LOCALIZE IT: WNBA draft features first-round candidates with ties to at least 16 states

EDITORS/NEWS DIRECTORS:

The three-round WNBA draft starts next week.

UConn guard Azzi Fudd is a popular choice to be the No. 1 overall pick, though 6-foot-4 center Awa Fam from Spain could wind up as the Dallas Wings’ selection to work with Paige Bueckers. This is the second straight year Dallas has had the No. 1 overall pick.

This draft features the addition of the WNBA’s newest franchises in the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire. Toronto will select sixth overall after taking that option over the top choice in the April 3 expansion draft. That’s why Portland picked first in the expansion draft and holds the seventh pick in this WNBA draft.

The Washington Mystics hold three first-round picks at Nos. 4, 9 and 11. Seattle (Nos. 3 and 14) and the Sun in their final season in Connecticut pick at Nos. 12 and 15.

The draft begins Monday, April 13, at 7 p.m. ET at The Shed at Hudson Yards in New York City on ESPN. The orange carpet special starts at 5:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2 with WNBA Countdown at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN with all attention on the WNBA and its players following agreement on a landmark seven-year labor deal.

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FIND YOUR STATE: THE 22 PLAYERS MOST LIKELY TO BE DRAFTED IN THE FIRST ROUND

Players are listed by their hometown state and location of their latest college team. Previous teams are also listed as well as nationality for international prospects.

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COLORADO

Lauren Betts, hometown is Centennial, Colo.; center at UCLA and previously Stanford

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CONNECTICUT

Azzi Fudd, hometown is Arlington, Virginia; guard at UConn

Serah Williams, hometown is Brooklyn, N.Y.; forward at UConn

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CALIFORNIA

Lauren Betts, hometown is Centennial, Colo.; center at UCLA and previously Stanford

Kiki Rice, hometown is Bethesda, Md.; guard at UCLA

Gabriela Jaquez, hometown is Camarillo; guard at UCLA

Gianna Kneepkens, hometown is Duluth, Minn.; guard at UCLA and previously Utah

— — —

FLORIDA

Ta’Niya Latson, hometown is Miami, Fla.; guard at South Carolina and previously Florida State

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GEORGIA

Flau’jae Johnson, hometown is Savannah, Ga.; guard at LSU

Raven Johnson, hometown is Atlanta; guard at South Carolina

Janiah Barker, hometown is Marietta, Ga.; forward at Tennessee and previously Texas A&M and UCLA

— — —

LOUISIANA

Flau’jae Johnson, hometown is Savannah, Ga.; guard at LSU

— — —

MARYLAND

Yarden Garzon, hometown is Ra’anana, Israel; guard at Maryland and previously Indiana

Kiki Rice, hometown is Bethesda, Md.; guard at UCLA

— — —

MISSISSIPPI

Cotie McMahon, hometown is Dayton, Ohio; forward at Mississippi and previously Ohio State

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MINNESOTA

Gianna Kneepkens, hometown is Duluth, Minn.; guard at UCLA and previously Utah

— — —

NEW YORK

Serah Williams, hometown is Brooklyn, N.Y.; forward at UConn

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NORTH CAROLINA

Ashlon Jackson, hometown is China, Texas; guard at Duke

— — —

OHIO

Cotie McMahon, hometown is Dayton, Ohio; forward at Mississippi and previously Ohio State

— — —

SOUTH CAROLINA

Raven Johnson, hometown is Atlanta; guard at South Carolina

Ta’Niya Latson, hometown is Miami, Fla.; guard at South Carolina and previously Florida State

Madina Okot, hometown is Mumias, Kenya; center at South Carolina and previously Mississippi State

— — —

TENNESSEE

Janiah Barker, hometown is Marietta, Ga.; forward at Tennessee and previously Texas A&M and UCLA

— — —

TEXAS

Ashlon Jackson, hometown is China, Texas; guard at Duke

Olivia Miles, hometown is Phillipsburg, N.J.; guard at TCU and previously Notre Dame

