'Hong Yu-soon → Lee Ga-hyun → ?' Who will Shinhan Bank pick next? It holds another top-tier rookie... First overall pick in the draft for three consecutive years

*This content was translated by AI.

Women's professional basketball team Incheon Shinhan Bank has once again secured the first overall pick in the rookie draft.

The Women's Korean Basketball League (WKBL) held the 2026~2027 season rookie player draft order draw ceremony on the 23rd at its headquarters in Gangseo-gu, Seoul.

According to the draw results, Busan BNK drew first place and Shinhan Bank drew second place. However, the actual selection order was reversed following a trade conducted by both teams last June.

At that time, Shinhan Bank sent key forward Choi Yi-sam to BNK in exchange for promising guard Sim Soo-hyun and the first-round priority draft pick in this year's rookie draft.

Regardless of which team among Shinhan Bank (which finished sixth last season) and BNK (which finished fifth) drew first place, Shinhan Bank would exercise its priority selection right. As a result, Shinhan Bank secured the overall first pick, while BNK obtained the second pick.

With this, Shinhan Bank has secured the first overall pick in the rookie draft for three consecutive years. It also gained the opportunity to hold three top-tier prospects who will be responsible for the future of women's basketball in Korea simultaneously.

Shinhan Bank selected Hong Yu-soon and Lee Ga-hyun as the first overall picks in the 2024 and 2025 rookie drafts, respectively. This year's draft also enables it to acquire another elite prospect.

This year's draft will feature many highly rated players, including Im Yeon-seo (Gwangju Su-pia Girls' High School), who is being called the "second Kim Dan-bi." For Shinhan Bank, this places them in a favorable position to simultaneously strengthen their immediate roster and plan for long-term generational transition.

Third place was assigned to Asan Woori Bank, and fourth place to Bucheon Hana Bank.

The selection order for fifth and sixth places also differed from the draw results due to trades. In the draw, Yongin Samsung Life Insurance drew fifth place and Cheongju KB Stars drew sixth place.

However, Samsung Life Insurance and KB exchanged promising players Sung Su-yeon and Lee Da-yeon in May, along with the first-round priority draft pick for the 2026~2027 season. As a result, KB will select players at fifth place, while Samsung Life Insurance will select at sixth place.

The deadline for club-to-club draft pick trades related to the selection order draw is set for August 18 at 5 p.m.

Applications for draft participation will be accepted until 4 p.m. on the 28th. The rookie player draft, which includes tryouts and player selection, will be held on August 19 at Cheongju Gymnasium.

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*This content was translated by AI.