The 2018 WNBA Draft Class is the Best Recent Class
With the WNBA Draft appearing on ESPN on April 15, I think it’s time to evaluate the best recent draft class. The 2018 WNBA Draft class is the best recent class. This class produced some amazing talent that year. The 2018 WNBA draft class has players that are doing really well in the league. Some have even become all-stars in their first or second year.
First, we have A’ja Wilson who was selected as the number one pick to Las Vegas Aces. She has done very well so far. In her first year, Wilson won Rookie of the Year. Wilson was named Rookie of the Month three times. Wilson was a part of the WNBA All-Star game. In the 2019 season, she finished seventh in the league in scoring and was captain of the all-star game that year. She was named MVP for the 2020 season and was second in scoring for the season. Wilson has been a great player for the Aces leading them to the playoffs for the 2019 and 2020 season. She has been the face for the Aces and has allowed this new team to prosper in their three seasons in the WNBA.
Another great pick that year is Kelsey Mitchell. Mitchell was the number two pick and her rookie year with Indiana Fever was an unforgettable one. In her first seven games, Mitchell scored 136 points in total averaging 19.4 points per game. Mitchell and Victoria Vivans, the number eight pick for the 2018 draft, went on a crazy shooting spree recording the most three-pointers ever made by a rookie tandem with 135. Although Indiana Fever hasn’t been to the playoffs in the three years she has been there, she has been a key player for the team.
Diamond DeShields was the number three pick of the 2018 draft. She was a great pick for Chicago Sky. With being a 6-1 guard, she can be an all-around player. DeShields has really shown her talents. In her first season, she was the second-best scorer on the team averaging 14.4 points per game. She also made franchise history by scoring 28 points in a game and being the highest-scoring performance made by a rookie. DeShields was also a WNBA All-Star and scored 1000 points in her second season.
That’s just a few to name. If we look at the first-round picks, Kia Nurse, Victoria Vivans, Ariel Atkins, Azura Stevens, and Lexie Brown they have dominated in their short time in the WNBA. Almost all of the first-round picks have averaged double digits in their first year or sometime during their career. Many players have set records for their franchises and some have set records for the WNBA. The second and third-round picks were really good as well. With dominating players such as Jaime Nared, Stephanie Mavunga, and Mercedes Russell they made this class the best.
But this class is really a special class because it really balanced out the WNBA. The class had many versatile players so this shifted roles for many players. Now teams had guards who can play down in the paint and then there were forwards and centers who can shoot. Overall, the talent that came out of this class made this a dynamic class.
