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The five biggest surprises of the 2022 NWSL College Draft

UCLA forward Mia Fishel fell to fifth in Saturday’s college draft. (Andy Bao/Getty Images)

The 2022 NWSL College Draft had plenty of surprises, including the selection of Naomi Girma over Jaelin Howell at No. 1 overall

To see a list of every pick in the draft, click here. Meanwhile, here’s Just Women’s Sports five biggest surprises from an eventful college draft.

1. San Diego picks Girma, still needs midfielders

After selecting no midfielders in the expansion draft, many thought that San Diego would opt to go with Jaelin Howell to help bolster the midfield. Instead, they went with Naomi Girma, two-time Pac-12 Defender of the Year. While Girma will nonetheless add value to San Diego’s defense, which will also feature Abby Dahlkemper, the pick leaves the Wave still looking to fill out their midfield.

San Diego could use Girma as a defensive midfielder, where she has been used before. She even scored eight goals during her career at Stanford, including the rocket below.

In the second round, San Diego did select Sydney Pulver out of Washington State to fill one of the midfield spots, but the team could use a few more to round out the roster.

2. Mia Fishel falls to Orlando

The Orlando Pride may have gotten the steal of the draft with UCLA’s Mia Fishel falling all the way to fifth. Fishel will fill some holes for Orlando, who dealt Alex Morgan to San Diego FC following the expansion draft. In 59 games, she scored 32 goals and added 14 assists to etch her name into the Bruins’ top 10 all-time goal scorers in just three seasons.

With the ability to step in at striker, she could provide some needed help for Sydney Leroux, who has carried much of the Pride’s scoring burden over the past few seasons. She will also be reuniting with her college head coach Amanda Cromwell, who was recently named head coach of the Orlando Pride. Look for Fishel to continue to thrive under Cromwell and potentially become one of the Pride’s leading scorers in her rookie year.

3. Sydny Nasello falls to the second round

This one was a big surprise, as Just Women’s Sports had projected Nasello as going fifth to the Orlando Pride. A wide attacker who can play along the flank, Nasello could have provided any team with some depth across the forward line. While the selection of Fishel to Orlando made sense, that Nasello fell out of the first round came as a relative shocker — and could be a huge boon for the Thorns, who picked her at 13th. 

The forward should fit in well in Portland, with the ability to further develop her game alongside Christine Sinclair and Sophia Smith. 

4. Louisville goes young after trading for McDonald

With six of last year’s expansion draft players up for selection in this year’s expansion draft, Louisville appears to be looking to start over. That sentiment didn’t change with Saturday’s college draft, as they selected Savannah DeMelo and Jaelin Howell to help bolster an attack that will now be led by Jessica McDonald. The club first traded away Savannah McCaskill to Angel City FC in exchange for the No. 6 pick in the draft, which they used on DeMelo. 

The club finished the 2021 season at the bottom of the league, just one spot ahead of Kansas City, after going 5-7-12. While Kansas City has added some veteran depth in Sam Mewis, Louisville appears to be going young, hoping to build around breakout star Ebony Salmon. The 33-year-old McDonald may seem like a curious pick up given the youth movement, but the two-time NWSL champion and World Cup winner should provide a steady veteran presence. 

5. Small schools make a splash

Multiple NWSL teams elected to pick up small-school superstars later on in the first round. At eighth, OL Reign selected Zsanett Kajan from St. John’s University. At ninth, San Diego selected Marleen Schimmer out of Grand Canyon. Then, at 12th, Kaitlin Fregulia out of Long Beach State was selected by North Carolina. 

It’s always fun to see how sleeper picks do in the league. One to keep an eye on would be Kajan. While at St. John’s, Kajan was an offensive powerhouse, scoring 16 goals in 18 games during the 2021 season. She’ll get to learn under some of the league’s best in Megan Rapinoe, Bethany Balcer and Tziarra King. The same can be said for Fregulia, who will get to play alongside Abby Erceg and Carson Pickett, while Schimmer will get to develop alongside Alex Morgan in San Diego.

Christen Press back training with Angel City FC

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 15: Christen Press #23 of Angel City FC waves to fans following a game between the Portland Thorns and Angel City FC at BMO Stadium on October 15, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katharine Lotze/Getty Images)

Christen Press continues to inch her way back to a return, having returned to training with her club team Angel City. 

