WKBL Rookie Draft will be held on the 20th with 40 applications, the largest number ever

Aug 06, 2025

WKBL Rookie Draft will be held on the 20th with 40 applications, the largest number ever



WKBL Rookie Draft will be held on the 20th with 40 applications, the largest number ever


The largest number of people will participate in the WKBL (Korean Women's Basketball Federation) rookie draft since the implementation of the single league in 2007.

WKBL announced on the 6th that a total of 40 people applied, including 26 high school graduates, 10 college graduates, one from an unemployment team, one from an overseas activity, and two foreign Koreans, as a result of closing applications for the 2025-2026 rookie draft at Bucheon Indoor Gymnasium on the 20th. The previous largest number was 34 at the 2008 WKBL New Player Selection held in 2007.




Among the high school graduates, many former national team players, including Lee Ga-hyun (Sufia Girls' High School), Choi Ye-won (Samcheonpo Girls' High School), Hong Soo-hyun (Sangju Girls' High School), Hwang Yoon-seo (Sunil Girls' High School), Kim Yeon-jin (Sookmyung Girls' High School), and Lee Won-jung (Onyang Girls' High School), who led Korea to ninth place in the world at the 2025 FIBA U19 Women's Basketball World Cup, were included. Hwang Hyun-jung (Onyang Girls' High School) and Jung Chae-ah (Bundang Management High School), the younger brother of Woori Bank's Jung Chae-won, who were invited to the 2025 NBA basketball global camp without borders, were also listed.

Among the college graduates, Lee Soo-ha (Busan University), who won the 41st National University Basketball Competition's Best Award, Hwang Chae-yeon (Busan University), who won the Best Award in the 2024 University Basketball U-League, and Yang Yoo-jung (Gwangju University), who won the Score, are notable.

With Hong Yoo-soon (Shinhan Bank)'s success in the domestic league, Korean Japanese players are also actively knocking on the door of the draft. Kori Mi (four years old from Japan), who is playing on the business stage at Sacheon City Hall, is a member of the business team, and Yang Ae-ri (three years old from Japan) who is attending the Tokyo Medical and Health University will participate as an overseas athlete. In particular, Yang Ae-ri played as a Will team in the WKBL 3X3 Triple Jam held in June. Two foreign Korean players, Choi Jasmine (Carlton College) and Oneiana (Siena Heights University), applied. Among them, Choi Jasmine will try again for the draft three years after applying for the draft in the 2022-2023 season.




The draft lottery method will be divided into two groups according to the regular league ranking and postseason performance in the 2024-2025 season, and the probability lottery for each group will be held. The first group, which can be named the first and second overall, was classified as Shinhan Bank and Hana Bank, which are 5th to 6th in the regular league last season. However, according to the trade between Hana Bank and BNK Sum held in September 2023, Shinhan Bank and BNK have a 50% chance of selecting the first overall pick in this draft.

The remaining four teams classified into the second group will be given differential probabilities of KB Stars 50%, Samsung Life Insurance 35%, Woori Bank 10%, and BNK 5%, depending on the regular league ranking, advancement to the championship match and winning. The draft will be held at 10 a.m. and at 3 p.m., and will be broadcast live on YouTube 'Yeon TV', Naver Sports, and WKBL integration applications.





This article was translated by Naver AI translator.