Projected No 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft Paige Bueckers is likely to land away from her preferred team come April.
On Nov. 17, the WNBA Draft lottery determined the order in which teams will pick in the upcoming draft with the Dallas Wings gaining the honor of the first selection.
While Dallas may be thrilled and likely to select Bueckers, the UConn star previously expressed interest in the Los Angeles Sparks, who will pick second.
‘Sources around the league have indicated that the Los Angeles Sparks, who got the No. 2 pick in the lottery, would have been Bueckers’ preferred option,’ ESPN’s Michael Voepel wrote.
‘Like the Wings, the Sparks also currently don’t have a head coach. But Los Angeles is a gigantic market and a team that could also have used a guard like Bueckers.’
Paige Bueckers may not land in her desired WNBA team, the Los Angeles Sparks, come April
Bueckers is the projected No 1 pick, a selection that was given to the Dallas Wings
The Sparks boast a talented, young core after drafting Cameron Brink with the second pick last season. However, Bueckers is unlikely to join them in the City of Angels.
Despite being plagued with injuries throughout her career, Bueckers is playing out her redshirt senior season for the Huskies. Over their first three games, she is averaging 21.3 points per game.
UConn are 3-0, sitting behind 4-0 St. John’s in the Big East conference.
Bueckers also has a season of eligibility that she could exercise if she decides to skip the draft this year.
The Sparks finished last in the Western Conference this past season with an 8-32 record. Meanwhile, the Wings were right above them at 9-31. Both teams finished 12th and 11th in the league, respectively.
Should Bueckers land in Dallas, she would be entering a similar scenario as Caitlin Clark when she was drafted by the Fever.
The two women’s hoops stars are all too familiar with each other as the Iowa Hawkeyes eliminated UConn in the Final Four match in Clark’s final NCAA season.
