November 5, 2022
Locked on Women’s Basketball: The best frontcourt players in the WNBA Draft
How do Rickea Jackson, Elizabeth Kitley, Fran Belibi and more stack up behind Aliyah Boston?
Following up on last week’s episode of Locked on Women’s Basketball about the top guards in the 2023 WNBA Draft, our Em Adler, Hunter Cruse and Joshua Welch spend this week’s episode discussing the top frontcourt players.
Continue reading with a subscription to The Next
Get unlimited access to women’s basketball coverage and help support our hardworking staff of writers, editors, and photographers by subscribing today.
Already a member?
Login
First, Em reveals their top 12 overall prospects, starting with South Carolina forward Aliyah Boston. Then the hosts go into more detail about many of those prospects and other top frontcourt players outside the top 12. Here’s what Joshua thinks of Rickea Jackson, a forward who transferred from Mississippi State to Tennessee in the offseason:
“Her athleticism is just what stuck out to me on her film. It doesn’t feel like it’s fully come together … So I’m really excited [to see] her on this Tennessee team, where she’s going to have multiple playmakers and we’re going to really be able to see her full game, like just being able to play a specific role on this Tennessee team, rather than trying to take on more than she needed to with Mississippi State. So yeah, I just think the sky’s the limit for her.”
Here’s Hunter’s take on another Lady Vol, Jordan Horston, whom Hunter calls a “funky forward” because of her unique skillset:
“What I see with her is just the pace-based creation. Super athletic, but sometimes she’s out of control … She just takes some wild shots. Trying to improve in that processing could be huge for her. But with Horston, I kind of see a lot of — I’ve used this comparison before, but Diamond DeShields is someone, another Tennessee prospect, to where they’re heavy shotmakers, but they … don’t have the recognition of defenders and at all times knowing where players are at. So it’s a tough bag, but I think the upside is there to be an interesting first-round prospect.”
Other frontcourt players the hosts discuss include South Carolina’s Laeticia Amihere, Stanford’s Fran Belibi, Virginia Tech’s Elizabeth Kitley, Tennessee’s Tamari Key and 18-year-old Maia Hirsch from France.
To learn even more about the 2023 WNBA Draft, plus get previews of the NCAA season and so much more, don’t forget to subscribe to the Locked on Women’s Basketball podcast!
