Press Release

– League’s 30th Annual Draft to be Exclusively Televised on ESPN from 7:00 p.m. – 9:30 p.m. ET – 
– State Street Investment Management and SPY Join as League’s Presenting Partner 
for WNBA Draft–   
–Tickets Go on Sale for WNBA Draft 2026 presented by State Street Investment Management SPY on Friday, March 27 –
NEW YORK, March 26, 2026 – The WNBA Draft 2026 presented by State Street Investment Management SPY will be held on Monday, April 13 at The Shed at Hudson Yards in New York City. WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert will announce the draft picks live on ESPN with exclusive coverage beginning at 7:00 p.m. ET. The draft on ESPN, along with WNBA Orange Carpet Special (ESPN2, 5:30 pm ET) and WNBA Countdown Presented by Google (ESPN, 6:30 pm ET) will also be available live on the ESPN App.
Top collegiate and international prospects will participate in person as the WNBA Draft 2026 presented by State Street Investment Management SPY returns to New York City.
This marks the third consecutive year the draft will be a marquee live event with fans in attendance. Individual tickets will go on sale through Ticketmaster on Friday, March 27 at 10:00 a.m. ET.
As determined by the 2026 WNBA Draft Lottery held on November 23, 2025, the Dallas Wings will select first, followed by the Minnesota Lynx (second), Seattle Storm (third), Washington Mystics (fourth), and Chicago Sky (fifth).
“We are proud to welcome State Street Investment Management and SPY as the presenting partner of the WNBA Draft as we celebrate the league’s historic 30th season,” said WNBA Chief Growth Officer Colie Edison. “Every year, the draft is a defining moment for our league and its future stars, and together with State Street Investment Management, we’re excited to create an unforgettable experience as we welcome the next generation of WNBA talent.”
The official tip-off of draft night festivities will begin when invited draft prospects arrive on the WNBA Draft Orange Carpet presented by Coach. Earlier in the day, draft prospects will visit the iconic Empire State Building for a lighting ceremony to celebrate the WNBA Draft 2026 presented by State Street Investment Management SPY.
“We are proud to serve as presenting sponsor of the 2026 WNBA Draft,” said John Brockelman, Chief Marketing Officer of State Street Investment Management. &#8220;This event is more than a moment &#8211; it&#8217;s a beginning. And these incredible athletes serve as a powerful reminder of what&#8217;s possible when you believe in, and invest in, your future.&#8221;
On draft night, WNBA social and digital platforms – including the WNBA App and WNBA.com – will provide live updates, an interactive Draft Board, and comprehensive coverage of all draft-related events.
For more information on the WNBA and on the WNBA Draft 2026 presented by State Street Investment Management SPY, visit WNBA.com and the WNBA App.
The WNBA’s historic 30th season will tip off on Friday, May 8 with the Connecticut Sun visiting the New York Liberty, the Washington Mystics visiting the Toronto Tempo as the first ever Canadian WNBA team, and the Seattle Storm hosting the Golden State Valkyries.
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WNBA
Tipping off its historic 30th season in 2026, the WNBA continues to be one of the fastest-growing brands in sports, fueled by record-breaking momentum and unprecedented growth. Having reached a tentative agreement on a new transformational Collective Bargaining Agreement in March 2026, the league enters a bold new chapter focused on elevating the player experience, drawing increased investment, and growing women’s basketball globally. The WNBA’s dedication to societal impact is supported by the WNBA Changemakers Collective (Ally, AT&amp;T, CarMax, Deloitte, Google, and Nike), a first-of-its-kind group of purpose-driven companies working to empower players and the league, increase visibility, and drive business transformation.
About State Street Investment Management
At State Street Investment Management, we have been helping create better outcomes for institutions, financial intermediaries, and investors for nearly half a century. Starting with our early innovations in indexing and ETFs, our rigorous approach continues to be driven by market-tested expertise and a relentless commitment to those we serve. With over $5 trillion in assets managed*, clients in over 60 countries, and a global network of strategic partners, we use our scale to deliver a comprehensive and cost-effective suite of investment solutions that help investors get wherever they want to go.
*This figure is presented as of December 31, 2025 and includes ETF AUM of $1,950.80 billion USD of which approximately $173.02 billion USD in gold assets with respect to SPDR products for which State Street Global Advisors Funds Distributors, LLC (SSGA FD) acts solely as the marketing agent. SSGA FD and State Street Investment Management are affiliated. Please note all AUM is unaudited.
 
