Why Sedona Prince is the toughest WNBA draft prospect to evaluate

SEDONA PRINCE LEANS down and unwinds the portion astir her close ankle aft her last crippled arsenic an NCAA hoops player. TCU has conscionable mislaid successful the Elite Eight to Texas, and the seventh-year elder sits successful a seat and reflects connected the challenges she's overcome.

Broken leg. Broken finger. Torn elbow ligament. Botched aesculapian care. Three antithetic schools. She applauds her ain perseverance.

"Knockdown, knockdown, knockdown," she says. "And I conscionable kept fighting. It's unreal however overmuch spot God has fixed maine and what I've been capable to overcome."

She doesn't notation the astir contiguous menace to her hoops career: At slightest 4 women person publically accused Prince of intersexual battle oregon intimate spouse unit implicit the past respective months. Prince unequivocally denied each the allegations successful a social-media station successful August. Her attorney, A. Boone Almanza, reiterated those denials this week.

"Sedona has not been charged with a transgression oregon recovered blameworthy of immoderate wrongdoing," helium wrote successful a connection to ESPN. "Rather she has been convicted connected societal media by radical who person attempted to usage their narration with Sedona to pull followers and to physique their influencer careers and settee grudges. To the grade she has made immoderate mistakes antithetic from different young radical successful their aboriginal dating beingness it was solely the determination to beryllium connected TikTok."

Days earlier the 2025 WNBA draft, wide managers are facing an unprecedented conundrum erstwhile it comes to Prince. Never earlier has a draught imaginable travel knocking connected the WNBA's doorway with specified a analyzable acceptable of circumstances.

Consider:

• Prince stands 6-foot-7, taller than each but six players successful the WNBA. With her agelong arms and speedy feet, she's a deterrent to immoderate opposing subordinate who ventures into the lane.

• Prince crashed retired successful her last assemblage game, scoring 4 points earlier fouling retired with 6:32 near and her squad trailing Texas by 10.

• Prince played 4 years of high-level Division I basketball. She averaged 17.2 points, 9.4 rebounds and 3.0 blocks successful her last play and was an All-Big 12 center.

• Prince turns 25 4 days earlier the 2025 play tips off. She would beryllium the oldest subordinate drafted into the WNBA since 2023, erstwhile Okako Adika (New York Liberty) was chosen astatine property 26.

• Prince is an outspoken and impactful advocator for sex equity.

• Prince faced backlash from fans -- including a petition for her dismissal from TCU -- aft the accusations of intersexual battle and intimate spouse unit were made public.

• Prince has ne'er been charged with a crime.

The timepiece is ticking connected the WNBA GMs who person to fig retired however to equilibrium the bully with the bad. Gamble connected her size? Run from her baggage?

"I americium unclear connected wherefore this is adjacent a question," 1 GM said. "Why wouldn't she beryllium drafted?"

Said another: "I'd accidental the chips are stacked against her."

THE FIRST SIGNS of the endowment that tempts WNBA GMs contiguous had already emerged by the clip Prince got to precocious school.

Prince grew up successful Liberty Hill, Texas, a municipality of astir 10,000 radical adjacent Austin. She excelled astatine hoops and played with a fig of the aforesaid players from simple schoolhouse done precocious school. "We spent truthful overmuch clip with each different each those years," 1 erstwhile teammate said. "We practiced each time aft schoolhouse together."

Prince committed to the University of Texas anterior to her freshman twelvemonth astatine Faith Academy. As a sophomore, she transferred to Liberty Hill High School. That aforesaid year, she decommitted from Texas. As a junior, she recommitted to Texas.

Three of her Liberty Hill teammates said they feared retribution and agreed to talk to ESPN connected the information of anonymity. All 3 said they haven't stayed successful interaction with Prince, and they retrieve her arsenic a hard person.

"It should person been the champion clip of our lives," a erstwhile Liberty Hill subordinate said. "But it was conscionable perpetually walking connected eggshells and stressful. If it didn't play retired her way, idiosyncratic was going to get thing successful retaliation."

Prince has said she was bullied by classmates and teammates everyplace she went.

"I was with these radical that I felt similar hated me," she said to The Daily Texan successful 2018. "They made maine consciousness horrible astir myself."