Angel City FC coach Becki Tweed said on Wednesday that Press is back with the team full-time as she continues to make her way back from an ACL injury. While she’s still working on rehab, her being back with the team gives staff a better picture of her progress. 

"Christen [Press] is back with us full time which is amazing,” she said. “Having her in and around the team every day, continuing to work hard on rehab ... she's in a space where being in with the team is really important to her and her progression as well.”

The status update comes days after Press posted videos to social media that featured her doing lateral movement in cleats on grass. 

“Look out world she’s on the move !” Press captioned it. 

Press has been sidelined with an ACL injury since 2022, which caused her to miss the 2023 World Cup. She’s since had four separate surgeries to help repair her ACL.

Press told The Athletic a month ago that she’s been “relentless” in her optimism with her recovery despite it being a “slow process.”

“I have a bit of relentless optimism,” she told The Athletic. “I never, ever doubted that I would make it back on any of the timelines I’ve been on."

"Every single time I’ve heard, ‘You have to have surgery,’ I’m completely shocked,” she said. “When somebody asks me how it’s going, I’m like, ‘It’s going great. And it was going great every time. So I don’t know what to tell you anymore!’”

Sophia Smith re-signs with Portland on record deal

(Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports)

Sophia Smith is now the NWSL’s highest-paid player. 

The Portland Thorns announced on Wednesday that they have signed Smith to a new contract through the 2025 season, with an option for 2026. While the terms of the deal were not disclosed, the team did reveal that Smith is now the highest-paid player in the league on an annual basis.

It’s the latest in what has been a series of record-breaking contracts in the NWSL offseason. 

Chicago Red Stars forward Mallory Swanson, Bay FC forward Racheal Kundananji, and Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda all signed multi-year deals worth between $2 million and $2.5 million in total. While Smith’s contract is shorter and not worth as much over the long-term, the annual worth is higher. 

“We are over the moon to have Soph commit again to the Thorns. She is a proven, world-class talent and one that we are excited to have contribute to the team’s continued success,” said head coach Mike Norris in a statement. “We look forward to working with her in a Thorns jersey as she continues to shine as one of the top strikers in the world.”

In just four seasons in the NWSL, Smith has led the Thorns to five trophies – including the 2022 NWSL championship – while winning league and championship MVP in 2022. In 61 appearances with Portland, she has 34 goals – including a brace to start this season against Kansas City. 

She’s also a member of the USWNT, having scored 16 goals in 44 international appearances.  Set to become a free agent at the end of this season, she told ESPN she “thought of all the options” but ultimately Portland felt like the right decision.

"There is no place like Portland," Smith said in a small roundtable interview that included ESPN. "I don't believe there's an environment like Portland to play in and it's a city that's so special to me and a city that I feel like I've grown up in almost and become who I am."

She also told ESPN that the team’s new ownership “changes everything.” The club is now led by the Bhathal family, who bought the club after Merritt Paulson was forced to sell it following his part in the NWSL’s abuse scandal. 

"Since I've been here there has been a lot of things going on with this club -- a lot of not-great things going on with this club -- and I have just been waiting for some stability and some reassurance that this club is headed in the right direction, and the Bhathal family coming in is doing exactly that, if not more,” Smith said. 

"Their vision for this club is so exciting, and you can just tell how passionate they are about making this what it should be and continuing to push the standard in women's soccer globally.”

Caitlin Clark offered $5 million to compete in Ice Cube’s league

IOWA CITY, IOWA- MARCH 25: Guard Caitlin Clark #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes celebrates as time runs out in the second half against the West Virginia Mountaineers during their second round match-up in the 2024 NCAA Division 1 Women's Basketball Championship at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on March 25, 2024 in Iowa City, Iowa. (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images)

Caitlin Clark has been offered $5 million to play in Ice Cube's Big3 league, he confirmed on social media Wednesday after the offer leaked.

"We intended the offer to remain private while Caitlin Clark plays for the championship," Ice Cube wrote on social media. "But I won't deny what's now already out there: BIG3 made a historic offer to Caitlin Clark. Why wouldn't we? Caitlin is a generational athlete who can achieve tremendous success in the BIG3."

