Lynx facing embarrassment of riches as draft day looms

The Lynx enter Monday's WNBA draft with four picks.

Even if they exercise all four — No. 8 overall in the first round, No. 13 and 22 in the second and No. 28 in the third — there is no guarantee any of them will be on the team when the season opens.

There are a couple reasons for this.

First, the reality of a roster built with the desire to give veteran center Sylvia Fowles a shot at a title in her final season has affected Cheryl Reeve's offseason decisions: The signing of veteran Angel McCoughtry and bringing back point guard Layshia Clarendon, for example.

"We're in a little bit of a short-term view right now," Reeve, the Lynx coach and general manager, said Friday. "We've taken a lot of our chips and pushed them to the middle. I think whoever we draft will be given an opportunity. If they make the team it has to be someone we think can help us in our goal."

Second, the reality of the salary cap, and the fact the Lynx will have to carry Napheesa Collier's contract for the season. Collier, the team's star forward, is expecting her first child in May. There is hope, but no expectation, she'll be able to contribute late in the season.

The Lynx will be carrying an 11-player roster, with Collier one of those 11. If you take last year's roster, which basically returns, and add Rennia Davis, who lost her rookie season in 2021 due to injury, and that's already too many players.

So what does that mean?

The Lynx could draft a player at eight or 13 with the idea that player wouldn't enter the WNBA right away. For example, an international player like Sika Kone, a native of Mali who most recently played in Spain, might fit that bill, should she be willing to play another year in Europe.

The Lynx could attempt to trade their top two picks to improve their position, either in this year's draft of the next. Reeve said that, as always, there have been trade conversations. With the expected roster crunch the possibility of trading a current player or players exists as well.

As far as trading draft picks, there is a Sunday afternoon deadline for completing a trade before the draft. If a potential deal isn't done by then, it would have to be executed after the picks are made Monday.

Or the Lynx could simply make the picks, give those players an opportunity in what promises to be a very competitive training camp, and see how that competition affects the final roster decisions.

Reeve described the 2022 draft class as a good one. Top-heavy as always, filled with more players that have a chance to be "serviceable" WNBA players than generational talent. She said the Lynx aren't going into the draft with a glaring need — she feels good about her depth, both in the post and at guard/wing — but that the top two picks would likely be balanced position-wise.

Among the players that might still be available at No. 8 include North Carolina State center Elissa Cunane, Tennessee guard/forward Rae Burrell, Kone, Louisville forward Emily Engstler and South Carolina guard Destanni Henderson, who had a career game in the NCAA women's championship game.

No matter what decision, or decisions, the Lynx make, more loom. "We're probably going to be having discussions about our salary cap up until the roster deadline," Reeve said.

Note: Reeve said forward Damiris Dantas — who sustained a Lisfranc injury to her right foot late last season — is still not 100 percent and might not be ready for the start of camp.