With the NCAA Tournament right around the corner and the WNBA season coming into focus, it’s time to update our 2023 WNBA mock draft.

Free agency shifted the WNBA landscape in the past couple of months. The New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces won free agency, signing multiple superstars and forming two WNBA superteams. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Lynx struck out, the Chicago Sky’s championship core broke up, and the Los Angeles Sparks stabilized their roster.

On the NCAA side, a number of top-ranked teams have dealt with injuries to key players, but there is plenty of pro-ready talent on the board for 2023. Nearly four months since our first mock draft, here are my projections for every first-round pick in April’s WNBA draft.

1. Indiana Fever

Aliyah Boston, F, South Carolina

Nothing to change here. The Fever still could use a dominant post presence to add to their repertoire of young, promising talent, and Boston is exactly that player.

While Boston’s numbers are down, the 6-foot-5 South Carolina center has conducted herself with poise, bearing the brunt of double and triple teams night in and night out. Her 13.3 points on 60 percent shooting from the field and 9.7 rebounds per game are impressive considering teams are focusing their defensive game plans on stopping her. Boston’s impact is felt just as much on defense as it is on offense, most notably in February when she helped hold LSU star forward Angel Reese to her lowest output of the season. South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley has been adamant that, despite the deflated stat lines, Boston is still “the best player in the country.”

2. Minnesota Lynx

Diamond Miller, G, Maryland

The Minnesota Lynx failed to address their center needs in free agency, making this pick even more valuable. Beyond positional needs, the Lynx are searching for talent as they enter the 2023 with nearly the same roster from the past three years but without Sylvia Fowles. This pick will propel or haunt this franchise for years to come, and they cannot afford to miss on it.

Diamond Miller arguably has the most upside of any player on the draft board. The 6-3 guard has a pro-ready build and has been dominant all season long, leading Maryland in scoring with 19.7 points per game. She can do a little bit of everything, with her ability to pass and create, score, defend and rebound. The most impressive aspect of Miller’s game is her ability to grab a rebound, advance the ball and make decisions in the open floor. She is a major threat when going downhill. Miller’s production has been consistent throughout her senior season, and she’s taken her game to another level against top-ranked opponents. While her 3-point shooting percentage is down to 21 percent this season, she is capable of perimeter range, having shot over 30 percent during her NCAA career.

3. Dallas Wings

Rickea Jackson, F, Tennessee

The Dallas Wings own the 2023 draft with the No. 3, No. 5 and No. 11 selections, giving them the opportunity to cast a wide net between shooters, combo guards and scorers. Rickea Jackson’s ceiling is sky-high given her athleticism and scoring mentality. Jackson is tough to defend off the dribble, with a quick first step and a great combination of body control and size to finish in the paint. At 6-2, she has the skill set to slide over from wing to forward and can play inside and out. Jackson is putting up the most efficient numbers of her NCAA career this season, shooting 55.2 percent from the field and leading Tennessee with 19.6 points per game. Her stock has only risen with her performances late in the season, including a 26-point double-double to lead the Vols over LSU in the SEC tournament semifinal.

Jackson could use her fifth year of NCAA eligibility next season, but if she were to declare for this year’s draft, Dallas would be hard-pressed to pass over her all-around talent and potential at No. 3.

4. Washington Mystics

Haley Jones, G, Stanford

Washington might have the chance to add versatility, shot creation and defense with one pick. Haley Jones has long been touted as a lottery selection, and if she’s still available at No. 4, the Washington Mystics should scoop her up.

Jones is a cerebral player who has a proven ability to make those around her better. The Stanford senior is in a category of her own in this draft class. She can initiate offense as a point-forward, averaging a career-best 4.1 assists per game this season, and when she gets downhill in the open floor, her decision-making is elite. On defense, she can handle any matchup handed to her.

Jones’ downside is her perimeter shooting, with the 6-1 guard having made only three 3-pointers all season and shooting under 10 percent from deep. She will need to continue to develop her range to stretch defenses at the next level.

5. Dallas Wings

Maddy Siegrist, F, Villanova

Based on the makeup of the Wings’ roster after free agency, it is evident they need to address perimeter shooting in this draft. Maddy Siegrist is not only shooting a career-best 37.3 percent from the 3-point line this season, she is also not a one-dimensional scorer.

