A few times in the recent past, Cheryl Reeve has entered the WNBA draft without a lot of options.
For the Minnesota Lynx's president of basketball operations and coach, specific needs have at times dictated the way the team handles its draft.
Reeve was determined for that not to be the case this year.
"That was really important to us," Reeve said. "Right now we have some depth, at every position. We're in a position to literally take the best player available to us. We've been more stuck in the past."
The Lynx have two picks in Monday's three-round WNBA draft. They have the seventh pick overall and the seventh pick in the third round (31st overall). Their second-round pick went to Connecticut as part of the trade that brought guard Natisha Hiedeman to the team.
Trading for Hiedeman and signing Courtney Williams gave the Lynx depth with two players who can play both guard positions. Signing Alanna Smith gave the Lynx depth in the post.
"Our mindset is to add depth at any position," Reeve said. "The strength of the draft will dictate that."
The team would like to add depth at point guard, but that's not a particular strength of this draft after presumed No. 1 pick Caitlin Clark. This year's draft is deep at the post position, with Cameron Brink (Stanford), Kamilla Cardoso (South Carolina), Aaliyah Edwards (Connecticut) and Angel Reese (LSU) expected to go in the top ten.
"A lot of solid, quality posts," said Lynx general manager Clare Duwelius. "We talk about the floor and ceiling of players a lot. With these prospects, we know what they're going to give you every night. That's the fun, trying to figure out what you want to plug in to your roster."
Brink, Cardoso and Edwards should be gone by No. 7. The Lynx could opt for a player like Reese. They could try to move up in the draft, but the Lynx, under Reeve, don't have much of a history of doing that.
They could try to get some extra draft capital — getting a second-round pick back, perhaps — by moving down slightly in the first round, the type of move the Lynx have made in the past.
They could stay where they are and take a deferral pick, a player from Europe, who wouldn't arrive this year.
But the bottom line is this: "It's not deep," Reeve said of the overall draft class. "But not as bad as it was in 2021. The draft is being talked about because of Caitlin Clark, Cardoso and Brink. Those are really good players. After that, there are fewer certainties."
The Lynx figure to be pretty healthy when training camp begins not long after the draft. Diamond Miller had off-season surgery to repair the meniscus in her knee. She has already been cleared for 5-on-5 work and is expected to be OK for both camp and the start of the season, though there may be a minutes limitation.
But the Lynx will have to start the season without second-year center Dorka Juhász, who is currently playing in Italy, the season of which will bleed into the start of the WNBA season; players in their first or second seasons are not subject to WNBA prioritization rules.
At this point, a possible starting lineup would be Kayla McBride and Williams at guard, Miller on the wing, Napheesa Collier and Smith in the post.
Hiedeman would be the first guard off the bench. The Lynx could draft a point guard or hope French player Olivia Epoupa, who is on the training camp roster, earns a spot. Bridget Carleton returns as a versatile reserve.
That doesn't leave a lot of room on a roster that figures to again include 11 players. The team's top draft pick would take a spot. Taylor Soule, the former Virginia Tech player who had such a strong camp last year, is back competing for a spot, among others.
"We're in a place where we have some assets," Reeve said. "There are enough good players at the top [of the draft] we could reach for. Or we could stand pat. Or more down. We have options, for sure."