Important Risk Information
State Street Global Advisors (SSGA) is now State Street Investment Management. Please click <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ssga.com%2Fus%2Fen%2Fabout-us%2Fwhat-we-do&amp;esheet=54325144&amp;newsitemid=20250916954913&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=here&amp;index=2&amp;md5=3920fd23d9fba637b39d145b64dc1648">here</a> for more information.
Investing involves risk of including the risk of loss of principal.
ETFs trade like stocks, are subject to investment risk, fluctuate in market value and may trade at prices above or below the ETFs net asset value. Brokerage commissions and ETF expenses will reduce returns.
Intellectual Property Information: The S&amp;P 500® Index is a product of S&amp;P Dow Jones Indices LLC or its affiliates (“S&amp;P DJI”) and have been licensed for use by State Street Global Advisors. S&amp;P® , SPDR® , S&amp;P 500® ,US 500 and the 500 are trademarks of Standard &amp; Poor’s Financial Services LLC (“S&amp;P”); Dow Jones® is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC (“Dow Jones”) and has been licensed for use by S&amp;P Dow Jones Indices; and these trademarks have been licensed for use by S&amp;P DJI and sublicensed for certain purposes by State Street Global Advisors. The fund is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by S&amp;P DJI, Dow Jones, S&amp;P, their respective affiliates, and none of such parties make any representation regarding the advisability of investing in such product(s) nor do they have any liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions of these indices.
Distributor: ALPS Distributors, Inc., member FINRA, is distributor for SPDR® S&amp;P 500®
Before investing, consider the funds&#8217; investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. To obtain a prospectus or summary prospectus which contains this and other information, call 1-866-787-2257 or visit <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.statestreet.com%2Fim&amp;esheet=54325144&amp;newsitemid=20250916954913&amp;lan=en-US&amp;anchor=www.statestreet.com%2Fim&amp;index=5&amp;md5=009a7618ec2b33c6900327665ad0a669">www.statestreet.com/im</a>. Read it carefully.
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wnba-draft-2026-to-be-held-april-13

WNBA Draft 2026 Presented By State Street Investment Management SPY To Be Held on April 13

Draft 2026

– Minnesota Lynx Receive Second Pick, Seattle Storm to Select Third, 
Washington Mystics will Choose Fourth, and Chicago Sky Rounds out Top Five Picks –
NEW YORK, Nov. 23, 2025 – The Dallas Wings today won the 2026 WNBA Draft Lottery and will have the first overall pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft to be held on Monday, April 13, 2026.
The results of the 25th annual Lottery were revealed by WNBA Head of League Operations Bethany Donaphin during the 30-minute, WNBA Draft Lottery Special on ESPN. following its presentation of the TCU vs. North Carolina State women’s basketball game. This marks the 14th consecutive year that ESPN networks has presented the WNBA Draft Lottery.
Dallas, which entered the Lottery with the most chances to win the top pick (420 out of 1,000), won the WNBA Draft Lottery for the second consecutive year. In November 2024, the Wings won the top pick for the first time in team history after participating in the Lottery 11 previous times. The franchise used that No. 1 overall pick to select Paige Bueckers, who went on to be voted as a starter in the AT&amp;T WNBA All-Star Game and as the Kia WNBA Rookie of the Year.
This also marks the fifth time in the history of the WNBA Draft Lottery that the results matched the order of chances held by the Lottery teams. The prior instances were ahead of the 2009, 2015, 2016, and 2018 WNBA drafts.
The Minnesota Lynx, which had the second-most chances to win the top pick (261), will have the second selection. The Seattle Storm will select third after having the third-most chances to land the top pick (167).
The fourth selection belongs to the Washington Mystics, which had 97 chances to receive the first pick. The Chicago Sky, which had the fifth-most chances to garner the top pick (55), rounds out the top five.
Lottery odds were based on the two-year (2024 and 2025) cumulative records of the five teams that did not make the playoffs in the most recent season. With a cumulative record of 19-65, the Wings had the most assigned combinations (420 out of 1,000) and were guaranteed at least the third pick.
The order of selection for the remainder of the first round as well as the second and third rounds will be announced at a later date.
A representative from the accounting firm of Ernst &amp; Young was in attendance to oversee the Lottery process.
The following are results of the 2026 WNBA Draft Lottery.
<table style="width: 85.6147%" width="633">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 14.0355%" width="56">Pick</td>
<td style="width: 36.4392%" width="272">Team</td>
<td style="width: 25.7911%" width="165">Combined 2024-2025 Record</td>
<td style="width: 39.268%" width="140">Chances (out of 1,000)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 14.0355%" width="56">1</td>
<td style="width: 36.4392%" width="272">Dallas Wings</td>
<td style="width: 25.7911%" width="165">19-65</td>
<td style="width: 39.268%" width="140">420</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 14.0355%" width="56">2</td>
<td style="width: 36.4392%" width="272">Minnesota Lynx from Chicago Sky</td>
<td style="width: 25.7911%" width="165">23-61*</td>
<td style="width: 39.268%" width="140">261</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 14.0355%" width="56">3</td>
<td style="width: 36.4392%" width="272">Seattle Storm from Los Angeles Sparks</td>
<td style="width: 25.7911%" width="165">29-55^</td>
<td style="width: 39.268%" width="140">167</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 14.0355%" width="56">4</td>
<td style="width: 36.4392%" width="272">Washington Mystics</td>
<td style="width: 25.7911%" width="165">30-54</td>
<td style="width: 39.268%" width="140">97</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 14.0355%" width="56">5</td>
<td style="width: 36.4392%" width="272">Chicago Sky from Connecticut Sun</td>
<td style="width: 25.7911%" width="165">39-45+</td>
<td style="width: 39.268%" width="140">55</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
* Chicago and Minnesota extinguished Minnesota’s right to swap its own first round pick for Chicago’s own first round pick and Chicago has traded its own first round pick to Minnesota (Sika Koné, Nikolina Milić, 4/14/24), (Draft picks, 4/13/25)
^ Los Angeles had traded its own first round pick to Seattle (Kia Nurse, 1/31/24)
+ Phoenix had traded its own first round pick to Chicago (Kahleah Copper, Morgan Bertsch, Michaela Onyenwere, Brianna Turner, 2/6/24) and Chicago had swapped Phoenix’s first round pick for Connecticut’s own first round pick (Marina Mabrey, Rachel Banham, Moriah Jefferson, 7/17/24)
# # #

