Utah’s Lani White selected in 3rd round of WNBA draft to Minnesota
Apr 13, 2026, 8:45 PM | Updated: 11:35 pm
Lani White leads Utah women's basketball to win over Colorado. Photo courtesy by Utah Athletics.
NEW YORK CITY — With the last pick of the WNBA draft, former Utah women’s basketball guard Lani White was selected by the Minnesota Lynx.
White was the No. 45 overall pick and just the second pick of the draft for the Lynx, who selected TCU star Olivia Miles with the No. 2 overall pick following a previous trade with the Chicago Sky.
The two players from the Big 12 will look to enhance a Lynx team that finished the 2025 season with the top record in the WNBA.
White, a third-round selection, is the first Utah player selected in the WNBA draft since Alissa Pili, who was taken eighth overall in the 2024 draft, also to the Minnesota Lynx.
In a return to Utah following a one-year stint with Virginia Tech, White had a standout season for the Utes and was the team’s leading scorer, finishing with a career-high average of 15.9 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists.
With few returning players at Utah coming into the 2025-26 season, White bet on herself and returned to Salt Lake City to lead the Utes. In her final season, she flourished as the team’s leader and helped the Utes to an eighth-place finish in the Big 12.
WELCOME TO MN, LANI 💙 pic.twitter.com/AbUu676Wmc
— Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) April 14, 2026
DRAFTED 😤😤😤@laniwhitee #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/V46c9sVBQN
— Utah Women’s Basketball (@UTAHWBB) April 14, 2026
Former Utah guard Gianna Kneepkens drafted
After four seasons in Salt Lake City, Gianna Kneepkens took a leap of faith and transferred to UCLA ahead of her senior season. It paid off for the former Utah star, who helped the Bruins to a women’s title.
On Monday, Kneepkens heard her named called as the No. 15 overall pick and last of the first round to the Connecticut Sun. With her selection, UCLA set a WNBA record with five players from the same team selected in the first round of the draft.
In her lone season at UCLA, Kneepkens averaged 12.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists as a key starter for the Bruins. Also drafted from UCLA was Lauren Betts (No. 4, Washington Mystics), Gabriela Jaquez (No. 5, Chicago Sky), Kiki Rice (No. 6, Toronto Tempo) and Angela Dugalic (No. 9, Washington Mystics).
With the 15th pick, we select Gianna Kneepkens! Welcome to Connecticut!#WNBADraft #CTSun pic.twitter.com/Hhj5E0NUOO
— Connecticut Sun (@ConnecticutSun) April 14, 2026
👋 @ConnecticutSun, you’ve got someone who will bring the heat 🔥
Gianna Keepkens highlights incoming ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/w8rlV3MibJ
— Big Ten Women’s Basketball (@B1Gwbball) April 14, 2026
Record-breaking Bruins! 🐻
UCLA has set the new record for most draftees selected in the first round of a @WNBA draft, surpassing UConn (4 in 2002).#GoBruins pic.twitter.com/FrMgMTV2qD
— UCLA Women's Basketball (@UCLAWBB) April 14, 2026
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Josh Furlong is a Utah Utes insider for KSL Sports and is a Heisman Trophy and AP Top 25 voter for football. He hosts The Utah Checkdown podcast and appears on the KSL Sports Zone to break down the Utes. You can follow him on social media platforms X, BlueSky, Instagram and TikTok for the latest Utah updates and news.
