2023 NWSL Draft; defying expectations
NWSL official game ball for 2023, via Getty Images
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (PSF) — The 2023 NWSL draft has wrapped up after four rounds and forty-eight picks. It was a good mixture of expectation and chaos, with some clear “winners”. Angel City started strong drafting eighteen-year-old forward, Alyssa Thompson, as predicted. Chaos began when Commissioner Jessica Berman announced a trade between Gotham FC and the Kansas City Current. In exchange for the second pick in the draft, Gotham received forward Lynn Williams. This trade shocked pretty much everyone. Williams is an NWSL veteran who was sidelined early last season due to a hamstring injury. Kansas City turned around and selected forward Michelle Cooper from Duke. Cooper is top talent that can fill the gap left by losing Williams well.
There were two other major trades during the draft. The Houston Dash traded the eight overall pick, a 2023 international roster spot, a 2024 first round draft pick, and $100,000 in allocation money to the North Carolina Courage in exchange for Diana Ordóñez. Ordóñez is an incredibly talented forward, scoring eleven goals in her rookie season. The other major trade was the Washington Spirit trading defender Emily Sonnett for OL Reign’s natural first round pick in 2024. When the trade was first announced, Washington Spirit was giving up a “plater to be named later.” Fans quickly suspected that Sonnett was the player and wondered if she had been notified prior to the trade being announced.
Michelle Cooper posing after getting drafted, via KC Current Photo
In terms of new talent, things proceeded about as expected, with Emily Madril (Orlando), Jenna Nighswonger (Gotham), and Reyna Reyes (Portland). The biggest surprise was Messiah Bright. Bright, a forward from Texas Christian University, was expected to be drafted in the top ten. Orlando drafted her twenty-first overall. Orlando got incredibly lucky having Bright still be available that late. This draft class was dominated by forwards and midfielders, as it often is. Thirty-five of the forty-eight drafted were forwards and/or midfielders. Six goalkeepers and seven defenders were drafted. Six midfielders were also designated as defenders.
Some teams clearly had a more successful draft than others. Kansas City, Chicago, and Orlando had the most successful drafts. Those teams managed to draft solid talent to fill the gaps their teams needed. Kansas City is shaping up to have a dominant team this season. Chicago lost a lot of talent this off season, and their draft class fills a lot of those gaps. They drafted attacking support for Mallory Swanson and some wonderful midfield talent. Over the last few years, Orlando has lost a lot of top talent. However, they’ve been drafting well, and this year is no different.
Angel City FC and the San Diego Wave did not draft super well this year. Angel City only had two draft picks, and they used it on a forward and goalkeeper. Angel City has a top-notch goalie in Didi Haracic, with Brittany Isenhour. It’s not a terrible idea to draft a third string, and Angelina Anderson has major potential, but they missed an opportunity to draft some strong midfield talent. San Diego also missed an opportunity to sign some more attacking talent. They rallied behind Alex Morgan in 2022, but she’s likely going to be gone for the World Cup, and San Diego does not have a ton of depth at that position.
Overall, the 2023 draft was a success. Every team found some talent they can grow with. History was made with the first set of twins being drafted! Penelope and liana Hocking went to Chicago and Gotham, respectfully. Florida State, Duke, and Alabama produced the most draftees, with three each. It’s going to be quite exciting to see how these rookies show up throughout the regular season.
A full list of draftees can be found below!