The 6-2 guard leads the nation in scoring, with 28.9 points per game on 51.8 percent shooting from the field. Siegrist will have a pretty steep learning curve in the WNBA, especially from a physicality standpoint, but the potential for consistent production is there. She has the length, skill and size necessary to succeed at the next level and would fill a major positional gap in Dallas’ roster.

6. Atlanta Dream

Elizabeth Kitley, C, Virginia Tech

The most glaring concern for the Atlanta Dream heading into 2023 is their lack of a strong post presence, giving them a chance to stock up on talent with their two first-round picks. Elizabeth Kitley could help strengthen that position immediately with her skill and efficiency around the basket. The 6-6 center leads Virginia Tech in scoring and rebounding, averaging a double-double of 18.6 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.

The ACC Player of the Year has great length and rebounding instincts. While often pigeonholed as a traditional center, Kitley plays with a level of finesse and face-up ability that is unique to her size. She arguably is the most skilled post player in this class with her ability to play with her back to the basket, attack off the dribble, create separation with her fadeaway and execute in the high post.

While there is a chance Kitley uses her fifth year of NCAA eligibility, if she declares for the draft, she could help the Dream right away.

7. Indiana Fever

Grace Berger, G, Indiana

The Indiana Fever could go in a number of different directions with this pick. Beyond the sentiment of keeping Hoosiers star Grace Berger in state, the 6-0 guard has the “it” factor as a tough and disciplined competitor. Berger is as steady as they come at the guard spot and has elevated her play in the biggest moments this season. She is one of the most composed players in the 2023 class.

While Indiana’s roster looks a bit guard-heavy at first glance, Berger would bring a unique skill set with her mid-range efficiency and her ability to play on or off the ball and rebound from the guard spot. Berger is averaging a career-best 5.8 assists per game for Indiana this season, and while she’s not known for her 3-point shot, she’s been efficient when she’s taken them, averaging 40 percent from range. Her experience and on-court leadership would be welcome on the Fever’s young, rebuilding roster.

8. Atlanta Dream

Stephanie Soares, F/C, Iowa State

As with the Kitley selection at No. 6, the Dream have an opportunity to double down on a couple of bigs in this draft class — one with immediate potential and one for the future. Before Stephanie Soares suffered a season-ending ACL injury in early January, the 6-6 center was one of Iowa State’s best players after transferring from the NAIA, where she was the two-time league Player of the Year. WNBA teams are so high on Soares that she would likely be a lottery pick if healthy, and still could be in her current state.

Players with Soares’ skill set and size don’t come around very often. She can protect the rim with her length and athleticism while also stretching the floor with a strong 3-point shot. In just 13 games with Iowa State and at the Division I level, Soares averaged 14.4 points and 9.9 rebounds per game while shooting 54.4 percent from the field and 30.6 percent from the perimeter.

WNBA GMs expect Soares to have a long pro future ahead of her, even if she is granted a waiver for an extra year of NCAA eligibility. With Soares, Atlanta could secure a potential unicorn in this class who could continue to be developed and impact the WNBA for a long time once healthy.

9. Seattle Storm

Jordan Horston, G, Tennessee

While the Seattle Storm’s biggest need is at the point guard position, they might be better-served selecting the best player available with the ninth pick. If Jordan Horston were to fall this low, Seattle has an opportunity to lock up an elite wing with next-level potential. When Horston is at her best, she is one of the most elite players in the country. She showcased that during the SEC tournament last week, averaging 19 points and 8.7 rebounds across three games.

At 6-2, Horston has elite length and athleticism that should translate well to the next level on both ends of the floor. She can rebound the ball and elevate over opponents, and her passing ability is underrated. She is also having her most efficient scoring season for Tennessee, shooting 43.6 percent from the field. Horston has top-five pick potential, but if she were to drop to No. 9, Seattle won’t want to miss out on adding a player of her talent to its retooling roster.

10. Los Angeles Sparks

Lou Lopez Sénéchal, G/F, UConn

The Los Angeles Sparks need a scoring wing who can stretch the floor and be a perimeter threat. That only escalated when Katie Lou Samuelson announced she will miss the season due to pregnancy.

