and led the Wildcats in points, rebounds, 3-pointers, steals and blocks . The only other SEC player to do so in the last 20 seasons has been Mississippi’s Tan White (2003-04 & 2004-05).
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“I’m shaking right now,” Howard told ESPN’s Holly Rowe after being voted No. 1. “It’s a dream come true.”
Baylor’s 6-foot-4 forward NaLyssa Smith, the Big 12 player of the year for the past two seasons, was the No. 2 Indiana Fever, who had four first-round selections.
“I’m coming in hungry,” said Smith, who can play as either a power forward or small forward in the WNBA. Known for scoring in color, she believes her range will continue to grow.
The top three picks went as expected as the Washington Mystics picked Ole Miss 6-foot-5 center Shakira Austin at number 3. Austin averaged 15.2 points and 9.0 rebounds for the Rebels in 2021-22 and can be a force on inside offense and defense for Washington.
| UK rank | ||
|---|---|---|
| PPG | 19.9 | 2 |
| genital mutilation | 790 | 2 |
| 3-pt FGM | 284 | 1 |
| 3 point FG pct | 38.1 | 4 |
| Steals PG | 2.29 | 4 |
| — ESPN stats and information | ||
Howard is the second player The Dream ranked #1 after Angel McCoughtry of Louisville in 2009. McCoughtry led The Dream to three appearances in the WNBA Finals.
Howard’s 284 3-pointer career makes her a multidimensional threat as she’s also big enough to hold her own against most defenders. Howard may seize the opportunity to become a signature player for a Dream franchise that went 8-24 last season and missed the playoffs four times in the last five years.
Howard, who became the first Kentucky player to be drafted number 1, will be close to home, having grown up about 90 minutes from Atlanta.
“It’s huge that it’s so close. Many family members and close friends can come and support me,” Howard said. “First of all, I have no words for it at the moment. still shaking Super exciting and proud of me and grateful to everyone who has been with me on this journey and helped me get here.”
Smith averaged 22.1 points and 11.5 rebounds last season for the Bears, who won the Big 12 regular-season title for the 12th straight season. As a freshman, she was part of Baylor’s 2019 national championship team.
Conscripts were able to attend the event in person for the first time since 2019, as the draft had to be done remotely due to the 2020 and 2021 coronavirus pandemic.
The WNBA season begins May 6, with training camps opening later this week.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.