One of the major stories from last year’s draft was the six players under the international designation that were selected.  With draft prospects playing all around the world during the WNBA offseason, it is no surprise that talent evaluators are looking everywhere for players that they can pick.  While last year’s group was historic for a number of reasons, this year’s international group does not have the same level of headlines attached to it, but there will certainly be international players selected again.  Teams will also continue to be weighing up options for later round picks as the right international pick can certainly pay off in that portion of the draft.  The age difference between international and non-international prospects, especially with college players getting to choose another year of eligibility, will see some teams take risks on younger players with the potential to develop beyond older draft candidates.  In the same manner as in past years, we are providing a comprehensive list of 2002 born players who have retained international status, covering players who will almost certainly be picked to players who are more likely on the edge of consideration.  There will also be interest in non-internationals no longer in college who are auto-eligible for the 2022 WNBA Draft without the need to declare, but a list of notable players who qualify under that path will be covered in a separate article.  Player names are followed by position, the country that the player is currently representing, and their club team with country listed if it is different than the one that the player represents on the national team level.

Sike Kone, PF, Mali, Gran Canaria (Spain)

Only one other player with international status representing an African national team at the time of the draft has been picked and it was a decade ago, but Sika Kone figures to be considered the top international prospect in this draft.  She is from Mali, but has spent her professional career in the Canary Islands of Spain and this is her third straight season with Gran Canaria.  She helped them achieve promotion to the top division in her first season, continued to be a contributor in steering them to safety last season, and then had the team built around her this season as some of the more experienced players went elsewhere.  It has been a tough battle for her although she has continued to put up strong numbers for a team that is trying to string together enough wins to stay in the league.  She was also fantastic over the summer for her youth national team and was relied on as a contributor with the full national team and she will have three more chances to show what she can do at that level before the draft.  The WNBA figures to be a path that can help her grow in stature on the international stage so she should be a reliable pick compared to most internationals.  It remains to be seen where her offensive game will end up outside of scoring near the basket, especially playing against taller players, but she plays consistently hard on both ends and figures to at least have a role rebounding and defending at a higher level.  The team that picks her will probably have to operate under the expectation that we will come over before she is fully ready to contribute and that committing to developing her will pay off over time.

Jade Melbourne, PG, Australia, Canberra Capitals

A year ago, she was not on the draft board at all, but Jade Melbourne is now one of the players who will almost certainly be picked.  At that time, she had already signed her Letter of Intent to attend Arizona State starting this season.  Then the WNBL season started in Australia and roster needs suddenly gave her the opportunity to take the initiative for her team and she became one of the revelations of the season.  Those results led her to opt against college and turn professional, putting her in contention for this draft.  The teams may be stronger this season, but early indications are that she will continue to take any chances that she is given to show her scoring ability.  She also had a productive summer with the youth national team and then a chance to play with the senior team when player availability left them fielding a younger than usual team in the continental championship.  Given that she views herself as a point guard, she will need to continue to develop the rest of her game to contribute at the highest levels, but she has the attributes to be an effective lead guard or a scoring option off the bench.  The question that teams will have to ask is how to handle her rights if they draft her as more players are not accepting being stashed and choosing to start their clocks as soon as possible and she is probably ideally not a rostered player yet.

Gemma Potter, SF, Australia, Dandenong Rangers

Another player who was not expected to be part of the draft pool, Gemma Potter was a freshman at UCLA a year ago, unable to actually play for the team because she and several other players who were not enrolled in-person classes were not permitted to enter the United States.  Having already lost the season, she ultimately decided to turn professional.  Given this unusual set of circumstances, it is not entirely clear that she is actually eligible for this draft, but our site’s sources indicate that, barring an unexpected objection, her not actually being able to play allowed her to retain her international status.  Unfortunately, her tough year continued with an injury suffered during the national youth championships that could leave her not playing a competitive game before the draft and, as a result, her camp might not actually oppose her instead being considered non-international and being in the draft pool in 2024 instead when she would figure to be back on track with her development and in a better position to be drafted and then brought over immediately.  If she is in this draft class, teams will definitely be interested in investing a late round pick on hoping for her to return to the form that made her a highly regarded versatile wing prospect.  Canberra has her on their roster with the hope that she will be available for them late in the season.