Lou Lopez Sénéchal made the jump from Fairfield to UConn this season and has thrived in the high-pressure atmosphere. She has increased her efficiency while taking four to five fewer shots per game, shooting a career-best 46.7 percent from the floor and 43 percent from the 3-point line. The 6-1 grad student has been forced to step up as UConn dealt with injuries to several key players throughout the season, and she has responded, helping the Huskies capture the Big East tournament championship this week. Lopez Sénéchal is just the type of wing Los Angeles could throw into the fire her rookie season.

11. Dallas Wings

Taylor Mikesell, G, Ohio State

Taylor Mikesell has a pro-ready frame, skill set and understanding of the game. She is at her best when she can play alongside other aggressive, shot-creating guards. And when she can run off actions and get to her spots, she is one of the most efficient shooters in the country.

Mikesell has proven extremely durable over her career, especially this season as she’s helped carry an injury-ridden Ohio State team. Despite being the focal point of opposing scouting reports every night, the 5-11 guard is shooting 41 percent from deep and can also score in other ways. She has elite vision and finishing ability at the rim. Mikesell has the tools to thrive as a pro when defenses aren’t honed in on her specifically.

12. Minnesota Lynx

Zia Cooke, G, South Carolina

Minnesota needs both depth in the backcourt and scoring. Cooke is having her best and most consistent season for South Carolina. Not only is she averaging a career-best 40.8 field-goal percentage, but she is also controlling the ball better, with the fewest turnovers of her career.

Cooke thrives in big moments, and no team has played on bigger stages than the Gamecocks in recent years. Having played under head coach Dawn Staley for four seasons, Cooke will enter the WNBA with a pro-ready mentality. With Cooke, the Lynx would get a dynamic scorer and a player capable of initiating the offense alongside Lindsay Allen, two areas Minnesota desperately needs to address.

Rachel Galligan is a basketball analyst at Just Women’s Sports. A former professional basketball player and collegiate coach, she also contributes to Winsidr. Follow Rachel on Twitter @RachGall.

After an illustrious career for both club and country, Gotham FC and U.S. Women’s National Team defender Kelley O’Hara announced today via Kelley on the Street that she will be retiring from professional soccer at the end of this year, making the 2024 NWSL season her last.

"I have always said I would play under two conditions: that I still love playing soccer, and if my body would let me do it the way I wanted to," O’Hara told Just Women’s Sports in the lead-up to her retirement announcement. "I realized a while back that I was always going to love it, so it was the physical piece that was going to be the deciding factor."

The 35-year-old will retire as a two-time World Cup champion, an Olympic gold medalist, and at least a two-time NWSL champion, depending on where Gotham finishes this season. Her legacy as a player is hard to fully encapsulate, and will forever run through some of the biggest snapshots in USWNT and NWSL history. 

In 2012, O’Hara played every minute of the USWNT’s Olympic gold medal run, after having recently converted into a defender. Her soaring goal off the bench in the 2015 World Cup semifinal is the stuff of legend. And her return from lingering injury to play in every knockout match of the national team’s 2019 World Cup win cemented a storybook international career. 

It was O’Hara who scored the overtime goal in 2021 to earn the Washington Spirit their first-ever NWSL championship, and O’Hara who returned to help see Gotham earn a title in 2023 after years spent in the trenches with the club’s previous iteration, Sky Blue. Her 15-year career spanned two professional women’s soccer leagues in the U.S. (she earned her first professional title in 2010 with WPS’s FC Gold Pride), as well as sweeping changes to the sport both on and off the pitch.

On the field, O’Hara has always been known for a motor that never quits, making the right flank her domain in attacking possession and defensive transition. In recent years, she’s also been celebrated for a competitive fire that raises the level of her teammates, whether she’s in the starting XI or supporting from the bench.

But injuries take a toll, a reality not always seen by the fans watching from home. "I've never taken anything for granted, and I feel like I've never coasted either," O’Hara said of her late-career success in the NWSL despite battling injuries. "I've always been like, 'I gotta put my best foot forward every single day I step on this field' — which is honestly probably half the reason why I'm having to retire now as opposed to getting a couple more years out of it. I've just grinded hard."

Recently, O’Hara has been sidelined at Gotham with ankle and knee injuries, and the situation motivated her to really prioritize listening to her body. "To get injured and come back, and get injured and come back, and just keep doing it, it really takes a toll on you.

