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2019 WNBA Mock Draft Big Board: Version 1.0

By Howard Megdal

NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 12: A'ja Wilson poses with a Las Vegas Aces hat during the 2018 WNBA Draft 2018 on April 12, 2018 at Nike New York Headquarters in New York, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Melanie Fidler/NBAE via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 12: A'ja Wilson poses with a Las Vegas Aces hat during the 2018 WNBA Draft 2018 on April 12, 2018 at Nike New York Headquarters in New York, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Melanie Fidler/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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COLUMBUS, OH – APRIL 1: Arike Ogunbowale #24 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish hoists the national championship trophy during the championship game of the 2018 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Final Four at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OH – APRIL 1: Arike Ogunbowale #24 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish hoists the national championship trophy during the championship game of the 2018 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Final Four at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) /

6. Minnesota Arike Ogunbowale, 5’8 G, Notre Dame

It’s a big offseason ahead for Cheryl Reeve and the Minnesota Lynx, with Lindsay Whalen departed and a number of their other vital players of the past decade still uncertain in both future and role. Still, if Maya Moore and Sylvia Fowles are resting and returning, the future is hardly bleak. Still, if there’s anything Minnesota struggled with in 2018, it was not having enough players who could put the ball in the basket. Now, you may remember a couple of times when Arike Ogunbowale did this, but her Final Four drama was no fluke. She shot 38.2 percent from deep, can get to the basket with a strong 5’8 frame, and though her facilitating needs work—the 13.6 assist percentage is low for a guard, even in a Muffet McGraw system that spreads the wealth on sharing—Reeve and guard whisperer Walt Hopkins are the ideal situation to maximize her ability in that area. It’s not going to be as simple as replacing the Lynx of the dynasty, but Ogunbowale is the closest thing in this draft to a Seimone Augustus successor, and it is easy to see them working in tandem, with Ogunbowale providing second unit scoring the Lynx need right away.

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