Reka Dombai, SF, Hungary, Gyor

Compared to other international players in this draft class, Reka Dombai has been on radar for this moment for a lot longer period of time and there has been plenty of curiosity about how she would develop leading up to this point.  Hungary has focused a lot of effort into creating opportunities for young players in their local league and in recent years have had a number of prospects that were on the fringe of what would be a big recognition of their efforts for this generation, but none have been picked yet.  Those opportunities meant that she was the primary option on her team at a young age, finishing 3rd in the league in scoring as a 16 year old in a league that has its fair share of number of WNBA players.  This is now her third season with Gyor after moving clubs as she has continue to adapt to being a key player alongside more experienced players and she has shown development even without reaching the same counting stat threshold.  She had one big chance to show what she could do on the global stage against players her age with Hungary hosting the U19 world championship and she had a good tournament, but perhaps not to the level that would have cemented her prospect status, though she demonstrated a solid level of versatility.

Julia Boros, SG, Hungary, BEAC

The player who greatly improved her stock for this draft at the last U19 world championship was Julia Boros as she led the hosts to a medal and was voted to the team of the tournament.  With an impressive number of makes beyond the arc and showcasing an ability to do a little bit of everything, there was an expectation that she would build on a solid first season with BEAC and take the minutes that were available to her to continue a developmental leap.  When the club season rolled around in Ujbuda, that track was not exactly followed and instead her counting stats and percentages have taken a hit even with the chance to be a key player on a team firmly in the middle of the standings.  There is still plenty of time in the second half of the season for her to find her stroke and her scoring ability in general, but after moving from the edge of the radar to a player whose upcoming season was looked at with some anticipation, she is back more in the out of draft consideration range with more interest in where she could be a few seasons down the line.

Eden Zipel, SF, Israel, Hapoel Rishon Lezion

An effective scoring wing, Eden Zipel is one of a number of emerging talents from Israel as the younger generation has seized the opportunity from increased minutes and look to form a new core for a national team guaranteed a spot back at the continental stage.  Last season, her club team dealt with roster issues all season long and relied on her and other local players to provide stability during import changes.  This season, they have found a strong trio of imports and she is an effective fourth option behind them as they have gone from battling relegation to possible championship favorite.  That typical roster construction does make it hard to evaluate local talent as the imports are high level, but do tend to match up with each other, leaving locals on locals most of the time with the capacity for the top ones to take advantage in the right matchups.  She is starting to build a bigger role at the senior national team level, but is still a little bit away from an impact there.  While she has put up scoring numbers while given the volume to do so, there is still a lot of room to work on the efficiency front, especially when it comes to shooting from long range, although she has also shown promise as a secondary playmaker.

Serena Kessler, SG, France, Tarbes Gespe Bigorre

Long considered a future national team-level player, Serena Kessler may be one of the most promising players in this draft class, but she faces quite an uphill battle to actually being picked.  After being a solid player in the second division with the national academy team, she headed to Tarbes last season for top league experience, only to lose most of the season due to injury.  While she recovered enough to participate in the world championship with France’s U19 team late in the summer, it was clear that she was not at her best yet and did not show what she could do.  After getting into rhythm for another month, she had a very promising start to the club campaign before suffering what could be another season-ending injury.  The nature of the draft means that she is either picked this year or becomes a free agent and there will be little opportunity to convince a team to make a pick, although a team could gamble at the end on her getting back on track over time.  Given her injury history, there will be concern about whether she can reach the ceiling that had been projected previously since shooting ability has not generally been a key part of her game.

Pauline Astier, SG, France, Bourges

Not necessarily considered the biggest long-term prospect, it seems disrespectful not to include Pauline Astier on this list considering that she has generally been trusted with rotation level minutes on one of the best teams.  That solid experience at Bourges should allow her to continue to make an impact on a high level, but she has not had much chance to be a team’s primary option.  That changed over the summer with youth national team experience at the world championship and she took on a much bigger scoring role than usual and showed some ability to create as a secondary playmaker.  Even with the likelihood of a lot of available footage for her between now and the draft, it is not clear that there is a path for playing her way up draft boards, but she is the kind of player who can continue to carve out a role for herself and become a solid contributor at the European level or elsewhere once she hits the prime of her career.

