2022 WNBA Draft: Atlanta Dream take Kentucky's Rhyne Howard with first pick

April 11 (UPI) -- The Atlanta Dream selected University of Kentucky guard Rhyne Howard with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft on Monday night in New York.

The 6-foot-2 Howard averaged 20.5 points and 7.4 rebounds during the 2021-22 season for the Wildcats, who won the SEC Tournament before losing to Princeton in the first round of the women's NCAA tourney.

The Washington Mystics won the WNBA draft lottery in December, but the team traded the top pick to the Dream last week. Atlanta moved up from No. 3 to bring Howard -- who became the first Kentucky player to go first in the draft -- to the organization.

"I'm shaking right now," Howard said after she was selected. "It's a dream come true."

Howard was the Southeastern Conference Player of the Year as a sophomore and a junior. She joins a Dream franchise that went 8-24 last season and has missed the playoffs in four of the past five years.

The 21-year-old Howard is the second player that Atlanta has picked at No. 1. The franchise took Louisville's Angel McCoughtry -- who guided the Dream to three WNBA Finals appearances -- in 2009.

Baylor forward NaLyssa Smith, the Big 12 Player of the Year the past two seasons, was the No. 2 overall pick by the Indiana Fever, who have four first-round selections.

Smith averaged 22.1 points and 11.5 rebounds this past season for the Bears. She was part of Baylor's 2019 national championship team as a freshman.

The Mystics then grabbed Ole Miss center Shakira Austin with the third choice. She averaged 15.2 points and nine rebounds for the Rebels last year.

Draftees were able to attend this year's event for the first time since 2019. The draft was conducted remotely in 2020 and 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The upcoming WNBA season is scheduled to tip off May 6, with training camps opening later this week.

Below is the round-by-round results from this year's WNBA Draft:

Round 1:

1. Atlanta Dream: Rhyne Howard, G, Kentucky

2. Indiana Fever: NaLyssa Smith, F, Baylor

3. Washington Mystics: Shakira Austin, C, Ole Miss

4. Indiana Fever: Emily Engstler, F, Louisville

5. New York Liberty: Nyara Sabally, C, Oregon

6. Indiana Fever: Lexie Hull, G, Stanford

7. Dallas Wings: Veronica Burton, G, Northwestern

8. Las Vegas Aces: Mya Hollingshed, F, Colorado

9. Los Angeles Sparks: Rae Burrell, F, Tennessee

10. Indiana Fever: Queen Egbo, C, Baylor

11. Las Vegas Aces: Kierstan Bell, G, Florida Gulf Coast

12. Connecticut Sun: Nia Clouden, G, Michigan State

Round 2:

13. Las Vegas Aces: Khayla Pointer, G, LSU

14. Washington Mystics: Christyn Williams, G, UConn

15. Atlanta Dream: Naz Hillmon, F, Michigan

16. Los Angeles Sparks: Kianna Smith, G, Louisville

17. Seattle Storm: Elissa Cunane, C, N.C. State

18. Seattle Storm: Lorela Cubaj, F, Georgia Tech

19. Los Angeles Sparks: Olivia Nelson-Ododa, F, UConn

20. Indiana Fever: Destanni Henderson, G, South Carolina

21. Seattle Storm: Evina Westbrook, G, UConn

22. Minnesota Lynx: Kayla Jones, F, N.C. State

23. Las Vegas Aces: Aisha Sheppard, G, Virginia Tech

24. Connecticut Sun: Jordan Lewis, G, Baylor

Round 3:

25. Indiana Fever: Ameshya Williams-Holliday, C, Jackson State

26. Phoenix Mercury: Maya Dodson, F, Notre Dame

27. Los Angeles Sparks: Amy Atwell, F, Hawaii

28. Minnesota Lynx: Hannah Sjerven, F, South Dakota

29. New York Liberty: Sika Kone, F, Mali

30. Dallas Wings: Jasmine Dickey, F, Delaware

31. Dallas Wings: Jazz Bond, F, North Florida

32. Phoenix Mercury: Macee Williams, F, IUPUI

33. Seattle Storm: Jade Melbourne, G, Australia

34. Indiana Fever: Ali Patberg, G, Indiana

35. Las Vegas Aces: Faustine Aifuwa, C, LSU

36. Connecticut Sun: Kiara Smith, G, Florida