USC Women's Basketball: Trojans Assistant Believes Players Should Have Option to Enter WNBA Early

Matt Levine | Apr 18, 2024

The NBA is famous for its one-and-done players. It's been one of the more highly talked about parts of the college basketball system over the years. However, the WNBA doesn't allow for the same.

For players to be eligible to be drafted, domestic players have to turn at least 22 years old during the calendar year of the event or have graduated from a four-year university before or within three months after the draft. With this rule, the league has been missing out on many talented players being forced to wait to enter the league.

USC Trojans assistant coach Chris Koclanes believes that the WNBA should change the rules to allow players to enter early. They could even do the one-and-done rule, similar to the NBA.

“If these players are ready and they don’t want to be in school and they want to go pursue [the WNBA], I don’t see why you should hold them back,” said USC assistant coach Chris Koclanes, who spent the previous eight years working for the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun and the Sparks. “Give them the option.”

Players like JuJu Watkins from USC have shown that they can thrive playing against their competition. But they are stuck being at the college level for multiple years past when they could be entering the professional leagues.

However, with the new wave of talent in women's college basketball, we could see a shift. Watkins is one of the new players that could help change the rules for everyone. The WNBA would be wise to consider and ultimately pass this rule change, if anything to continue growing the league through their biggest product, the players.