Press Release

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– Houston, Los Angeles, Portland, Seattle, Toronto and Washington 
to Take Part in WNBA Draft Lottery 2027 –
NEW YORK, Oct. 28, 2026 – The WNBA Draft Lottery 2027 presented by State Street Investment Management SPY will be broadcast in the U.S. on Sunday, Nov. 15, on ESPN, from 7:30-8:00 p.m. ET, following the broadcast of the UConn vs. Louisville women’s basketball game, the WNBA announced today.  TSN will distribute coverage of the event in Canada.
ESPN will air the 30-minute, WNBA Draft Lottery Special, which will feature WNBA Head of League Operations Bethany Donaphin revealing the results of the Lottery.  This marks the 15th consecutive year that ESPN networks will present the WNBA Draft Lottery.
Houston, Los Angeles, Portland, Seattle, Toronto and Washington will take part in the 26th annual WNBA Draft Lottery. Phoenix previously traded its first-round pick to Los Angeles; Chicago traded its first-round selection to Washington. The 2027 WNBA Draft presented by State Street Investment Management SPY is scheduled to take place on Monday, April 12, 2027.
Lottery odds for five of the seven teams that did not make the playoffs in the 2026 season – Chicago, Houston (previously Connecticut Sun), Los Angeles, Phoenix and Seattle – are based on their two-year (2025 and 2026) cumulative records. Odds for the remaining two Lottery participants – Portland and Toronto, expansion teams in 2026 – will be based on their record from this past season.
Houston’s 2025 and 2026 cumulative winning percentage and Toronto’s 2026 winning percentage were identical (.250) and, accordingly, each will receive 329 combinations, the most of any of the teams.  Houston was 1-2 against Toronto in the 2026 regular season (the first tiebreaker) and, therefore, cannot fall further than the third pick.  Toronto is guaranteed at least the fourth pick.
As the result of a prior trade between Washington and Chicago (26-62), the Mystics possess the Sky’s first-round pick and will have the third-most chances (161) to win the top pick. Seattle (31-57) has the fourth-most chances (93) and Portland (17-27) has the fifth-most (52).  Los Angeles (37-51) has 24 chances by virtue of its own two-year record and an additional 12 chances as the result of a previous trade with Phoenix (43-45).
In the drawing, 14 balls numbered 1-14 will be placed in a lottery machine and mixed.  Four balls will be drawn to determine a four-digit combination.  The team assigned that four-ball combination will receive the No. 1 pick. The four balls will then be placed back into the machine and the process will be repeated to determine the second pick.  Of the five Lottery teams not selected in the drawings, the team with the worst cumulative winning percentage shall select third; the team with the next worst records will, in order, select fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh.
A representative from the league’s independent accounting firm Ernst &amp; Young will be in attendance to oversee the Draft Lottery process.
Below are the number of chances for teams to land the top pick in WNBA Draft Lottery 2027.
<table width="684">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td width="333">Team</td>
<td width="212">Combined 2025-2026 Record (except for Portland and Toronto)</td>
<td width="138">Chances (out of 1,000)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="333">Houston</td>
<td width="212">22-66</td>
<td width="138">329</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="333">Toronto</td>
<td width="212">11-33</td>
<td width="138">329</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="333">Washington from Chicago*</td>
<td width="212">26-62*</td>
<td width="138">161</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="333">Seattle</td>
<td width="212">31-57</td>
<td width="138">93</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="333">Portland</td>
<td width="212">17-27</td>
<td width="138">52</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="333">Los Angeles</td>
<td width="212">37-51</td>
<td width="138">24</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="333">Los Angeles from Phoenix+</td>
<td width="212">43-45+</td>
<td width="138">12</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
* Chicago traded its own 2027 first round pick to Washington in exchange for Ariel Atkins (2/23/25)
+ Phoenix traded its own 2027 first round pick and Monique Akoa Makani to Los Angeles in exchange for Kelsey Plum (8/2/26)
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LatestDraft 2027

WNBA Draft Lottery 2027 to Take Place Sunday, November 15 on ESPN