TCU makes WNBA history
TCU became the first program to have three players selected in the 2026 WNBA Draft, marking a milestone for the school. (si.com). The draft featured 45 picks and league roster rules — 15 teams with 12‑player rosters plus up to two developmental spots — which the Athletic says should help more draftees stick in the WNBA. ( ).
Texas Christian University put three players into the 2026 Women’s National Basketball Association draft, the first time the program has done that in one year. Olivia Miles, Marta Suárez and Taylor Bigby were all selected on April 13. (wnba.com; si.com) Miles went No. 2 overall to the Minnesota Lynx, the highest draft slot in program history. Suárez was drafted by the Golden State Valkyries and later traded to the Seattle Storm, and Bigby went in the third round. (wnba.com; wnba.com; si.com) The three picks pushed Texas Christian University to six Women’s National Basketball Association draft selections all time. Five of those six have come in the last two drafts. (si.com; gofrogs.com) That recent run started in 2025, when Hailey Van Lith went No. 11 to the Chicago Sky and Madison Conner went No. 29 to the Seattle Storm. Before that night, Texas Christian University had not produced a draft pick since Sandora Irvin went No. 3 to the Phoenix Mercury in 2005. (gofrogs.com) The draft itself was larger than in previous seasons. The Women’s National Basketball Association completed 45 picks across three rounds on April 13, with 15 teams now drafting after expansion added the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire for 2026. (wnba.com; wnba.com) League roster rules changed at the same time. The new collective bargaining agreement requires 12-player active rosters and adds up to two developmental roster spots per team that do not count against the salary cap. (wnba.com; pr.nba.com) Those rules give this draft class more places to land than earlier classes had. Yahoo Sports reported that players selected Monday enter a league with 15 rosters of 12 players each and up to two developmental spots per team. (sports.yahoo.com) Texas Christian University’s surge is concentrated in Fort Worth, not spread across decades. The program had one Women’s National Basketball Association draft pick from 1997 through 2024, then added five more in 2025 and 2026. (gofrogs.com; si.com) For Miles, Suárez and Bigby, draft night closed one chapter and started another in a league with more teams, more roster spots and more room than past rookie classes had. For Texas Christian University, it left a draft board with three Horned Frogs on it. (wnba.com; sports.yahoo.com)