Kamila Borkowska, C, Poland, Arka Gdynia

Late round picks can be efficiently used on international players that have the room to develop over time before they are ready for WNBA action and Kamilla Borkowska definitely fits into the category of player who might be able contribute quite a bit in a few years.  Listed at 6’7″, she has the tools to be an effective center at a higher level, especially with teams looking to have at least one center who can offer defensive resistance against other taller centers and she has displayed reasonable mobility as well.  While she is getting consistent minutes with Polish powerhouse Gdynia, not many of those have been with the result on the line so there will be some reading into a limited sample size of high stakes situations, although she did also feature for the senior national team this year.  Out of the players that seem to fall into the gamble category, she seems the most likely to be a free agent target in the future if she goes undrafted so it would not be a surprise if a team near the end of the draft used their final pick on her.

Magdalena Szymkiewicz, SG, Poland, Arka Gdynia

Around the world, leagues balance a variety of priorities and realities instead of simply attempting to be the strongest competition possible.  Amid the pandemic and its continuing effect on team budgets, the Polish league adopted rules that gave young players more minutes and Magdalena Szymkiewicz is one of the players that is taking advantage of the situation.  She is not getting time in continental play, but has a bigger role in the domestic league, and is learning to assert herself in a group of veterans.  Over the summer, she did get to play at the youth national team level and had several strong performances with her team relying on her to take the lead in the scoring department.  While she is starting to put up numbers in league play, she is still more on the fringe of draft consideration right now.  With the likelihood that she will continue to play a lot of minutes over the next few seasons as a lot of competitors for those minutes have opted for the college route or moving to other leagues early, it seems more likely that continued development over time will determine whether she is a factor on the continental or global levels.

Sude Yilmaz, SF, Turkey, Galatasaray

Long considered one of the top prospects in her birth year, Sude Yilmaz has certainly been among the players where questions arise about the right development path for players at a critical time in their youth.  She displayed potential at an early age and then got to a point where she was good enough to be needed on the roster, but not at the level that would earn her consistent minutes on a team with high-level aspirations.  Given mostly cameos and playing with more established teammates, she just has not had the chance to show what she can do in the same way that she might on a different team.  The fairly limited youth national team scene last summer after not having any competition the year before also did not present much opportunity to impress.  Her team has struggled to have its full roster on the court at the same time so her minutes have ticked up recently without much to show in terms of counting stats.  Previous perceptions of potential do sometimes play into draft decisions, but it seems more likely that she will continue on a path to being a solid role player at the local level.

With young players taking a large share of the spotlight in this past college season, scrutiny about the WNBA’s draft rules is greater than usual.  The rules did not end up changing with a new CBA so there should not be any expectation that future prospects will be able to accelerate their draft clocks at this time.  There is one talented young player who is in an unusual situation because of the draft rules issue that used to get all of the attention, the one that created a difference in draft time for players who were considered international.  Emerging Lithuanian wing Juste Jocyte turns out not to fall under the international designation, which would keep her out of the WNBA longer.  Given the current rules, this year would be the one time where she could take action to move her draft year up to the same year as international players born in the same year as she was.  Is there a loophole that she can use that would allow her to be drafted earlier?

Family Background:

Jocyte’s father Alvydas Jocys played college basketball in the United States, first at the North Platte campus of Mid-Plains Community College for two seasons then at NAIA school Bellevue University for two seasons.  As part of his career, he worked at Lithuania’s embassy to the United States.  That proves to be a critical detail in this situation because it meant that his daughter was born in Washington, D.C. in 2005 as opposed to another country.  Birthplace is a key component of draft eligibility in the CBA and is obviously not something that can be changed after the fact.  That the family subsequently moved to Lithuania does not matter.  Jocyte’s older brother Rokas is also a promising young basketball player who is playing in Italy with Stella Azzurra Roma, which has a strong history of player development.

