On April 15, the WNBA kicked off its annual draft virtually, and two players with Michigan ties were looking to earn a roster spot.
Kysre Gondrezick, of Benton Harbor, was selected No. 4 overall and will be headed to the Indiana Fever, while Micaela Kelly, of Detroit, was selected with the ninth pick of the second round by the Connecticut Sun.
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Hailing as the 2016 Michigan Miss Basketball and Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year, Gondrezick is no stranger to the spotlight. She garnered national attention for her 72-point game during an MHSAA playoff matchup.
She started her college career at the University of Michigan under Coach Kim Barnes-Arico and was named to the Big-Ten All-Freshman Team and was All Big-Ten Second Team according to both the coaches and media.
After a stellar year at Michigan, she decided to transfer to West Virginia University, where she became an instant contributor.
In her first year, as a red-shirt sophomore, she averaged 13 points per game and four assists while continuing to grow her contributions for the Mountaineers.
Coming into her redshirt senior season in 2021, Gondrezick averaged 19 points per game and led the team to the second round of the NCAA tournament before declaring for the WNBA Draft.
Touted as the most underrated player in the draft, according to WNBA Star Skylar Diggins-Smith, the 5-foot-9 guard is a great pick up for the Fever, a team that struggled this past season.
Kelly was a star for Martin Luther King High School. She played under the leadership of the late great William Winfield and while there, she led her team to four Detroit Public School League championships.
Kelly also took her MLK squad to the MHSAA Class A Final Four twice in her career and after graduation, committed to play at Depaul University. She ended up transferring to Central Michigan after her first year.
In her first year as a Chippewa, Kelly was selected to the MAC All-Freshman Team, included on the MAC All-Tournament Team and named team most improved player.
She continued to blaze her own trail by improving her scoring ability each year, going to 11 points per game in her first year to 21 points per game in her last season as a Chippewa.
Kelly led her Central Michigan squad to a 2021 MAC championship and earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament. CMU ultimately lost to Iowa in the first round.
After the tournament, the CMU guard declared for the WNBA draft and was ranked No. 2 in terms of points per game, according to stats collected by Flagrant Too.
The 5-foot-6 guard is in good hands with the Connecticut Sun and will be able to learn from veteran guard Briann January.
You can catch these two in action in the upcoming 25th WNBA season, which starts May 14.