LEAVING HIGH SCHOOL didn't precisely supply a caller commencement for Prince. She suffered a horrific wounded soon aft graduation that astir prevented a azygous GM from ever considering her draught value.

In an early-round crippled successful Mexico with the U18 U.S. nationalist team, Prince jumped to artifact a fast-break layup. Her ft came down awkwardly connected an opponent's shoe, and her limb snapped. She broke her tibia and fibula.

Louisville manager Jeff Walz led that USA Basketball squad and ran to Prince.

"I retrieve the scream," Walz said. "The bony wasn't sticking done her leg, but you could spot it was broken."

Prince returned to the United States and had country astatine St. David's South Austin Medical Center connected Aug. 6, 2018.

She antecedently spoke to ESPN astir the bid of events that she said occurred and had her yet permission the Longhorns. She said the Texas grooming unit rushed her backmost to weight-bearing exercises earlier than was recommended. She said she experienced symptom and swelling arsenic she was pushed to bash more. She was diagnosed with a hypertrophic nonunion successful aboriginal 2019, she said, and needed a 2nd country to repair the bones that hadn't healed properly. During the surgery, she said it was discovered that she had an infection.

The antibiotics prescribed negatively affected her kidneys, she said. Two weeks aft the surgery, she said she felt ill. The hoops squad was retired of municipality playing against Baylor, and the aesculapian staff, Prince said, told her to question attraction the adjacent morning. Instead, her ma drove her to the hospital, wherever aesculapian professionals said the toxicity levels successful her kidneys were high. She was admitted and stayed successful the infirmary for a fewer days to recover.

Prince's household ended up shouldering thousands of dollars of out-of-pocket aesculapian expenses, she said. The acquisition soured Prince connected Texas. She decided to leave.

According to ESPN's 2021 story, the University of Texas cited diligent and pupil privateness laws and declined to comment. The Princes consulted with attorneys astir filing a suit but opted not to prosecute one.

Karen Aston, who coached Prince astatine Texas, declined to beryllium interviewed for this story.

"It was a very, precise hard twelvemonth for maine arsenic a young woman, arsenic a young subordinate to beryllium reasoning I was a portion of a household and to beryllium treated successful the mode that I was," Prince said earlier facing Texas successful the 2025 Elite Eight. "So I held a batch successful my bosom and my psyche that I didn't cognize I was carrying astir for a agelong time."

WNBA GMs KNOW that drafting Prince means drafting a crowd. She has 2.5 cardinal followers connected TikTok. Her fame mostly dates to 2021, erstwhile she was playing for Oregon, the 2nd of her 3 colleges.

Prince was preparing to marque her archetypal NCAA tourney quality aft sitting retired the erstwhile 2 seasons. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the NCAA was hosting the women's tourney successful San Antonio and the men's tourney successful Indianapolis. Prince posted a video of her presumption to TikTok.

"This is our value room," Prince said, pointing the camera astatine a tiny dumbbell histrion successful a ample and mostly bare San Antonio room. "Let maine amusement y'all the men's value room," she said, showing footage of value racks arsenic acold arsenic the oculus could spot successful an Indianapolis facility.

The video exposed the differences successful amenities and opportunities and launched an unfastened treatment astir the inequities betwixt men's and women's basketball. The video has been viewed implicit 12.4 cardinal times connected TikTok alone.

After Prince's post, the NCAA commissioned the instrumentality steadfast Kaplan Hecker & Fink to reappraisal sex equity wrong the NCAA championships.

Kaplan's report documented for the nationalist the litany of ways women's hoops was held backmost by the precise entity that organized the championships.

Without Prince's video, the women's tourney mightiness inactive not beryllium called March Madness. It mightiness inactive not person expanded to 68 teams. For the archetypal clip this year, conferences received wealth for advancing successful the women's tournament, conscionable arsenic has been the lawsuit for the men's tourney for decades.

The popularity of the value country video launched Prince into a caller arena.

"She had a batch connected her plate," Oregon manager Kelly Graves told ESPN connected March 5. "And truthful I'm not definite that Oregon hoops was No. 1 each the clip connected that database aft that. She conscionable got pulled successful a cardinal directions. That's going to change, I think, everybody."

Prince played successful 19 games during her archetypal play successful Oregon successful 2020-21, including the Ducks' Sweet 16 matchup against aboriginal teammate Hailey Van Lith and Louisville.

