Top 10 WNBA Draft Picks of All Time: Tamika Catchings, Sue Bird, and More

The WNBA Draft works as a platform for the teams to pick the best players from the new draft class. It is an annual event where talents often go to teams with the lowest-performing stats from the previous season. Just like the NBA, the top picks don't go to strong teams, and eventually, it maintains the balance of talent in the league.

Sometimes, the teams start working on the draft picks a year before and then frame their whole roster around these high-ranked players with the purpose of winning a championship. However, some of these players turn out to be generational and etch their names in history. As the 2025 WNBA Draft just got over today, we will be listing the Top 10 WNBA draft picks ranked in the all-time record.

Top 10 WNBA Draft Picks Ranked

We have ranked the top 10 WNBA draft picks of all time who might have placed themselves among the best of the best in the 28 years of WNBA history. But before moving to the achievements of players, let's sort them out in a tabular form.

Greatest WNBA Draft Picks

The players who rose to the occasion and stole the limelight with their performances in the league are listed under the following rankings. All of them entered as first-timers in the WNBA, and some of them went on to dominate the Women's National Basketball Association for about two decades. So, let's move ahead with it.

#10 Sylvia Fowles, Chicago Sky (2008)

Sylvia Fowles was picked up as the 2nd overall by the Chicago Sky from the 2008 WNBA Draft class. During her stint in the pro basketball league, Sylvia mostly played as a center and posted stats in accordance with it. However, she was an excellent scorer as well.
She dished out about 15.7 points and 9.8 rebounds in her career, but she had the most memorable time of her career with the Minnesota Lynx squad. She played seven seasons for the Chicago Sky and later got traded to the Lynx. Fowles was able to maintain a scoring average of above 10 points per game throughout her career and yet defense was her forte.

After her initial rookie years in the league, she kept her rebounding average above 8.5 boards per game. She even had most of her career achievements earned later with the Lynx. Here are the achievements that she made in the WNBA:

#9 Elena Delle Donne, Chicago Sky (2013)

Elena Delle Donne was a forward in the WNBA who was selected as the second overall pick in the 2013 WNBA Draft. She lived up to her position on the court since she maintained a scoring average of above 19 points per game in her whole career.

Despite her volume scoring, she was able to tally about 6.7 boards per game in her career on the other end of the court. It proves that she had an immense amount of athleticism moving up and down the hardcourt without worrying about exhaustion.

Elena played most of her basketball career with the Washington Mystics after four seasons with the Chicago Sky. Elena was not a traditional shooter on the court, but she spent most of her career scoring points through three-point shooting in the league. That's why she has a career average of 39.2 for beyond-the-arc shooting.

#8 Brittney Griner, Phoenix Mercury (2013)

The 6 feet 9 inches long center, Brittney Griner, is a legend in the WNBA. She was picked up as the first overall pick by the Phoenix Mercury front office in 2013. She is still playing in the league and has stayed with the Mercury squad throughout her WNBA journey.
Due to her big stature, she has a career rebounding average of 7.4 rebounds per game till the 2024 season. But she has been able to continuously dish out about 17.7 points per game after spending about 11 seasons in the league.

The accolades that she achieved on her pro-basketball journey can be listed as follows, which include the WNBA Championship that she won in 2014. She is a great block leader, still making about 2 blocks per game while playing in the league after so many seasons. Even when she made her debut in the league, she used to tally about 3 blocks per game.

#7 Cheryl Ford, Detroit Shock (2003)

The Detroit Shock had picked up Cheryl Ford as the third overall pick from the 2003 Draft class. However, instead of chasing individual accolades, she followed the team's motive. That's why the Shock moved from the bottom to the top place three times during her stint with the team in the WNBA. She had an immediate impact in the league as soon as she entered, and that's why she won the WNBA Rookie of the Year in 2003 during her first year with the Detroit Shock.

Ford was a forward, but with her playing technique, she seemed more like a hardcore rebounder. Throughout her career, she dished out 10.8 points per game and 9.7 rebounds per game. Her best defensive season was in 2006 when she averaged 11.3 boards per game.

#6 Breanna Stewart, Seattle Storm (2016)

The overall first pick from the 2016 WNBA Draft by Seattle Storm, Breanna Stewart, is more of an all-round player despite playing the forward position on the court. It is even evident from the stats since she averaged 20.4 ppg, 8.5 rpg, and 3.5 apg in the last season with the New York Liberty and won the WNBA Championship.