"People don't see the doubt that's associated with injury,” she continued. "As athletes we feel a certain way, we perform a certain way, our body feels a certain way, we're very in tune with our bodies. And there's always so much doubt surrounding injury. It’s like, 'Can I feel the way I felt before?' The reality is sometimes you don't."

O’Hara didn’t arrive at the decision to move on from her playing career lightly. But once she began seriously considering making 2024 her final year during the last NWSL offseason, it felt right. "Once I was like, 'Alright, you know what, this will be my last year,' I have had a lot of peace with it," she said. "Truly the only thing I felt was gratitude for everything that my career has been, all the things I've been able to do and the people I've been able to do it with."

She said she’ll miss daily interactions with her teammates and all the amazing memories they’ve created, though she feels lucky to have formed relationships that go beyond sharing a locker room. "You're basically getting to hang out and just shoot the shit with your best friends every day," she reflected. "Which is so unheard of, and I just feel very lucky to do it for so long."

The Stanford graduate also mentioned that the NWSL’s suspension of regular season play in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic made her realize how much playing allowed her the space to simply be creative every day. The tactical elements of soccer provided O’Hara an outlet for problem solving and made use of her naturally competitive edge.

She’s now gearing up to channel her on-field intensity into her post-playing career full time, which is a new chapter she’s excited to begin. "I don't know if the world's ready for it, like the fact that I'm not going to be putting all of my energy into football all the time," she said with a laugh. 

O’Hara said she would like to stay connected to the game in some fashion, whether it be as an owner, coach, or member of a front office. She’s also interested in the growing media space surrounding women’s sports, having provided on-camera analysis for broadcasters like CBS Sports in addition to starting a production company with her fiancée.

"I just feel like I have a lot of passions, and things that excite me," she says. "And I do want to stay as close as I can to the game, because I feel a responsibility — and I'm not sure in what capacity — to continue to grow it."

A sense of responsibility to grow the game has been a consistent refrain for the USWNT and NWSL players of O’Hara’s era, who ushered in a new age of equal pay for the national team and collectively bargained protections for those in the league. The landscape for new players looks different than it did 14 years ago, in large part due to this pivotal generation.

"I feel an immense sense of pride around that, because I don't know if any of us knew that was gonna happen," she said. "We kind of, as things unfolded, took the next step towards changing what women's football looks like in this country and around the world.

"I'm really grateful to have been part of this era with the players that I was [with], not backing down and pushing and knowing that was the right thing to do."

Whatever the future holds, O’Hara is going ahead full throttle. It’s a piece of advice she’d also give to the next generation of professionals looking to make their own impact.

"Whatever you do in life, do it because you love it, and the chips will fall in place," she said. "If you love something, you're willing to do what it takes. You're willing to make the sacrifices, you're willing to handle the roller coaster.

"To me, it's simple. Don't do it for any other reason but that, and I think you'll be alright."

The Phoenix Mercury center spoke with Robin Roberts about her 10-month incarceration, reflecting on her poor living conditions and shaky mental state ahead of her May 7th memoir.

"The mattress had a huge blood stain on it. I had no soap, no toilet paper," Griner told the ABC News anchor in last night’s 20/20 special. "That was the moment where I just felt less than a human." 

She also detailed some of her lowest moments during that time, saying with tears in her eyes that she went so far as to consider taking her own life on more than one occasion. However, the thought of Russian officials not releasing her body back to her family made her reconsider.

"I just didn't think I could get through what I needed to get through," said Griner.

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In February 2022, Griner was arrested and charged with drug possession and smuggling by a Russian court after Sheremetyevo International Airport police found vape cartridges containing hashish oil in her luggage. The cartridges were prescribed by Griner’s doctor for chronic pain back in Arizona, where medical marijuana is legal. In the interview, the two-time Olympic gold medalist said she had a "mental lapse" while packing, and never intended to bring the cannabis products with her when she returned to play for UMMC Ekaterinburg.

"It's just so easy to have a mental lapse," Griner said. "Granted, my mental lapse was on a more grand scale. But it doesn't take away from how that can happen." 

She was later sentenced to nine years behind bars after her Russian attorneys advised her to plead guilty the following July. Griner was then sent to a remote penal colony where she was forced to spend her days cutting cloth to make military uniforms. From there, it only got worse.

"Honestly, it just had to happen," she said when asked about her decision to cut off her signature long locks. "We had spiders above my bed making nests.

"My dreads started to freeze," she added. "They would just stay wet and cold and I was getting sick. You've gotta do what you've gotta do to survive."

Shortly after Griner’s initial arrest, the U.S. State Department classified her case as wrongfully detained, escalating its urgency within the government and calling even more attention to the situation. On December 8th, she was freed in a prisoner exchange negotiated by the Biden administration.

While she told Roberts she was "thrilled" when she got the news, she was also very upset about having to leave fellow wrongful detainee Paul Whelan behind. She also continues to carry guilt about her arrest, saying "At the end of the day, it's my fault. And I let everybody down."

Griner’s memoir, Coming Home, hits shelves on May 7th.

"Coming Home begins in a land where my roots developed and is the diary of my heartaches and regrets," Griner told ABC News in an exclusive statement. "But, ultimately, the book is also a story of how my family, my faith, and the support of millions who rallied for my rescue helped me endure a nightmare."

Longtime USWNT fixture Carli Lloyd took to Instagram Wednesday morning to announce that she’s pregnant with her first child. 

"Baby Hollins coming in October 2024!" she wrote. The caption framed a collaged image of baby clothes, an ultrasound photo, and syringes indicating what she described as a "rollercoaster" fertility journey.

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In a Women’s Health story published in tandem with Lloyd’s post, the Fox Sports analyst and correspondent opened up about her struggles with infertility and the lengthy IVF treatments she kept hidden from the public eye.

"Soccer taught me how to work hard, persevere, be resilient, and never give up. I would do whatever it took to prepare, and usually when I prepared, I got results," Lloyd told Women’s Health’s Amanda Lucci. "But I found out that I didn’t know much about this world. I was very naive to think that we wouldn’t have any issues getting pregnant. And so it began."

Lloyd went on to discuss her road to pregnancy in great detail, sharing the highs and lows of the process and expressing gratitude for the care and support her family and medical team provided along the way. She rounded out the piece with a nod toward others navigating the same challenges, encouraging people to share their own pregnancy journeys, painful as they may be.

"My story is currently a happy one, but I know there are other women who are facing challenges in their pregnancy journey. I see you and I understand your pain," she said. "My hope is that more and more women will speak up about this topic, because their stories helped me. I also wish for more resources, funding, and education around fertility treatments. There is much to be done, and I hope I can play a role in helping."

The 41-year-old New Jersey native retired from professional soccer in 2021, closing out her decorated career with 316 international appearances, the second-most in USWNT history, in addition to 134 international goals. A legend on the field, Lloyd walked away from the game with two World Cups, two Olympic gold medals, and two FIFA Player of the Year awards.

On Tuesday, FIFPRO announced the launch of Project ACL, a three-year research initiative designed to address a steep uptick in ACL injuries across women's professional football.

Project ACL is a joint venture between FIFPRO, England’s Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA), Nike, and Leeds Beckett University. While the central case study will focus on England’s top-flight Women's Super League, the findings will be distributed around the world.

ACL tears are between two- and six-times more likely to occur in women footballers than men, according to The Guardian. And with both domestic and international programming on the rise for the women’s game, we’ve seen some of the sport's biggest names moved to the season-ending injury list with ACL-related knocks.

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Soccer superstars like Vivianne Miedema, Beth Mead, Catarina Macario, Marta, and England captain Leah Williamson have all struggled with their ACLs in recent years, though all have since returned to the field. In January, Chelsea and Australia forward Sam Kerr was herself sidelined with the injury, kicking off a year of similar cases across women’s professional leagues. And just yesterday, the Spirit announced defender Anna Heilferty would miss the rest of the NWSL season with a torn ACL. The news comes less than two weeks after Bay FC captain Alex Loera went down with the same injury. 

Project ACL will closely study players in the WSL, monitoring travel, training, and recovery practices to look for trends that could be used to prevent the injury in the future. Availability of sports science and medical resources within individual clubs will be taken into account throughout the process.

ACL injuries in women's football have long outpaced the same injury in the men's game, but resources for specialized prevention and treatment still lag behind. Investment in achieving a deeper, more specialized understanding of the problem should hopefully alleviate the issue both on and off the field.