Commentary
TMA's Top WNBA Draft Prospects By Commercial Appeal
- by Richard Whitman , Columnist, April 15, 2024
The WNBA draft will be held this evening and can be viewed on ESPN.
With all the heightened interest in women’s basketball this year—the NCAA women’s final drew more viewers than the men’s final for the first time—Dallas-based agency TMA has compiled a list of the top 10 draft picks the agency projects have the most commercial appeal.
Caitlin Clark (Iowa) is expected to be the overall number one pick. She made history this season after breaking the all-time points record in collegiate basketball (surpassing Pete Maravich).
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Clark currently has deals with Gatorade, State Farm, Nike. She also did a nice turn on Saturday Night Live this past weekend, taking Weekend Update anchor Michael Che to task for some of his lame jokes about women’s basketball.
TMA’s list of other high-commercial appeal draft picks includes:
Isobel Borlase (Adelaide Lightning). TMA notes that having dominated the WNBL in Australia, Borlase has the potential to bring a new overseas audience to WNBA telecasts.
Cameron Brink (Stanford). TMA notes that Brink is the god sister of NBA great Steph Curry and has been surrounded by the sport her entire life. And continues to break in other outlets outside of her sport such as fashion and self-care. She has deals with Optimum Nutrition and Estee Lauder.
Kamilla Cardoso (South Carolina): Hailing from Montes Claros, Brazil, the 6’7 forward “took a huge risk leaving her hometown before high school to further pursue her passion in the game of basketball.” She has a deal with restaurant chain Raising Cane’s.
Aaliyah Edwards (UConn): TMA comments, “While a star on the court, off the court Edwards is pretty lowkey and has been vocal about her faith throughout her various social media platforms. She has a deal with Adidas.
Rickea Jackson (Tennessee). The Detroit native has deals with Burt’s Bees, Honey Stinger, Heydude.
Charisma Osborne (UCLA). She is known for her funny content on social media and has deals with Athletic Brewing Co., J Lab Audio.
Alissa Pili (Utah): The Alaskan native is of Samoan and Native Alaskan descent and has a deal with Utah 360 App.
Angel Reese (LSU). TMA reports that Reese has made “just as much of a splash in the sponsorship world as” Clark. She announced her declaration for the draft via a Vogue feature, had 17 NIL deals in 2022-2023 and added Beats, Tampax, Goldman Sachs, Airbnb this year.
Jacy Sheldon (Ohio State). When she’s not on the court she’s involved with special needs causes as her sister has down syndrome. She has deals with McDonalds, Powerade, Crossover Culture and Hanes.
