The 2017 WNBA draft is set to take place on April 13 at 7 p.m., and currently three South Carolina players are projected to be taken in the first round.
Allisha Gray, Alaina Coates and Kaela Davis are all expected to be drafted in the first round, which consists of 12 picks per round. Both Davis and Gray are juniors, and have decided to forgo their senior season.
Gray is projected to be taken with the fourth pick of the draft to the Dallas Wings. She averaged over 13 points per game and 5 rebounds per game. She was also second on the team in assists with 93 on the season, second in steals and fourth in blocks.
Coates is expected to be taken the pick after Gray by the San Antonio Stars. Despite sitting out the entire NCAA Tournament, Coates showed herself to be a force during the regular season for the Gamecocks as she averaged a double-double on the season.
Davis is projected to be taken with the last pick of the first round by the Minnesota Lynx. She finished the season averaging 12.7 points per game while shooting just under 35 percent from three-point range. Davis really shone at the end of the season in Coates’ absence, as she was able to demonstrate just how dynamic she is on the offensive end when given the space to do so.
These three players will leave South Carolina as champions after guiding their Gamecock team to the National Championship where they were able to beat Mississippi State.
South Carolina will still have their All-American and Wooden Award candidate A'ja Wilson returning to play for them next season.