TCU Women's Basketball Makes History With Three Picks in 2026 WNBA Draft

In true Midnite Madness fashion, TCU's historic WNBA Draft night came with storylines, surprises, and just enough perspective to remind everyone how far the program has come.

TCU's Mark Campbell is making History in the WNBA Draft | Brian McLean - On Assignment Photo/KillerFrogs.com for TCU On SI

Okay, I admit it. I watched on TV the 2026 WNBA Draft, which was held at The Shed at Hudson Yards, in New York City, on Monday, April 13.

But I only watched the draft because there were no bowling, dart or curling matches on TV, and also because leftovers were on Monday’s dinner menu. Leftovers always taste better when you’re eating them while watching TV. 

What? You don’t believe me? Look it up. It’s a scientific fact.

TCU Makes History With Three Picks in the 2026 WNBA Draft

Plus, there was some intrigue to the draft, not only for UConn fans, but also TCU fans. Olivia Miles, who evolved from a Leprechaun into a Horned Frog for a solitary season in 2026, was projected as the possible first selection of the draft. And a couple of other Horned Frogs were mentioned as possible draftees. 

UConn’s Azzi Fudd became the first selection of the draft, much to the delight of Huskies’ fans, but the disappointment of TCU fans. Fudd was chosen by the Dallas Wings, where she will join former UConn teammate Paige Bueckers. The Wings selected Bueckers with the first pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft. 

Olivia Miles Headlines the Night With Historic Selection

Miles’ and TCU fans’ disappointment was fleeting, if at all. Miles, who was a graduate guard for the Horned Frogs during her lone season with TCU, was selected second overall in draft by the Minnesota Lynx, which are based in and play their home games in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

In the 2026 WNBA Draft, the Minnesota Lynx, select TCU's Olivia Miles with the No. 2 overall pick | Credit TCU Athletics | Women's Basketball _ X_post from 2026 WNBA Draft

Two other Frogs, Marta Suarez and Taylor Bigby, were selected in the second and third rounds of the draft, respectively. 

The trio of Miles, Suarez and Bigby are the most players TCU has had chosen in a WNBA Draft. 

TCU joined UCLA, South Carolina and Kentucky as one of four programs to produce three-or-more picks in this year’s draft.

TCU now has had six women’s basketball players selected in a WNBA Draft, with five of those selections coming in the past two drafts.

In the 2025 WNBA Draft, TCU guard Hailey Van Lith was the 11th overall pick, in the first round, by the Chicago Sky, and TCU guard Madsion Conner was drafted 28th overall, in the third round, by the Seattle Storm. Van Lith and Conner helped TCU reach the 2025 NCAA Elite 8, which was a first in TCU women's basketball history.

Jul 22, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Chicago Sky guard Hailey Van Lith (2) dribbles against the Minnesota Lynx in the second quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-Imagn Images | Brad Rempel-Imagn Images

Sandora Irvin became the first TCU women’s basketball player to be drafted when she was selected third overall by the Phoenix Mercury in the 2005 WNBA Draft.

Miles, Suarez and Bigby were instrumental in TCU reaching the NCAA Elite Eight for the second straight year.

Miles, who played three previous seasons with Notre Dame, is the Horned Frogs' highest WNBA Draft pick in TCU women’s basketball history. She joins Irvin and Van Lith as the three first-rounders the program has produced. 

Miles, who also has signed a professional basketball contract with the Unrivaled 3v3 League, averaged for the 2025-26 season a career-high 19.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 66 assists and 1.8 steals per game. She also shot a career-best 48 percent from the field. As such, the scrappy, fiery Miles became the first player in NCAA history to average in a single season at least 19 points, seven rebounds, six assists and 1.5 steals per game, while shooting at least 45 percent from the field. 

Olivia Miles celebrates during the Horned Frogs' match-up against Washington in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Schollmaier Arena | Photo courtesy of TCU Women's Basketball / X

Miles set the TCU women's basketball single-season records for points (744), field goals made (268), assists (252) and assists per game average (6.6). 

Miles also recorded six triple-doubles this past season. Previously, a TCU women’s basketball player had not recorded a triple-double since Helena Sverrisdottir did so in 2011. Miles finished with 12 career triple-doubles, a mark that ranks third all-time behind former Iowa standout Caitlin Clark and former Oregon star Sabrina Ionescu. 

Miles won the 2026 Big 12 Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year awards. She and Van Lith are the only two players in league history to win both awards in the same season. 

Miles was named a finalist for the Nancy Lieberman Point Guard of the Year award, made the 2026 Women’s National Ballot for the John R. Wooden Award, and earned All-American recognition. 

The TCU duo has entered the chat 😎#NCAAWBB x @tcuwbb pic.twitter.com/CzfxplMK8Q

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) April 13, 2026

Marta Suarez, Taylor Bigby Deliver Depth to TCU's Draft Class

Suarez, who was a graduate forward in her only season with the Frogs, was selected 16th overall by the Seattle Storm, with the first pick in the second round. Seattle then traded its draft rights to Suarez and its 2028 second-round pick to Golden State for Flau'jae Johnson, whom Golden State had selected eighth overall in this draft. 

Suarez, who is Spanish, played two seasons at the University of Tennessee and two seasons at the University of California, prior to joining the Horned Frogs for the 2025-26 season. Suarez was the third Spaniard to be selected in this year’s draft.