While there has yet to be a women's player in the league, both Nancy Lieberman and Lisa Leslie have been part of the league as coaches and won championships.

"The skeptics laughed when we made Nancy Lieberman the first female coach of a men's pro team, and she won the championship in her first year," Ice Cube continued. "Then Lisa Leslie won it all in year two. With our offer, Caitlin Clark can make history and break down even more barriers for women athletes."

Ice Cube, whose name is O’Shea Jackson, says that the offer was made with the intention that Clark be able to compete in the WNBA “offseason.” Clark is largely expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft in April. But it’s unclear how the scheduling of the two leagues would work. 

The 2024 Big3 season is set to tip off on June 15, with 10 games spanning through mid-August. The WNBA regular season, meanwhile, begins on May 14 and ends on Sept. 19.

On “The Pat McAfee Show” on Wednesday, Jackson said that the league has yet to hear back from Clark. 

“We just need an answer, as soon as they are ready to give it to us,” he said. “It’s always 50-50 till we get a no. At the end of the day, it’s a generous offer.”

The offer – as well as the confusion on Jackson’s part about the timing of the WNBA season – caused some current WNBA players to react. 

"It's funny cause I be seeing his son at W games.. they don't talk?" wrote former No. 1 pick Rhyne Howard

"So no other women's basketball player has came to mind in the last 7 years?" wrote Lexie Brown, adding that she'd support if Ice Cube wanted to build a women's iteration of the league. She later discussed it on the Gils Arena Show, noting that his reasoning of wanting to “uplift and support WNBA players and women athletes” is a “cop out.”

Kalani Brown, meanwhile, told Clark to "take that money" and start a women's Big3.

WNBA salaries has been a talking point in recent months as more collegiate stars declare for the league. WNBA stars have often made more money playing abroad than they have in the WNBA. Clark is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft on April 15, with a rookie salary of $76,535 for lottery draft picks (Nos. 1-4) that rises to $97,582 by her fourth season. But she also has an NIL valuation of almost $3.5 million.

Diana Taurasi famously skipped the 2015 WNBA season at the request of her Russian club, who paid her more to sit out than she would have made in the W. Her contract with the club was reportedly near $1.5 million per year.

Jackson also seemed to suggest that his league could be an alternative to going abroad

“America’s women athletes should not be forced to spend their off seasons playing in often dismal and dubious foreign countries just to make ends meet,” he wrote. Although it’s unclear whether or not the rapper intends to make offers to additional WNBA players. 

While the league does hold prioritization rules in its CBA, those typically apply only to players playing in overseas leagues. It’s unclear whether or not that would prevent Clark’s participation in the Big3 league.

WNBA players that don’t want to go overseas currently have the option of playing in Athletes Unlimited, which competes in the WNBA offseason.

USC’s Aaliyah Gayles Opens Up About Her Journey Back to Basketball

USC Basketball - Aaliyah Gayles

As part of our 1-v-1 video series, USC’s India Otto sat down to interview her teammate Aaliyah Gayles. Here are five things to know from our conversation with the redshirt freshman guard from Las Vegas.

#1 Aaliyah suffered from a near-death act of violence in 2022.

The incident taught her a lot about herself and the support around her. “[USC] Coach Lindsay [Gottlieb] was one of the first people to fly out there and come see me. That means a lot to me off the court.” 

#2 Her favorite USC memory is when she surprised her teammates after getting out of the hospital.

She left her walker at the door to show she was on the road to returning to the court. “That was my favorite memory because it was family. It was my first time being able to walk to you guys and see you practice.”

#3 There's a reason she wears #3.

#3 was her grandpa’s favorite number and a golden number in her life. Plus, AG3 has a nice ring to it. 

#4 She has a list of basketball GOAT’s:

Candace Parker, Magic Johnson, Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, and Cason Wallace.

#5 There have been many celebrity appearances at USC’s games over the years, especially this season.

Aaliyah’s favorites include Will Ferrell, Kehlani, and Saweetie. And she hopes Lil Durk will come to watch a game soon.

Watch the full conversation on the Just Women’s Sports YouTube channel.

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