Early Notoriety:

Jocyte’s first moment on the global stage was at the inaugural Jr. NBA World Championship in 2018 as she was one of the players selected to represent Europe.  Her team made it through the international bracket to the final game as she received the Teamwork award at the conclusion of the tournament.  Even at that time, she was beginning to show the scoring ability that was going to gain her notoriety the next summer.  In 2019, playing two years up for Lithuania’s U16 team, she led her team in an impressive run through the knockout stages as they lost a heartbreaker to Russia in the final.  While the country has a long and storied basketball tradition, recent success for their women’s teams had been hard to come by and everyone was looking forward to the team participating in a global youth championship in 2020, but the pandemic delayed those hopes.  Her play during the tournament demonstrated an impressive arsenal of skills at her age, allowing her to consistently execute high degree of difficulty shots as the team increasingly put the ball in her hands during crunch time.

Playing in France:

After a strong start to the domestic league season in Lithuania, Jocyte made her senior national team debut in their EuroBasket qualifier against Albania in November right before her 14th birthday.  That was also the time that moving out of the country and developing in a different environment became a serious consideration.  Tony Parker had long been actively involved in the roster construction of ASVEL and when the club added Lyon’s premier women’s team to the group, also took on that role for that part of the club as well.  Nicolas Batum also had a role with the club and in this case, played a critical part in the recruiting process.  The duo convinced her and her family to agree to a three year plan for her to develop there, which has reportedly now extended through 2025.  While there were also opportunities to play with their youth team in France’s third division and school obligations, she was quickly handed a top division debut and the youngest debut in the current incarnation of EuroLeague.  The wait for her to play significant minutes in a critical club situation continues, but she played extensively with the national team during the rest of their qualifying campaign, showing additional promise as a secondary playmaker.

Draft Rules:

Section 1 of Article XIII of the CBA is the one that covers player eligibility for the draft.  Subsection e is the one that covers Jocyte’s status as a non-international as it states “For purposes of this Section 1, an “international player” means any person born and residing outside the United States.”  Most non-internationals then fall under paragraph i of subsection b for their earliest draft eligibility as “will be at least twenty-two (22) years old during the calendar year in which such Draft is held” is the first part of the first possible entry criteria.  As we discussed here, that is two years later than the age at which international players can enter.  Non-internationals do have more options listed in the following two paragraphs if the player “has graduated from a four-year college or university prior to such Draft, or “is to graduate” from such college or university within the three (3)-month period following such Draft” or “attended a four year college or university, her original class in such college or university has already been graduated or “is to graduate” within the three (3)-month period following such Draft” then she can be in the draft.  Unlike the NBA, there is no age requirement for the last two items so a non-international player can get to the WNBA sooner than the age 22 year.  Quanitra Hollingsworth enrolled at VCU when she was 16 so she was drafted at age 20, turning 21 after the season and therefore reaching the league a year earlier than would typically be expected for a player born when she was.

Possible Loophole:

Given those rules, this is the last year that Jocyte could enroll in college in the United States and then leave college and be eligible for the 2025 draft, assuming that she would not actually stay in college and graduate early.  The language in the CBA specifies a four-year school, but that does not seem to address the possibility of schools in other countries that typically award degrees after three years as there is no mention of the location of the school, unlike for international players.  Also, as a non-international, there is no reference to actually competing or exercising eligibility in school, merely attending, so online courses would probably be sufficient to qualify under this criteria.  Not necessarily needing to play would also mean not needing to qualify under the criteria necessary to play sports and simply being able to be admitted as a regular student might be enough.  Some people have wondered if young Americans could play professionally overseas and accelerate their draft clocks.  As shown here, that would not be possible without also attending college, which could be done without planning on actually staying there.

