TCU star Hailey Van Lith goes to the Sky in first round of WNBA draft

Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram on Apr 14, 2025

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TCU standout Hailey Van Lith was selected with No. 11 pick in the first round of the WNBA draft by the Chicago Sky Monday night in New York City.

It was the perfect ending for Van Lith’s storybook season in Fort Worth, Texas. Van Lith transferred to TCU almost a year ago from LSU after just one season.

The Tigers reached the Elite Eight and Van Lith averaged 11.6 points per game, but it clearly wasn’t a fit and her draft stock took a hit. That was one of the reasons she chose TCU as she had faith in head coach Mark Campbell’s pick-and-roll scheme that would be centered around her as a point guard.

“The reality of my situation last year (at LSU) was below my potential,” Van Lith told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in November. “Just from a draft perspective, I felt like I owed it to myself to give myself the best opportunity to go and get what I’ve worked for. That’s why I chose to give it another year to see if I could have another great year and put myself in a position I was comfortable with.”

Van Lith had arguably the best season of her career as she averaged 17.9 points, a career-high 5.4 assists and 4.6 rebounds. Van Lith was voted Big 12 Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year and led the Horned Frogs to the program’s first Big 12 regular season and conference tournament championships.

Van Lith also broke the single-season record for assists and scoring while leading TCU to the Elite Eight. It was one of the greatest individual seasons at TCU for a male or female basketball player and Van Lith was rewarded by being a first-round pick.

With the Sky she’ll be reunited with Angel Reese, who was Van Lith’s teammate in 2023. Reese was an outspoken supporter of Van Lith throughout her season at TCU and now the WNBA All-Star will look to form a productive pick-and-roll combo with Van Lith in Chicago.

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