In her 2nd year, Prince played 30 games and started 18, averaging 9.3 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks.

Prince had begun advocating for amended conditions for assemblage athletes adjacent earlier posting the value country video. In June 2020, she joined 1 of the antitrust lawsuits against the NCAA arsenic a named plaintiff. The colony for those cases grants existent and erstwhile NCAA Division I athletes (back to 2016) $2.8 cardinal successful damages implicit 10 years arsenic good arsenic the constitution of a revenue-sharing statement that allows schools to stock up to $20.5 cardinal with their athletes.

Although she was playing good and advocating for alteration she knew was important, Prince says she was unhappy astatine Oregon. She graduated successful May 2022. In October, she announced that she needed country connected her dislocated close elbow and that her NCAA vocation was over. She moved to San Diego readying to hole for the 2023 WNBA draft. Three weeks earlier the draft, Mark Campbell, who coached Prince arsenic an adjunct astatine Oregon, accepted the caput coaching presumption astatine TCU. Prince withdrew from the draught and moved to Fort Worth to play for Campbell astatine TCU.

"I hadn't played successful 8 oregon 9 months, hadn't touched a basketball," she told ESPN past month. "I was overweight. I was depressed. I had nary thought what I was going to bash with my life. Coming present was this 2nd accidental to revive my career, supply my intelligence wellness with intent again and revamp my puerility dreams."

Prince averaged 19.7 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.9 blocks successful her archetypal play astatine TCU. She broke her digit playing against Baylor successful January and was retired for 2 months pursuing surgery. The Horned Frogs, who were truthful decimated by injuries that they held unfastened tryouts truthful they could tract a team, went 3-10 without her.

When TCU mislaid to Oklahoma successful the Big 12 tournament, Prince was prepared to judge the extremity of her NCAA career. But the NCAA granted her a hardship waiver. In April 2024, she announced that she would instrumentality to TCU for 1 much season.

"It was an contiguous knowing successful my thorax and my psyche and each compartment of my being," she said successful March. "This has been God guiding maine on this brainsick journey."

OVER THE PAST year, aggregate women person made allegations of intimate spouse unit oregon intersexual assault, nary of which has resulted successful charges and each of which Prince has denied.

On Aug. 13, 2024, online contented creator Olivia Stabile posted a 10-part video bid connected TikTok alleging that Prince had pushed her disconnected an ATV and deed her portion the mates was connected a travel to Tulum, Mexico.

In an interrogation with ESPN connected March 10, Stabile repeated those allegations. According to Stabile, she and Prince went to Mexico past May to observe Prince's birthday. One night, they went retired connected an ATV ride. Prince, she said, drove the ATV disconnected the main roadworthy into the unlit wilderness surrounding Tulum. Stabile said she asked Prince aggregate times to crook around, and Prince ignored her. Eventually, Prince slammed connected the brakes. "And past she turns astir and grabs me, and throws maine connected the gravel," Stabile told ESPN.

The adjacent morning, Stabile said, Prince punched her successful the thorax and pushed her to the ground.

"I ran retired of that edifice room, and I didn't look back," Stabile said. "I'm screaming astatine the apical of my lungs, 'Call police, telephone the police,' to each idiosyncratic that I see. I was conscionable losing it."

Stabile said she aboriginal returned to her country with security, and Prince was packed to leave. Stabile said she ne'er filed a constabulary study and she flew location the adjacent day.

Almanza, Prince's attorney, denied that the ATV incidental occurred arsenic described by Stabile, stating that the mates was successful 2 abstracted accidents successful which some were injured. He besides denied that Prince ever abused Stabile physically.

"At nary clip did Sedona drawback Liv and propulsion her to the ground," Almanza said successful his written connection to ESPN.

Text messages provided by Prince's lawyer and reviewed by ESPN showed continued romanticist interactions betwixt Prince and Stabile for weeks aft the travel to Tulum.

Another pistillate who dated Prince, Rylee LeGlue, described Prince arsenic "manipulative" to ESPN a fewer weeks earlier Stabile's interview. LeGlue said she started dating Prince soon earlier Prince posted her historical value country video successful March 2021. LeGlue said Prince "would degrade and belittle the implicit life" retired of her, and that Prince's verbal attacks turned carnal 1 time.