With college players all having the option to return for another season, this year has a lot more draft flux than usual.  On the other hand, the international draft class is one of the deepest in recent memory even with a number of top players born in 2001 opting for the college route.  Teams have been more aggressive in recent seasons in using picks on international players, even reach prospects, and with the talent available this year, we could be looking at a record number of international picks in the twelve team era.  The rules continue to be the same as players born outside of the United States in 2001 who have never exercised intercollegiate eligibility in the United States can only be selected in this draft and will be free agents if they are not picked.  Players born in 1999 who did go to college, but left, and have never been eligible for a draft are also in this draft, but technically do not fall under the category of international players.  With a lot of players for teams to evaluate, here are some of the names that could be called later this year (club team country indicated if different from player’s national team):

Awak Kuier, PF, Finland, Virtus Eirene Ragusa (Italy)
She may have achieved notoriety for her dunking, but Kuier has been quietly developing into this draft’s premier international prospect.  With many of her peers playing on teams with older players, spending more time on a youth-focused team in Finland ahead of her decision between college and professional careers may have actually helped her long-term.  She was encouraged to shoot from distance and allowed to attack from the perimeter off the dribble and continued development in both areas will help her continue to fit in as a modern post player.  After opting against college, she signed in Italy for this season and has fit in well with the team concept and shown a few flashes of what she can accomplish.  Finland’s less than elite status among Europe’s women’s basketball hotbeds means that she has a tougher path to prove that she is deserving of the higher level playing gigs and accompanying salaries, meaning that her willingness to showcase herself in the WNBA may be stronger than players from other countries and should preserve her value as a pick.

Shyla Heal, PG, Australia, Townsville Fire
Known as a sharpshooter, Heal has worked hard on becoming a more complete point guard and it showed in her time as a starter on a strong Townsville team.  While she is not quite at the playmaking level of a traditional passer, her game has become more complete ahead of her year in the draft and is a threat to pass or score when she attacks the paint.  The ability to shoot out of spot up situations will also continue to be important with more and more taller players preferring to start possessions with the ball in their hands.  A point guard sized player whose offensive game does not suffer off the ball can provide value to any team.  Her consistent improvement and the greater likelihood of Australian players being willing to come over when ready make her a reliable pick.  Not playing a competitive game for months before the draft may leave her out of the spotlight, but decision makers will certainly be ready to rank her among the rest of the prospects.

Florencia Chagas, SG, Argentina, Empoli (Italy)
Having challenged herself at a young age by choosing to leave home for Italy, Chagas has been limited to garbage time minutes in past seasons, but playing for Empoli this campaign has given her ample opportunities.  She has demonstrated flashes of scoring touch at this level, but not necessarily the playmaking that has generally led her to being labeled a combo-guard.  She does have the height to play on the wing so continuing to develop that scoring ability can pay off in the future.  Argentina has had solid national teams in the past, but are looking for the next talismanic figure to push them back into the top trio in South America and she could become that player soon, but probably not alongside her sister Luciana, who opted to suit up for Uruguay.  With her WNBA dreams and the benefits that becoming a contributor at that level could bring for the rest of her career, she would be a reliable pick, but is still a few years away from earning a chance on a roster.

Raquel Carrera, PF, Spain, Valencia
Top Spanish prospects have had the habit of trying the college route lately, pushing back their draft clocks, but Carrera chose to sign with ambitious Valencia and fight for playing time on a team pushing for trophies.  She has put up solid numbers as a part of the rotation and figures to also challenge for national team recognition in the future.  While she figures to be a solid scorer in the future, she does land in a tricky place when it comes to European archetypes translating to WNBA play.  It is not clear at this point whether she would be able to play consistently in the post at the highest levels and her range is still expanding in this phase of her career.  Further development in the next few years could provide a payoff for a team rolling the dice late in the draft.

Laura Meldere, PF, Latvia, Reyer Venezia (Italy)
Having spent several years in Italy already, Meldere has been steadily learning her craft from more established players and preparing for the future.  Unfortunately, given how the draft works, a pick has to happen this year or she is a free agent and it is hard to see how there will be much more information to base a decision on between now and then.  Her team was undefeated until recently, so not cracking their rotation is not a concern.  The likelihood of her being picked has been severely hurt by the lack of youth national team play last year where she would have been able to play a number of games as the feature scorer and show her ability to rebound and defend against her peers.  Teams that have been scouting the younger prospects for a while could choose to roll the dice late here.

