Team Has First Overall Pick for Second Time in Three Seasons
Phoenix Mercury Win Top Pick in 2007 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 2007.
NEW YORK, Oct. 26, 2006� The Phoenix Mercury won the sixth annual WNBA Draft Lottery and earned the top pick in the 2007 WNBA Draft, the League announced today. This marks the first time in WNBA Draft Lottery history that the team whose odds of winning the top pick were mathematically the smallest, came away with the number one selection. In addition, it also is the first time in league history that the team with the second-lowest odds earned the second pick. While Chicago had a 41 percent chance of receiving the top pick, followed by Minnesota (25.6), Charlotte (12.9) and, New York (12.8), Phoenix, with only a 2.5 percent chance of garnering the top selection did just that.

The Mercury had 25 chances out of 1,000 to receive the first overall selection. The San Antonio Silver Stars will have the second pick in the draft followed by the Chicago Sky, Minnesota Lynx, Charlotte Sting and New York Liberty.

WNBA officials and a representative from the accounting firm of Ernst & Young conducted the Draft Lottery in New York City, which included the six teams that did not qualify for the 2006 WNBA Playoffs. The lottery established the order of selection for the first six picks of the draft while the order of selection for the remainder of the first round as well as the second and third rounds is based on each team’s finish during the 2006 regular season.

Lottery News & Notes
The 2007 Draft marks the sixth 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 2007 WNBA Draft:

2007 WNBA DRAFT LOTTERY ORDER

1. Phoenix Mercury
2. San Antonio Silver Stars
3. Chicago Sky
4. Minnesota Lynx
5. Charlotte Sting
6. New York Liberty

In 2006, the WNBA concluded its historic tenth season with an action-packed WNBA Finals. The 2006 WNBA Finals presented by Vonage capped a playoff run in which the WNBA saw significant increases in attendance and viewership. The Finals, which aired live on ESPN2, saw the Detroit Shock top the Sacramento Monarchs in the first WNBA Finals match up ever to go to a fifth and deciding game.

Average attendance for the 2006 Finals was up +28% compared to a year ago while average attendance for the playoffs overall increased by +16%. The historic Game 5 featured a sellout crowd of 19,671 at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, MI, the second largest crowd in WNBA Finals history. These increases followed closely on the heels of a strong second half of the regular season in which attendance throughout the league rose nearly 12% after the All-Star break. Television viewership also increased during the Finals. Detroit's Game 4 win at Sacramento was the second-most watched WNBA game in ESPN2 history and average viewership for the 2006 Finals was up +11% over that of 2005. As the preeminent women's sports league, the WNBA, which features 14 teams, is the destination for the best women's basketball players in the world.

Team odds prior to the 2007 WNBA Draft Lottery.
(listed in parentheses, out of 1000):
Chicago (5-29)410
Minnesota (10-24)256
Charlotte (11-23)129
New York (11-23)128
San Antonio (13-21) 52
Phoenix (18-16)25

First Round
Non-Lottery Teams

7) Washington (18-16)
8) Seattle (18-16)
9) Houston (18-16)
10) Indiana (21-13)
11) Sacramento (21-13)
12) Detroit (23-11)
13) Los Angeles (25-9)
14) Connecticut (26-8)

Second Round

1) Houston from Chicago (5-29) (Shimek, 5/12/06)
2) Minnesota (10-24)
3) Charlotte (11-23)
4) New York (11-23)
5) San Antonio (13-21)
6) Phoenix (18-16)
7) Washington (18-16)
8) Chicago from Seattle (18-16) (Robinson, Greenwalt, 6/29/06)
9) Chicago from Houston (18-16) (Shimek, 5/12/06)
10) Indiana (21-13)
11) Sacramento (21-13)
12) Minnesota from Detroit (23-11) (Batteast, Anderson 4/5/06)
13) Los Angeles (25-9)
14) Connecticut (26-8)

Third Round

1) Chicago (5-29)
2) Phoenix from Minnesota (10-24) (A. Williams, 5/18/06) via Detroit (Batteast, Anderson 4/5/06)
3) Charlotte (11-23)
4) New York (11-23)
5) San Antonio (13-21)
6) Phoenix (18-16)
7) Washington (18-16)
8) Seattle (18-16)
9) Houston (18-16)
10) Indiana (21-13)
11) Sacramento (21-13)
12) Phoenix from Detroit (23-11) (A. Williams, 5/18/06)
13) Los Angeles (25-9)
14) Connecticut (26-8)