Thursday night’s WNBA Draft saw UNC guard Stephanie Watts selected with the 10th overall pick in the first round by the Los Angeles Sparks.
Watts finished her UNC career as one of just 24 Tar Heels to ever reach the 1,500 career point milestone. She also ranks second in school history with 275 career three-pointers.
Although she missed two of the past four seasons with injuries, the 5-foot-11 Watts will give the Sparks a versatile player on both ends of the floor.
Over the course of her four years at UNC — which doesn’t include a year spent at USC last season before transferring back to Chapel Hill — Watts averaged 14.8 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.
She joins a Sparks team which went 15-7 last season and was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. They also lost star forward Candace Parker to free agency in the offseason.
Although UNC senior forward Janelle Bailey was a projected second-round draft choice in some mock drafts, she went undrafted on Thursday night.
A four-time All-ACC selection, Bailey led UNC in both scoring and rebounding this past season with averages of 13.6 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. She is one of five Tar Heels to ever score at least 1,700 points and grab more than 1,000 rebounds.
For the full results from the 2021 WNBA Draft, click here.
Photo via UNC Athletics
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