Previewing Draft Night for the Fever

Tue, Apr 9, 2019, 5:14 PM

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The 2018-2019 NCAA women’s basketball season concluded Sunday night with Baylor being crowned as national champions and the turnaround to the WNBA Draft is a quick one. WNBA Draft 2019 presented by State Farm is to be held on April 10 at Nike New York Headquarters, airing live on ESPN2 (Round 1, 7 PM ET) & ESPNU (Round 2, 8 PM).

The Indiana Fever will look to add more young talent to a team that is already beginning to stockpile it. After adding three rookies in last year’s draft, Kelsey Mitchell, Victoria Vivians, and Stephanie Mavunga, Indiana again has three selections to work with on Wednesday night.

Indiana selects at No. 3, No. 25, and No. 28, securing a top-three pick in consecutive seasons for the first time in club history. It will be interesting to follow Indiana’s strategy with one first-round selection and two coming in the third round.

There is a talented pool of players in this year’s class. One of the players assumed to be in the pool, Oregon guard Sabrina Ionescu announced she will return to Eugene for her senior season. That may have an influence on how things go at the top of the draft.

Another late variable was Monday’s announcement that Notre Dame guard Jackie Young, an Indiana native and the state’s leading high school scorer out of Princeton High School, would enter the draft. Early mock drafts had Young tabbed as a top ten pick, maybe the top five.

The Fever will have plenty of options to choose from when they are on the clock at No. 3. Now, let’s get into who will be in play for Indiana’s top selection.

Asia Durr, University of Louisville
The 5-foot, 10-inch Durr had an incredibly productive senior season for the Cardinals. She was one of the most productive guards in the nation, averaging 21.2 points per game and a season high of 47 against NC State on 2/28. She also averaged 3.3 assists on the season. The All-American led her team as a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, falling to Connecticut in the Elite Eight.

Durr can score with the best of them and would add another dimension to the Indiana offense that could use more firepower. Mock drafts suggest she could be chosen by either Las Vegas or New York with the top two picks.

Arike Ogunbowale, University of Notre Dame
Ogunbowale was incredibly productive during her four seasons in South Bend. She became the Fighting Irish career points leader with 2,626 points. She led her team to back-to-back National Championship games, winning one on a last-second shot in 2018 and falling just short in 2019. The All-American averaged 21.8 points per game, including 31 in the 2019 National Championship, the second-highest scoring total ever in the championship game.

Standing at just 5-foot, 8-inches she may be a little shorter than what Indiana is looking for come draft night. However, she is one of the most clutch players that college hoops has seen in recent seasons and will be able to score in bunches at the next level.

Teaira McCowan, Mississippi State University
Perhaps the best way to describe McCowan would be one word: big. The 6-foot, 7-inch center was huge force inside for Mississippi State during her four collegiate seasons. The senior was incredibly productive during her final season averaging 18.4 points on 66% shooting, 13.5 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game.

Indiana desperately needs size and McCowan would provide the rebounding and shot blocking prowess the Fever are seeking. While she is still developing offensively, she has a nice post game, while also making 76% of her free throw attempts in her final season in Starkville.

She teamed with 2018 Fever first-rounder Vivians in guiding the Bulldogs to the Final Four in 2017 and 2018.

Kalani Brown, Baylor University
Speaking of size, Kalani Brown brings plenty to the table as well. The 6-foot, 7-inch senior is fresh off of winning a national title at Baylor. The All-American average 15.6 points on 61% shooting and collected 8.1 rebounds per contest. Brown is an adept post scorer, putting up 20 points on 10-16 shooting in the National Championship win.

Brown would provide much needed size inside for Indiana. Her ability to score inside would add another dimension to the Indiana offense, while her size and rebounding prowess would help round out the defense.

You can bet that both McCowan and Brown are in the center of Indiana’s draft conversations.

Napheesa Collier, University of Connecticut
Napheesa Collier did it all for the Huskies during her senior season in Storrs. The All-American won a title with the Huskies in 2016 and advanced to the Final Four her last three collegiate seasons. The 6-foot, 2-inch forward plays a primarily inside game, averaging 20.8 points and 10.3 rebounds her senior season.

“Collier is in the conversation for me to be the best player in the draft,” said Lawson. “She’s somebody that’s very complete, and I think what she does well translates at the next level. She’s somebody that can score very easily. Collier can score with ease in the post, as well as step out and hit the midrange jumper. She is tenacious on the boards and would aid the Fever’s last ranked rebounding total from last season. She is a driven winner who will help any team at the next level.”

Katie Lou Samuelson, University of Connecticut
Katie Lou, like Collier, won a title in 2016 and returned to the Final Four each season as a Husky. The 6-foot, 3-inch guard is one of the longer guards in the country and can shoot lights out from distance. She hit 86 threes in her senior season and moved to fifth in the All-Time UConn career scoring list. She led the NCAA in shooting percentage (47%) as a junior.

Samuelson would add a large presence to a small Fever backcourt. She scored 18.5 points per contest and collected 6.3 rebounds. The senior would add a whole new dimension to Indiana’s backcourt with her shooting prowess and length.

With last week’s announcement that Vivians would miss the 2019 season due to injury, could Samuelson and the return of Shenise Johnson give Indiana a dynamic backcourt pairing with Kelsey Mitchell, Tiffany Mitchell and Erica Wheeler?

Jackie Young, University of Notre Dame
The lone junior on this list, Young was an explosive guard for the Fighting Irish, averaging 14.7 points per contest to go along with 45% from behind the arc. Standing at 6-foot, she has solid size for the guard position and has a defensive ferocity that challenges her opponents each possession.

If Indiana is looking to add more size in the backcourt, Young would add a respectable scoring ability and defensive presence on the wing for the Fever.

No matter who is available when it is Indiana’s turn to make its first-round pick, the Fever are in position to add an elite young talent to their roster. The emphasis will likely be on adding size and length across the board, so watch for the Fever target that trait on Wednesday night.