However, it was not even her best career stat line yet. She tallied 23 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 3.8 assists during the 2023 season. Here are the achievements that she has made in the WNBA so far.

Even being a gold medalist, Breanna Stewart also won the Olympics MVP while playing in a FIBA tournament in 2021. On an international level, she was part of the Euro League champion squad in 2021 and 2023.

#5 Candace Parker, Los Angeles Sparks (2008)

Candace Parker was inducted as the first overall by the Los Angeles Sparks in the 2008 season. In her debut season, she carved history, and that's why she stands in the fifth spot on the list of the top 10 WNBA Draft picks rankings. She became the first WNBA player to win both the Rookie of the Year and the Most Valuable Player awards in the same season.

Even in her debut game with the Sparks, Candace tallied 34 points, 12 rebounds, and 8 assists against the Phoenix Mercury squad. The 6 feet 4 inches forward who last played for the Las Vegas Aces is a perfect mix of size and speed. Before Breanna, she was one of the most complete players in the league, tallying 16 points per game, 8.5 rebounds per game, and 4.0 assists per game.

On top of all, she maintained a 47.9 field goal percentage while spending time on the hardcourt. Here are the achievements that she made during her WNBA career, which can be mentioned as follows:

#4 Maya Moore, Minnesota Lynx (2011)

Maya Moore entered as the first overall pick in the 2011 WNBA Draft class. She was part of the Minnesota Lynx and played for the squad throughout her career. She is often referred to as the greatest winner in WNBA history since she played only eight seasons in the league and yet won four WNBA Championships.

She averaged 18.4 points per game, 5.9 rebounds per game, and 3.3 assists per game in her career. But at the end of the 2018 season, she decided to quit basketball to focus on her career and other political ambitions.

Maya Moore was a born leader who might not be the best in terms of stat padding, but she did have above-average stats despite playing for her team. Her best season with the Minnesota Lynx came during the 2014 season when she dished out 23.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 3.4 assists. Despite early retirement, Maya Moore remains a legend in the WNBA due to the following achievements:

#3 Tamika Catchings, Indiana Fever (2001)

Tamika Catchings was picked up as the third overall pick in the 2001 WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever. However, she could not play for the team due to her ACL injury during the final year of her collegiate basketball career at Tennessee. She made up for her last time in 2002 and became the Rookie of the Year in her first year for the Indiana Fever. She averaged 18.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 3.7 assists during her first year.

Tamika Catchings was quite possessive about her defense despite being a forward. She tallied 16.1 points per game, 7.3 boards per game, 3.3 assists per game, and 2.4 steals per game. She was one of the best all-around players out there. That's why Tamika still leads the WNBA in terms of All-Time Steals leadership. The achievements that she got in her whole career as a baller can be listed as follows:

#2 Sue Bird, Seattle Storm (2002)

Sue Bird was the first overall pick from the 2002 WNBA Draft and was taken by the Seattle Storm. Throughout her 19-year career with the WNBA and the Seattle Storm franchise, Bird kept on stacking stats with her all-around performance, and that's why she is referred to as a WNBA legend. She retired in 2022, but her guarding skills are still in charge of the league, with an average of 5.6 assists per game.

Sue is also a five-time Olympic gold medalist who won the competition from 2004 to 2020. Notably, she is the only WNBA player to win titles in three different decades. Her basketball expertise is so exceptional that she even held the responsibility of a front office position for the NBA's Denver Nuggets as their Basketball Operations Associate. Her best season in terms of playmaking was the 2018 season, in which she tallied 7.1 assists per game.

#1 Diana Taurasi, Phoenix Mercury (2004)

Just like Michael Jordan in the NBA, Diana Taurasi is referred to as the GOAT of women's basketball. She was selected as the first overall pick in the 2004 WNBA Draft, and she is still playing in the pro basketball league. As a guard, even after twenty years, Diana is averaging 18.8 points per game, 3.9 rebounds per game, and 4.2 assists per game in the 2024 season. However, the ‘White Mamba,’ as Kobe Bryant called her, announced her retirement from the sport in Feb 2025.

She survived the competition throughout the years and even outlasted them with her performance. She is ahead of any other basketballer in terms of international accolades and has won the Olympic Gold medals five times with the United States Women's Basketball team. The accolades that she got in her long career can be mentioned as follows: