Posts by Emily Adler

Hunter Cruse covers the Atlanta Dream and the WNBA Draft for The IX Basketball.

Two side-by-side pictures: on the left, Spain center Awa Fam stands looking to her left with an arm outstreched past the edge of the picture; on the right, Notre Dame point guard Olivia Miles tosses a cross-body pass in midair in front of a Louisville defender with a packed crowd in the background

The IX Basketball’s 2026 WNBA Draft Board, V1.0

October 14, 2025

The most detailed 2026 WNBA draft resource available outside a team’s actual war room

Atlanta Dream forward Naz Hillmon (00) and forward Brionna Jones (24) and guard Rhyne Howard (10) react after a basket against the Indiana Fever.

How Atlanta’s defense helped it take Game 1 over Indiana

September 15, 2025

Rhyne Howard: ‘Our mindset was we wanted to punch first, and we knew it would be a dog fight’

A collage of four pictures of 2025 WNBA draft prospects: top left, UConn point guard Paige Bueckers holds out three fingers in the ok sign while looking up and out to celebrate a 3-pointer; top right, French national team center Dominique Malonga leans to her right with her right arm outstretches while Nigerian guard Ezinne Kalu swats her left arm to drive in front of her; bottom left, Notre Dame wing Sonia Citron holds the ball in the palm of her hand in midair as she releases a 3-pointer over the outstretched arm of Oregon State guard Talia von Oelhoffen; bottom right, South Carolina combo guard Te-Hina Paopao looks ahead while holding up a hand in an "L" shape and dribbling with her opposite hand.

Who’s Next — The Next’s 2025 WNBA Draft Board, V2.0

April 8, 2025

The most detailed 2025 WNBA draft resource available outside a team’s actual war room

Duke Blue Devils forward Toby Fournier goes up for a layup against South Carolina Gamecocks forward Joyce Edwards.

‘She can be one of the greatest at Duke’: Inside Toby Fournier’s freshman season

March 31, 2025

Fournier scores a game-high 18 points in Elite Eight loss to South Carolina

Tennessee head coach Kim Caldwell reacts to a call by holding her hand in the air.

Tennessee sets the foundation with successful first season of the Kim Caldwell era

March 30, 2025

Caldwell: ‘[We] did exactly what we said we were going to do, which was get Tennessee back into the top 25’

TCU guard Hailey Van Lith dribbles the ball with her right hand, looks straight ahead and points to her left with her left hand to direct her teammates.

How Hailey Van Lith led TCU to first Elite Eight in program history

March 29, 2025

Madison Conner: ‘She’s been at an Elite Eight every year in college; that’s a testament to how hard she works’

South Carolina guard MiLaysia Fulwiley drives to the rim as Maryland forward Allie Kubek slides her feet to try to contain her and guard Kaylene Smikle reaches toward Fulwiley from the perimeter.

Takeaways: MiLaysia Fulwiley helps South Carolina avoid Sweet 16 upset

March 29, 2025

Dawn Staley: ‘MiLaysia just wants to win’

Duke guard Oluchi Okananwa smiles as she is interviewed by ESPN after a win in the NCAA Tournament.

Takeaways: How Duke knocked off North Carolina to advance to its first Elite Eight since 2013

March 29, 2025

Oluchi Okananwa: ‘Playing under Coach Lawson, she’s created this culture where we want to play defense’

Jan 24, 2025; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks forward Sania Feagin (20) drives around LSU Lady Tigers forward Sa'Myah Smith (5) in the first half at Colonial Life Arena. (Photo credit: Jeff Blake, Imagn Images)

Sania Feagin’s WNBA draft stock is on the rise

March 12, 2025

Staley: ‘I never let Feagin play less than her standard. That meant she sat a lot, but this year, it paid off’

South Carolina guard Te-Hina Paopao (0) reacts after her team was fouled during the fourth quarter against the Vanderbilt at Memorial Gym in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025. (Photo credit: Andrew Nelles / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

South Carolina’s Te-Hina Paopao is poetry in motion

March 7, 2025

Paopao: ‘It makes me better and gives our team more options when I play with pace’