08 April 2023 , 15:01
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Prospective top pick, Aliyah Boston, will attend Monday's WNBA Draft in New York at Spring Studios which will not feature NCAA rivals Caitlin Clark or Angel Reese.
Both Iowa star Clark, 21, and LSU Tigers’ NCAA championship-winning MVP Reese, 20, are too young to declare themselves for the 2023 Draft. Clark, born in January 2002, misses the cut off by a matter of weeks, while Reese will not be 22 until 2024 - both players are expected to declare of the 2024 Draft.
In 2023 it is South Carolina's Boston who is seen as the consensus top player in the draft. The 21-year-old is one of four Gamecocks players who will be in attendance as the 12 WNBA teams make their selections across three rounds on Monday night.
Forward Boston and draftees Laeticia Amihere, Brea Beal and Zia Cooke were part of a South Carolina team that reached last month’s Final Four and won the 2022 National Championship. They were dumped out by Clark and Co, with the guard scoring an astonishing 41 points.
Reese and the Tigers managed to stop Clark and the Hawkeyes from claiming the title, though, winning the April 2 final 102-85 despite Clark scoring 30 points.
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LSU will be represented at the draft by Alexis Morris. The guard celebrated the championship win with a cigar and asked to join the Obama household instead of the Bidens.
National championship final rivals Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese will not be at Monday's draft (Getty)UConn Huskies will also be heavily represented on Monday with Lou Lopez Senechal and Dorka Juhasz declaring. Ashley Joens and Stephanie Soares will be present for the Iowa State Cyclones.
Grace Berger of the Indiana Hoosiers, Tennessee Lady Volunteers’ Jordan Horston, Stanford Cardinal star Haley Jones, Diamond Miller of the Maryland Terrapins, Taylor Mikesell of the Ohio State Buckeyes and Villanova Wildcats ace Maddy Siegrist are the other names who will be in attendance in New York.
Indiana Fever have the No 1 pick, meaning they could recruit 6ft5in Boston to their roster. The Fever have not made the Play-Offs since 2016. The other 2023 lottery picks belong to the Minnesota Lynx who pick second, Dallas Wings are the third selection and Washington Mystics round out the top four. Thirty-six players will be selected in the draft by the 12 WNBA teams.