The 2027 WNBA Draft lottery has put a number of franchises in place to compete for the chance to pick out USC star JuJu Watkins. The drawing will decide the primary two choices and will form the way forward for groups rebuilding after troublesome seasons.
Watkins missed your entire 2025-26 school season after tearing her ACL in March 2025. She is predicted to return to USC for the present marketing campaign, giving scouts one other alternative to evaluate her earlier than the subsequent draft. Nevertheless, her skilled future stays unsure as a result of she has the choice to make use of one other 12 months of school eligibility.
The lottery will characteristic six franchises however seven choices, with two groups getting into via beforehand traded first-round picks. Houston and Toronto maintain the strongest probabilities of touchdown the highest choice, placing them on the centre of the dialog surrounding Watkins.
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Houston Comets and Toronto Tempo lead WNBA lottery odds for JuJu Watkins
The Houston Comets and Toronto Tempo every have a 32.9% probability of securing the No. 1 total choose within the 2027 WNBA Draft. Each franchises obtained 329 combos out of 1,000 after ending with equivalent .250 profitable percentages underneath the league’s lottery method.
Houston’s odds come from its mixed 22-66 document throughout the 2025 and 2026 seasons, when the franchise competed because the Connecticut Solar earlier than relocating. Toronto’s possibilities mirror its 11-33 document throughout its inaugural 2026 marketing campaign.
The Comets maintain a bonus within the tiebreaker as a result of they completed 1-2 towards Toronto throughout the 2026 common season. Consequently, Houston can’t fall under the third choice, whereas Toronto is assured not less than the fourth choose.
The Washington Mystics have the third-best odds at 16.1% via Chicago’s traded first-round choice. Seattle follows with 9.3%, whereas the Portland Fireplace have a 5.2% probability of profitable the highest choose.
Los Angeles Sparks maintain two WNBA lottery choices
The Los Angeles Sparks enter the lottery with two choices via their very own choose and the first-round choose acquired from Phoenix within the Kelsey Plum commerce. Their unique choice carries a 2.4% probability of turning into No. 1, whereas the Mercury’s choose provides one other 1.2%.
The lottery will happen on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET, with ESPN broadcasting the occasion. The drawing will decide the primary two picks, whereas the remaining 5 choices will observe the relevant data.
Whereas Watkins is projected to be the No. 1 total choose in subsequent 12 months’s draft, she nonetheless has a choice to make. Her medical redshirt provides her the choice to return to USC for the 2027-28 season.
Houston or Toronto may win the lottery, however Watkins nonetheless has to resolve whether or not she is able to flip professional.