Marta Suarez, hometown is Oviedo, Spain; forward at TCU and previously California and Tennessee

— — —

VIRGINIA

Azzi Fudd, hometown is Arlington, Virginia; guard at UConn

— — —

INTERNATIONAL

Awa Fam, from Spain; center Valencia Basket Club

Nell Angloma, from France; forward BLMA

Iyana Martin, from Spain; point guard Perfumerias Avenida

READ ADDITIONAL AP COVERAGE

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WNBA sets April 3 expansion draft for Portland and Toronto

WNBA owners ratify 7-year collective bargaining agreement

Inside the WNBA’s 8-day, 100-hour CBA marathon negotiations that forged a transformational deal

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley pleased the WNBA and players’ union reached an agreement

Localize It is a reporting resource produced by The Associated Press for its customers’ use. Questions can be directed to the Local News Success team at localizeit@ap.org.

UConn guard Azzi Fudd (35) drives against South Carolina guard Tessa Johnson (5) during the second half of a woman's NCAA college basketball tournament semifinal game at the Final Four, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV said Tuesday that U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to destroy Iranian civilization was “truly unacceptable” and said any attacks on civilian infrastructure violate international law.

In some of his strongest comments yet against the war, the American pope urged Americans and other people of good will to contact their political leaders and congressional representatives to demand they reject war and work for peace.

“Today as we all know there was this threat against all the people of Iran. This is truly unacceptable,” Leo said as he left his country house in Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome.

He was referring to Trump’s threat that a “whole civilization will die tonight” if Iran fails to meet his latest deadline to strike a deal that includes reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

Leo recalled his Easter appeal for peace and to reject war, "especially a war which many people have said is an unjust war, which is continuing to escalate, and which is not resolving anything.”

He invited all people of good will to contact their political leaders and congressional representatives to remind them that attacks on civilian infrastructure are “against international law" and also are a "sign of the hatred, the division, the destruction human beings are capable of, and we all want to work for peace.”

In recent weeks, history’s first U.S.-born pope has escalated the tone of his opposition to the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran after initially issuing muted appeals for peace and dialogue.

Last week for the first time, Leo publicly named Trump in saying he hoped the U.S. president was truly “looking for an off-ramp.”

The Vatican has a tradition of diplomatic neutrality and it is rare for a pope to name a political leader or country specifically in a critical way. But the war in Iran has nudged even a reserved pope to break with typical protocol.

On Tuesday, Leo didn’t cite Trump by name but in comments in English he urged people to contact their political leaders and congressional representatives “to ask them, tell them to work for peace and to reject war.”

“We have a worldwide economic crisis, an energy crisis, (a) situation in the Middle East of great instability, which is only provoking more hatred throughout the world,” he said.

He said the message to political leaders should be: “Come back to the table, let’s talk, let's look for solutions in a peaceful way and let’s remember especially the innocent children, the elderly, sick, so many people who have already become or will become victims of this continued warfare.”

The Vatican is particularly concerned about how the Iran conflict has spread to a renewed war in Lebanon between Israel and the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant Hezbollah group. The Vatican fears for Christians in southern Lebanon, who are an important bulwark for the church in the region.

Earlier in the day, the Vatican released a special message from Leo to the residents of Debel, Lebanon after a convoy carrying over 40 tons of aid led by the Vatican was prevented from arriving with an Easter shipment. It was canceled for what Lebanon’s Maronite Church said were “security reasons.”

In the message, Leo expressed solidarity with the “injustices” that the Christians of southern Lebanon are enduring and compared them to Christ’s suffering.

“In your misfortune, in the injustice you endure, in the feeling of abandonment you experience, you are very close to Jesus. You are close to Him also on this Easter Day when He conquered the forces of evil, and which resonates for you as a promise of the future,” read the message, which was written in French and was signed by the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

Leo visited Lebanon late last year on his first international trip as pope.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Pope Leo XIV delivers his blessing as he recites the Regina Coeli noon prayer from the window of his studio overlooking St.Peter's Square, at the Vatican, Monday, April 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)