Gili Eisner, PG, Israel, Hapoel Rishon LeZion
After a few impressive scoring displays as a youngster, Eisner was on the radar as a potential future elite outside shooting threat with some combo ability as a secondary playmaker.  Over the offseason, that playmaking ability was refined and she entered the season as her club’s point guard.  While that decreased the percentage and volume from distance for a while, her assisting ability started to push the league’s top passers whose professional careers have been defined by their passing and despite efforts to sign another lead guard, her team will be relying on her for the rest of the season.  Judging performance in the Israeli league can be difficult, but she did show playmaking ability in one of the national team’s qualifying games.  Given her potential at two key skills, she could be a canny pick late in the draft with the hopes that a few more years of development like the last one will get her to the required ability to contribute at a higher level.

Goksen Fitik, PG, Turkey, Cukurova Mersin Yenisehir
After a promising last season, there were some hopes of a bigger role for Fitik this season.  Her club decided to bring back a player with preferences for initiating the offense on most possessions so she took a more complementary role for several months.  Roster changes since then mean that she now is in firm control of the offense.  She immediately showed that she could be a confident playmaker at this level and is also now in a position where she can hunt her shot when the time is right.  With her counting numbers steadily climbing, decision-makers will now have the footage they need to make a decision and as a result, she could get that late round look where international picks make the most sense.  Her shooting range still needs some improvement although she has had the chance to launch her fair share from distance in this new role.

Maxuella Lisowa Mbaka, SF, Belgium, Braine
A player who has been on the radar from this class for years, Lisowa Mbaka may ultimately go undrafted without the right exposure for this season.  She was been a part of the rotation for Belgium’s powerhouse club from a young age and had excellent numbers in youth national team play a couple years ago, especially against the United States.  This season, Braine was not in EuroLeague and despite two strong games from her, failed to advance in EuroCup.  Their roster is no match for their opponents domestically and making sure that everyone gets their chances has taken away some opportunities for her to feature.  While she can contribute in a variety of ways, the lack of range extension over time as she has had to downshift positions at her height is a major concern for her reaching the next level as a player.  In a typical season, there probably would have been a path for her to play her way to a late pick, but this past year might not be enough.

Dragana Zubac, SF, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Pecsi (Hungary)
Few leagues have devoted as much resources to giving young players the opportunities to develop on the court as the one in Hungary.  While there are hopes for a draft pick in the next few seasons from among their native players, teams in the league have also aggressively brought in players from other countries.  As is the case with other emerging Bosnian players, Zubac left the country to play elsewhere at a young age, heading to Romania last season alongside her sister Nikolina, but they are in different countries this campaign, giving her a separate spotlight.  Her last stint in youth national team play was the one that made her a player to watch as she had significant responsibility in trying to avoid relegation at home.  The region has traditionally been a strong source for draft picks, but has not provided one since 2015 and this might not be the year either with Zubac still proving herself at the club level.

Iliana Rupert, C, France, Bourges
It is surprising that the reigning EuroLeague Young Player of the Year can be falling below the radar, but it has been an unusual season for Rupert.  Virus cases have hit Bourges hard all season starting from opening day and then an injury kept her out of action for months.  Given that this is her one chance to get drafted, teams will be hoping that there is a little more recent tape to go off of before they pull the trigger.  She is more of the traditional scoring post player and will need to continue to add to her game.  While she has said all the right things about wanting to play in the WNBA, but her draft stock will definitely fall because teams will be wary of national team commitments.  She has already been fast-tracked into the full national team and their success and the tough competition that players face to keep their places on the team likely mean that she will be unavailable for partial or full seasons over time.  After some of the higher level American prospects come off the board, a team could find tremendous long-term value out of a calculated risk.

Marine Fauthoux, PG, France, Lyon-Villeurbanne
Another player identified as having potential early, Fauthoux signed at Lyon this season after Tony Parker cleared space in the rotation for her as he was constructing the roster with the chance to take the keys to the offense.  Results have been somewhat mixed as the team’s ambitions continue to rise on the national and international level.  She has also played for the full national team and figures to be involved there heavily in the near future, which could drop her draft stock.  While she has a fairly complete game as a point guard, she has not really demonstrated elite ability at any one skill so it may take a few years for her to contribute at a high level overall.  Teams seem to be more conscious of the upside of international picks in the second half of the draft these days and this is certainly a case where unexpected value could arrive a few years down the line compared to the college prospects available at that point.

