TCU Makes WNBA Draft History as Miles Leads the Way, Suarez Follows Close Behind

Olivia Miles made TCU women’s basketball history when she was taken No. 2 in the 2026 WNBA draft by the Minnesota Lynx on Monday night in New York City.

The New Jersey native became the highest drafted player in program history and the first chosen in the top five since Sandora Irvin 21 years ago. Miles, a 5-10 guard, is the second player to be drafted in the top two across all TCU sports after Charles "Ki" Aldrich of football went No. 1 in the 1939 NFL draft.

TCU teammate forward Marta Suarez also heard her name called as the Seattle Storm selected her with the first pick of the second round, selection No. 16 overall.

Right after being selected, the Golden State Valkyries traded for Suarez and the draft rights to LSU’s Flau’Jae Johnson and a future second round pick.

TCU was one of three programs, alongside national champion UCLA and runner-up South Carolina, to produce multiple top-20 draft picks.

Miles and Suarez became the fourth and fifth WNBA picks in TCU history. Last year, guard Hailey Van Lith was drafted No. 11 by the Chicago Sky while the Seattle Storm picked guard Madison Conner with the 29th pick. TCU’s first WNBA draft pick was Irvin in 2005, taken by the Phoenix Mercury at No. 3.

Miles also signed another professional basketball contract with the Unrivaled 3v3 league on Monday. She will begin play during the league’s third season, which begins in early 2027.

Under Miles and Suarez’s leadership, the Horned Frogs reached the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season. TCU had never advanced past the Round of 32 prior to last season. TCU also won its second straight Big 12 regular season title and became one of six programs to win at least 30 games during both the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons.

Miles and Suarez will begin training camp with their respective teams on Sunday, April 19. The WNBA starts preseason games on April 25 and the regular season tips off on May 8.

The WNBA and its players recently reached a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) deal that runs through 2032 which will, among other things, increase minimum salaries to $270,000, increase the salary cap from $1.5 million in 2025 to $7 million by 2026 and give maximum-contract players the opportunity to earn $1.4 million this season and up to $2.4 million by 2032.

Miles Shined at TCU

During her lone season as a Horned Frog, Miles rewrote the record books. She set the TCU record for assists (252) and points (744) in a season, marks previously held by Van Lith, while posting a career-high in minutes per game (35.4), points per game (19.6) and free throw percentage (83.9%). Miles shot 48% from the field and averaged 6.6 assists, 7.2 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game.

Miles also recorded six triple-doubles this season, doubling the program’s previous number. Before this season, a TCU women’s basketball player had not recorded a triple-double since Helena Sverrisdottir did so in 2011.

Of those six triple-doubles, Miles posted four of them during a five-game stretch from Dec. 6 through Dec. 31. The fifth one came in a win over Iowa State on Feb. 22, and the final one occurred against UC San Diego during the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Miles joined Stanford’s Nicole Powell and Oregon’s Sabrina Ionescu as the only players in NCAA history to record multiple triple-doubles in the NCAA Tournament. Prior to the UC San Diego game, Miles had a triple-double during the 2022 tournament while playing at Notre Dame.

Miles finished with 12 career triple-doubles, a mark that ranks third all-time behind Caitlin Clark and Ionescu.

These performances earned Miles recognition on the national stage as she 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 was named a first-team All-American by The Athletic. Within the Big 12 Conference, Miles earned Big 12 Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year awards and was a unanimous first-team all-conference selection. Miles became the second Horned Frog in as many seasons to sweep the player and newcomer of the year awards. Van Lith completed the same feat in 2025.

Prior to her time in Fort Worth, Miles had a standout, four-and-a-half year career at Notre Dame. She helped the Irish reach the Sweet Sixteen three times, earned multiple All-ACC honors, and was named an AP All-American. She missed the 2023-24 season with a knee injury.

Miles became the only player in NCAA history to record at least 2,100 career points, 875 assists, 850 rebounds and 225 steals and leads all Division I players in career 15-point, 5-assist games (55) and career assist per game average (6.5).

Suarez Etched Her Name into TCU History

Suarez came to TCU after spending two seasons at California and two at Tennessee. She was a top-rated forward in the transfer portal and became a unanimous First-Team All-Big 12 selection during the 2025-26 season.

TCU womens basketball — Mar 28, 2026; Sacramento, CA, USA; Texas Christian University Horned Frogs forward Marta Suarez (7) reacts to a call during the fourth quarter of the game against the Virginia Cavaliers in the Sweet Sixteen game of the Sacramento Regional 4 of the women's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images | Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images

Like Miles, Suarez had a career year in Fort Worth, averaging career highs in points (17.1), rebounds (7.4) and steals (1.4) while shooting 45% from the field, including 37% from 3-point range, and 89% from the free throw line. Suarez leaves TCU ranked fourth all-time on the single-season scoring list (648) behind Miles, Van Lith and Irvin.

During TCU’s Sweet 16 matchup against Virginia, Suarez dropped a career-high 33 points while breaking TCU’s NCAA Tournament single-game records for points scored and field goals made (12).

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