39 Players Apply for WKBL 2026-2027 Rookie Draft

A record-tying 39 players have applied for the Women's Korean Basketball League (WKBL) 2026-2027 rookie draft.

The WKBL announced that the application deadline closed with a total of 39 candidates, comprising 26 high school seniors, 4 college seniors, 4 semipro players, 1 overseas-based player, and 4 foreign-nationality compatriots.

This marks the second-highest number of applicants since the single-league system was introduced in the 2007-2008 season.

The all-time record of 40 applicants was set last year.

The number of foreign-nationality compatriots reached 4, surpassing the previous high of 3 set in the 2022-2023 season.

Among the high school prospects, Lim Yeon-seo (Supia Girls' High School), who swept five titles at the 63rd Spring National Middle and High School Basketball Federation Tournament; Lee So-hee (Sookmyung Girls' High School), who won the MVP award at the 2026 Federation President's Flag National Tournament; and Cho Hee-won (Sunil Girls' High School), who claimed the scoring and excellence awards at the same tournament, have thrown their hats into the ring for the professional stage.

From the college ranks, Kim Sung-eun (Dankook University), the MVP of the 42nd National Collegiate Tournament, and Go Eun-chae (Pusan National University), who received the excellence and scoring awards at the same event, have been included in the draft list.

Kaneda Mana and Kim Li-hye, who competed for WILL in the 2026 3x3 Triple Jam held last July, are participating in the draft as a foreign-nationality compatriot and an overseas-based player, respectively.

Kaneda has played for the Toyota Antelopes and Challes de Chanson V-Magic in Japan's W League, while Kim Li-hye has played for the Aisin Wings in the Japanese W League.

The 2026-2027 rookie draft will take place on the 19th of this month at Cheongju Gymnasium in North Chungcheong Province.

(Photo: Provided by WKBL, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.