“This is, I think, one of the most exciting nights on the WNBA calendar,” said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. In a surprise to no one, Aliyah Boston of the University of South Carolina was the first pick in the 2023 WNBA Draft, chosen by the Indiana Fever, a team that has struggled over the past few seasons. Although the Gamecocks didn’t defend as National Champions, Boston’s prowess and potential are undeniable.
“I’m thankful, first, to God just for putting me in this position, but also thankful to everybody in Indiana, just because they saw something in me, and I’m just ready to get there and get to work,” said Boston, whose parents accompanied to the draft while other family members held a watch party in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
“[Fever General Manager Lin Dunn] was very welcoming, and I got to talk to the entire staff, and it just almost made me feel at home even before this was a reality,” said Boston, who will be reunited with her South Carolina teammate, Destanni Henderson, who joined the Fever last year. “Honestly, super excited to be with Henni again. It was really great playing with her in South Carolina. To already have that type of connection, I think it really is just going to help us.”
Boston said her South Carolina coach, Dawn Staley, a former WNBA player and USA Olympic coach, has helped prepare her for this move to the pros. “Over the past four years she has been able to help guide my steps into what it is to be a pro, guide my habits, and for her to be in the crowd [at the Draft] with the rest of our South Carolina crew is just amazing,” said Boston.
A name on many people’s lips on draft night was the top pick 10 years ago, Brittney Griner, who missed the 2022 WNBA season while detained in Russia. “Nothing more important than having Brittney Griner back here, home safely with her family and preparing to come back on the court to the game that we all know that she loves,” said Engelbert.
The WNBA will play its first international game this season, a preseason competition in Toronto, Canada, on May 13. There will be an increase in charter flights, most notably during the playoffs. A major focus of the player-led Social Justice Council will be maternal and women’s health.