wnba-draft-lottery-2026-results

Dallas Wings Win Top Pick in 2026 WNBA Draft

Below are answers to some of the main questions regarding the WNBA Draft Lottery 2026.
<hr />
When is the 2026 WNBA Draft Lottery, and where can I watch? 
The 2026 WNBA Draft Lottery will be broadcast on Sunday, Nov. 23, at 6:30 pm ET on ESPN. 
<hr />
 What teams are participating in the 2026 WNBA Draft Lottery? 
The Dallas Wings, Minnesota Lynx, Seattle Storm, Washington Mystics, and Chicago Sky will take part in the 25th annual WNBA Draft Lottery. 
<hr />
How does the Draft Lottery work? 
14 lottery balls numbered 1 through 14 are mixed into a lottery machine. Four lottery balls are drawn to create a four-number combination. One qualifying team holds that four-number combination and will receive the No. 1 pick. This process repeats to determine the No. 2 pick.   
The No. 3 pick will be awarded to the remaining draft lottery team with the worst cumulative record over the last two WNBA seasons. The No. 4 pick will be awarded to the remaining draft lottery team with the next-worst cumulative record over the last two WNBA seasons.   
The final remaining draft lottery team will receive the #5 pick. 
<hr />
How are the chances of winning the Draft Lottery determined? 
Lottery chances are based on the two-year (2024 and 2025) cumulative records of the five teams that did not make the playoffs in the most recent season.  
<hr />
Which team has the best chance at winning the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft? 
With a cumulative record of 19-65, the Wings will have the most assigned combinations (420 out of 1,000) and are guaranteed at least the third pick. 
As the result of a prior trade between Minnesota and Chicago (23-61), the Lynx possess the Sky’s first round pick and will have 261 chances out of 1,000 to win the top pick.  
Seattle, which owns the Los Angeles Sparks’ (29-55) first round pick by virtue of a January 2024 trade, has the third-most chances (167). 
Washington, 30-54 over the past two seasons, has 97 chances out of 1,000 to win the top pick, and Chicago, which owns the Connecticut Sun’s (39-45) first round selection, has the fifth most chances (55).  
<table data-tablestyle="MsoNormalTable" data-tablelook="1696">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td data-celllook="69905">Team </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">Combined 2024-2025 Record </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">Chances (out of 1,000) </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-celllook="69905">Dallas Wings </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">19-65 </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">420 </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-celllook="69905">Minnesota Lynx from Chicago Sky </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">23-61* </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">261 </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-celllook="69905">Seattle Storm from Los Angeles Sparks </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">29-55^ </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">167 </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-celllook="69905">Washington Mystics </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">30-54 </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">97 </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td data-celllook="69905">Chicago Sky from Connecticut Sun </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">39-45+ </td>
<td data-celllook="69905">55   </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
* Chicago and Minnesota have extinguished Minnesota’s right to swap its own first round pick for Chicago’s own first round pick and Chicago has traded its own first round pick to Minnesota (Sika Koné, Nikolina Milić, 4/14/24), (Draft picks, 4/13/25) 
^ Los Angeles has traded its own first round pick to Seattle (Kia Nurse, 1/31/24) 
+ Phoenix has traded its own first round pick to Chicago (Kahleah Copper, Morgan Bertsch, Michaela Onyenwere, Brianna Turner, 2/6/24) and Chicago has swapped Phoenix’s first round pick for Connecticut’s own first round pick (Marina Mabrey, Rachel Banham, Moriah Jefferson, 7/17/24)

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WNBA Draft Lottery 2026: FAQ and Things to Know

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