WNBA Draft 2025: Teammates give scouting reports on Hailey Van Lith, Sonia Citron, Te-Hina Paopao and more

Yahoo

09-04-2025

Scouting for the WNBA draft can be tough. Because the draft is just over a week after the NCAA tournament ends, and the WNBA season starts soon after, there isn't time for the combines, pro days and All-Star games like there are in some men's sports. While there are a few events during the Final Four weekend, it's nothing like the months-long process that happens in the NFL and NBA.
We always like to be helpful here at Yahoo Sports, so we did some scouting of our own. We went right to the source to learn more about this year's WNBA prospects: their teammates. We spoke with the underclassmen teammates of several athletes who will hear their names called on April 14 to find out what WNBA teams should know about them.
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When talking about her senior teammates at Notre Dame, sophomore guard Hannah Hidalgo wanted to make it clear that Sonia Citron, who's likely to be a top-three pick, and Maddy Westbeld are ready to put in the work. (She included Olivia Miles, but Miles has since transferred to TCU and decided not to enter the draft.)
'They are dogs; they are going to fight, and whatever position you put them in, there's not going to be any complaining or arguing. They are going to go and do what they have to do,' Hidalgo said. 'They are hard-nosed and put in the work and going to get better. The sky is the limit for them. They don't have a cap on their talent level.'
Freshman Kate Koval, who played for Notre Dame but is transferring to LSU for next season, added that Citron isn't a loud player, but her game speaks for itself.
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'I would say that she might seem that she's quiet, but she's really an interesting person, and she will open up and she doesn't need many words to speak for her game. You will see it all on the court,' Koval said.
What stood out for most players we talked to was how their seniors went above and beyond as leaders. En route to the national championship game, sophomore guard Tessa Johnson said that South Carolina's seniors — Te-Hina Paopao, Sania Feagin and Bree Hall — helped her when the ups and downs of the season would get to her.
'They are good for your team. They took us in, and each of them in their own different ways, they helped us out. Whether that was on the court or off the court, like they were willing to open up to us and just help us out, be vulnerable,' Johnson said. 'I'm hard on myself mentally. So when I was kind of, like, not having the greatest games, [Pao-Pao] would text me and just tell me to keep my head up. Or [Hall], she would check on me when she didn't think that I was having the best day, or Feagin was always like looking out.'
Te-Hina Paopao has been a standout player for Oregon and South Carolina in her college career. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Texas freshman Bryanna Preston found that senior Rori Harmon, who starred for the Longhorns as they made it to the Final Four, helped make the transition to college much easier, on and off the court.
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'She's a great person to be around. She's a great leader. For me, especially being a freshman coming in, she took me under her wing and always had my back,' Pressley said. 'She could tell when I'm having a bad day. She just comes to me, talks to me, and be the great person that she is. On the court, very competitive. She's like pushing me to get better, and I love that, because I'm pushing her as well."
TCU made a surprise run to the Elite Eight, powered by seniors Hailey Van Lith and Sedona Prince. Van Lith transferred in before the 2024-25 season, while Prince joined the Horned Frogs for the 2023-24 season. Sophomore Ella Hamlin gave the rundown on both women.
'There's just an endless amount of amazing things I could say about her,' Hamlin said of Van Lith. 'She's a leader, like, just in spirit, like she leads by example. She's so competitive and leads our practices every day. She has fun. She's so fun to be around, and she's funny, but she also is focused, and keeps us all focused on our end goal. She's so down to earth.'
Hamlin said Prince showed her the ropes around TCU, including helping her when she couldn't get into the gym, and made sure she never felt alone.
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'She's so inclusive, and just really wants to make sure everyone's involved all the time,' Hamlin said.
North Carolina freshman Lanie Grant also sang the praises of seniors Alyssa Ustby and Maria Gakdeng, who led the Tar Heels to the Sweet 16. Both are likely second- or third-round picks.
'Starting with Alyssa, you're not going to find a harder worker or somebody that's more dedicated to the game of basketball. She wants to win more than anything, and she doesn't care about individual stats, even though she can stack all the stats to the stat sheet,' Grant said. 'I would say Maria's growth in the past year has been incredible to watch her grow as, like, a pivotal player. Maria works so hard and is a silent killer on the court.'
The WNBA draft is on Monday, April 14 at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.