Team Has First Overall Pick for First Time in History
Minnesota Lynx Win Top Pick in 2006 WNBA Draft

Team-by-Team Analysis
Now that each team's draft place is set, it is never too early to begin thinking about what these teams can do to improve their roster this offseason and make the playoffs in 2006.
NEW YORK, Oct. 24, 2005 � The Minnesota Lynx won the fifth annual WNBA Draft Lottery Monday, earning the first pick in the 2006 WNBA Draft, the WNBA announced today.

Minnesota had 167 chances out of 1,000 to receive the first overall selection. The Phoenix Mercury will have the second pick in the Draft followed by the Charlotte Sting, the San Antonio Silver Stars and the Washington Mystics.

Video: Minnesota wins
WNBA Draft Lottery: Play
The Draft Lottery was conducted by WNBA officials and representatives from the accounting firm of Ernst & Young at the WNBA Headquarters on Fifth Avenue in New York and included the five teams that did not qualify for the 2005 WNBA Playoffs. The lottery establishes the order of selection for the first round of the draft, with the order of selection for the second and third rounds based on each team�s finish during the 2005 regular season.

Lottery News & Notes
The 2006 Draft marks the fifth year that the team receiving the top pick in the WNBA Draft has been decided by lottery. So just how much of an impact does that coveted No. 1 pick deliver?

Following is the order of the WNBA Draft Lottery results for the 2006 WNBA Draft:

2006 WNBA DRAFT LOTTERY ORDER

Team2005 Record
1. Minnesota14-20
2. Phoenix16-18
3. Charlotte6-28
4. San Antonio7-27
5. Washington16-18

In 2005, the WNBA concluded its historic ninth season with an action-packed WNBA Finals that crowned a new champion for the third straight year as the Sacramento Monarchs clinched the 2005 WNBA Championship. The WNBA Finals on ESPN2 produced significant increases in ratings (+33 percent) and viewership (+27 percent) versus 2004. As the preeminent women's sports league, the WNBA is the destination for the best women's basketball players in the world.

Team odds prior to the 2006 WNBA Draft Lottery.
(listed in parentheses, out of 1000):
Charlotte(420)
San Antonio (261)
Minnesota(167)
Phoenix(76)
Washington (76)