Kendra Chery, SF, France, Landes
After a bit of bouncing between teams in France, Chery challenged herself to continue to prove her credentials as a prospect with a move to Landes this season.  She has managed to get a very solid number of minutes on a team in continental play and chasing trophies domestically.  That said, she is still working on carving out a role above opportunistic scoring, but has demonstrated intriguing possibilities long term on the defensive end.  Of particular concern at her height is a lack of makes beyond the arc.  This was an absolutely loaded birth year class in France even if not all of them end up being WNBA or elite European level talents and in comparison to some of them, she will have a lot more film available of her play when it comes to making that draft decision late.

Zoe Wadoux, SG, France, Villeneuve-d’Ascq-Lille
It had been a fairly quiet season for her, but Wadoux caught fire behind the arc in Romania during the EuroCup group stage and helped her team qualify for the knockout round.  That potential as a shooter is what will help her develop a role over the course of her career, but her domestic league season has not given her much opportunity to show that her ability over a larger sample size.  That difficulty in fighting for playing time in a competitive league is what has driven a number of French prospects to pursue the college route in recent years.  The inconsistency in playing time and the resulting challenge in assessing her shooting ability will probably leave her out of the draft picture.  Further development into a clear role could see her gain interest as a free agent in the future.

Janelle Salaun, SF, France, Villeneuve-d’Ascq-Lille
While she did not enter the season as her team’s highest-rated draft prospect, Salaun had a solid start to her season and earned more playing time than expected as she moved clubs over the offseason.  As the season has progressed, that has not necessarily parlayed itself into additional opportunities to move from the fringe prospect category.  She is one of a number of prospects who greatly missed the chances afforded by youth national team play most years.  Being able to play last year would have given her the ability to confirm the promise of her 2019 play with France’s U18 national team where she demonstrated capabilities to shoot from a range that is not normally part of her club play.  She would have been more of a feature player if she could have played last summer at the U20 level and given more indication of 3-and-D possibilities in the future.  Instead, she is likely to remain an interesting name for the future from this season.

Marie Pardon, PG, France, Tarbes Gespe Bigorre
A team with a rich point guard tradition, Tarbes has recently provided many opportunities to young guards looking for the minutes to showcase themselves and build their careers.  Pardon has had the chance to be the starter all season long and has certainly showcased her playmaking ability with the third highest assists per game in the league so far.  While she has focused on getting her more experienced teammates their shots in the flow of the offense, she will have to increase her own scoring ability in the future to reach her full potential.  At this point, she is probably on the outside looking in when it comes to draftability, but she is having to take on more responsibility than most players her age and having a good season in a tough league with defenses that can challenge young players.

Having fewer games this season and players opting out or being unavailable to play limited the milestones that we thought would happen this year, but plenty of players climbed the charts in various statistical categories.  11 players are in the top 50 in all 5 categories, but Tamika Catchings is the only player to be in the top 12 of all of them while Candace Parker is in the top 27 on each list.  Highlighted players in each category played this year.

Points:

Diana Taurasi continued to be the career points leader by a large margin, but the reduction in games did prevent her from a legitimate shot at hitting the 9000 point mark this year.  Candace Dupree is now all alone in 5th place and Seimone Augustus jumped into the top 10 and crossed 6000 points.

Rebounds:

We have a new rebound leader as Sylvia Fowles was able to pass her longtime teammate Rebekkah Brunson this year and be the first player to reach 3400 rebounds.  Candice Dupree reached 3000 boards and Nneka Ogwumike reached 2000.

Assists:

Sue Bird being back meant that she could add to her lead at the top of the list.  Courtney Vandersloot continued to race up the charts this year, joining the top 5.

Blocks:

The lack of games certainly slowed the pursuit of Margo Dydek’s block total this season, although there are plenty of active players lower on the list trying to climb the ranks.

Steals:

Tamika Catchings can continue to rest easy about anybody approaching her career mark in this category, although the return of Sue Bird did give us a new player in the top 5.  The closeness of players in the rest of the rankings means that players will be able to climb these charts easily with a full season next year.