For this past season at TCU, Suarez averaged a career-high 17.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. She shot 45 percent from the field, a career-best 37 percent from three-point territory and 89 percent from the free-throw line. 

In the 2026 WNBA Draft, the Golden State Valkyries select TCU's Marta Suarez | Credit to TCU Athletics | Women's Basketball_X_ @ 2026 WNBA Draft

During TCU’s Sweet 16 win over Virginia, Suarez had a career-high 33 points, and she broke TCU’s NCAA Tournament single-game records for points scored and field goals made (12).

As a Horned Frog, Suarez recorded her first career triple-double, against Arkansas Pine-Bluff, on December 16. That game made NCAA history, as Suarez and Miles became the first pair of teammates to record triple-doubles in the same game versus a Division I opponent. 

Suarez earned first-team All-Big 12 honors and is ranked fourth all-time on TCU’s single-season scoring list (648) behind Miles, Van Lith and Irvin. 

The Golden State Valkyries play their home games in San Francisco. The team's front office and practice facility are located in Oakland.  

The journey begins in the northeast#GoFrogs | @taylor_bigby pic.twitter.com/XmPIXxm0KH

— TCU Women’s Basketball (@tcuwbb) April 14, 2026

Bigby, a senior forward who played two seasons with the Horned Frogs, was selected 37th by Portland, which traded her to the Connecticut Sun for UConn's Serah Williams, whom the Sun had selected four slots earlier at 33rd.  

Bigby played her final two collegiate seasons for the Horned Frogs. Previously, she played at Oregon and USC. 

During this past season, Bigby averaged 8.2 points and 2.3 rebounds per game and shot 44 percent from the field.

Bigby led the Horned Frogs in three-point percentage (.389) among qualified players and connected on at least three 3-point shots in 20 games over the course of her career. 

Taylor Bigby is playing in the U23 Nations League with USA Basketball 2025 3x3 U23 National Team. | Brian McLean/KillerFrogs

Bigby’s two highest-scoring games of the 2025-26 season were TCU’s victories over UC San Diego and Washington in the 2026 NCAA Tournament. She scored a career-high 27 points against UC San Diego and 15 points against Washington.

The Sun is based in Uncasville, Connecticut. The team is the only major league professional sports team based in Connecticut, although there are those who would argue that the University of Connecticut's men's and women's basketball teams essentially are professional teams.

The Mohegan Sun Tribe reportedly has sold the Connecticut Sun, and the team is poised to relocate to Houston, Texas. The Sun will play their sunset season in Connecticut before moving to Houston in 2027, where they will revive the Houston Comets. 

The Comets were a Women's National Basketball Association team based in Houston. Formed in 1997, the team was one of the original eight WNBA teams and won the first four championships of the league's existence. Despite its success, the team was folded and disbanded by the league in 2008 during the height of the Great Recession because new ownership could not be found. 

The TCU-to-WNBA Pipeline Is No Longer a Dream

The 2026 WNBA Draft consisted of the league's 15 teams making three selections each over three rounds, for a total of 45 players drafted.

National Champion UCLA had a record five players drafted in the first round, and a record six players overall drafted.

TCU, UCLA and national runner-up South Carolina were the only schools to have multiple top-20 draft choices in this year’s WNBA Draft.

These programs had themselves a night at the @WNBA draft 📈 #NCAAWBB pic.twitter.com/dDPAG0lWao

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) April 14, 2026

WNBA training camps open on Sunday, April 18. Preseason games begin on April 25. Opening night of the 2026 season is May 8.

Midnite Madness Reality Check: The Money Has Changed

If it seemed as if this year’s draftees beamed even larger smiles than those players who were drafted in prior years, you weren’t dreaming. 

The smiles were bigger and the enthusiasm even more spirited because Miles, Suarez, Bigby, and the 42 other players selected in this year’s draft will be the first to enter the WNBA under the league’s new seven-year Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which will commence with the 2026 season and run through 2032.

The WNBA’s new CBA is touted as one of the most transformational labor agreements ever reached in major professional sports. It will result in significant increases in player compensation, with the league projecting more than $1 billion in player salaries and benefits over the seven-year agreement. 

The league’s top players will gain the ability to sign the first multi-million-dollar contracts in WNBA history. Maximum-contract players will earn a salary of $1.4 million in 2026. That salary is expected to grow to more than $2.4 million by 2032, based on current financial projections. 

The league’s average salary is expected to be $583,000 in 2026 and increase to over $1 million by 2032. 

Minimum salaries will range from $270,000 to $300,000 in 2026 (based on years of service) and will range from $340,000 to $380,000 by 2032.

The agreement also establishes a new rookie contract scale that significantly increases salaries for top draft picks. As this year’s number one selection, Fudd is projected to earn $500,000.

All existing rookie-scale contracts will be adjusted upward, delivering pay increases for players at every stage of their careers. The agreement also creates an expedited pathway to maximum-level contracts for players on rookie deals who earn MVP or All-WNBA First- or Second-Team honors. 

Of course, in these days of colleges paying their athletes and athletes earning additional compensation through NIL deals, top draft picks may still have to take a pay cut to become professionals. 

However, all of them should earn more than enough so their dinners won’t consist of leftovers.