During an argument, LeGlue said, Prince grabbed her tightly by the wrists and threw her onto the bed. "But different than that, she ne'er deed maine oregon anything," LeGlue said. LeGlue said she ne'er reported the incidental to police.

"Before I met her, I was a precise blessed person," LeGlue said. "I would picture myself arsenic being sunshine successful quality form. And I consciousness similar aft her, I've felt that nary substance however blessed I am, I tin ne'er scope that point. I consciousness similar I'm a precise sad, beaten down, pitiful person. And I privation I could spell backmost successful clip to earlier she stole each that from me."

"When Sedona was 21 years old, she was successful a precise nationalist narration with Rylee. As with each relationships, they occasionally fought verbally but nary much than a batch of young radical bash successful caller relationships." Almanza said successful a written statement. "At nary clip did Sedona maltreatment Rylee emotionally oregon mentally, overmuch little physically."

As Stabile and LeGlue began speaking publically astir their relationships with Prince, different pistillate Prince dated, Alyssa Jimmie, went nationalist with an allegation from 2019. In an interrogation with ESPN, Jimmie said she went connected a day to overgarment successful a parkland with Prince that summer.

According to Jimmie, aft they near the park, Prince parked her car, a crossover SUV, adjacent Jimmie's residence. Jimmie sat adjacent to Prince up front. Jimmie told ESPN she had decided that she wasn't funny successful moving guardant romantically with Prince. But erstwhile she tried to permission the car aft saying goodbye, Prince locked her inside. According to Jimmie, Prince told her, "I didn't instrumentality you retired for nothing," earlier pushing Jimmie into the backmost seat. Then, Jimmie said, Prince forced her fingers into Jimmie's pants and wrong of her without Jimmie's consent.

"Aylssa was a consensual spouse successful each facet of their day and Sedona did not sexually battle Aylssa," Almanza wrote successful a statement, misspelling Alyssa's name.

Jimmie told ESPN she did not record a constabulary report: "I conscionable didn't person a batch of religion successful the strategy that it would beryllium worthy each of that for me," Jimmie said. "I was besides not arsenic mentally beardown arsenic I americium now."

As archetypal reported by The Washington Post, a suit was filed against Prince successful September 2024 by a Jane Doe successful a territory tribunal successful Travis County, Texas. The lawsuit, which ESPN has reviewed, was withdrawn by the plaintiff a fewer months later. It alleged that successful September 2022, pursuing a date, Prince grabbed Doe and forcibly kissed her, took her manus and inserted it into Prince's pants. "Plaintiff was compelled to penetrate Defendant's vagina," the suit states. Almanza said the accusations successful the suit are "demonstrably false." Multiple calls by ESPN to the plaintiff's lawyer were not returned.

"If the suit is refiled Sedona volition aggressively support the lawsuit, arsenic the claims are frivolous and thing much than an effort to capitalize connected Sedona's occurrence and future," Almanza wrote.

IN AUGUST, A PETITION was posted connected Change.org seeking Prince's dismissal from the TCU hoops team. More than 200,000 radical person signed it.

On Aug. 31, Prince denied the allegations against her successful a video posted connected TikTok. "I've ne'er abused anybody emotionally, physically, mentally, verbally. That's not me, and that's not what I've done. That's not who I am." Prince besides said her household had received decease threats.

On Nov. 5, she scored 29 points successful the archetypal crippled of her 2nd play astatine TCU.

On Jan. 18, Prince and different TCU student, an ex-girlfriend, separately filed reports with constabulary alleging intimate spouse violence. In audio interviews obtained by ESPN, Prince and the different pistillate described a carnal altercation to Fort Worth Detective Kyle Harris, each alleging the different was the superior aggressor. After his investigation, Harris wrote, "The lone grounds accordant with some accounts is that determination was a carnal altercation, and some parties sustained minimal injury." He besides documented that "both parties were insistent that they did not privation to prosecute transgression charges against the other." No charges were filed.

"The assemblage is alert of the allegations involving 1 of our student-athletes and is looking into the matter," TCU said successful a connection successful February. "In accordance with national privateness laws, the assemblage does not remark connected pupil behaviour matters."

The schoolhouse did not suspend Prince.

In a crippled astatine Kansas State successful February, Prince was booed whenever she touched the ball. Still, she had 14 points and 11 rebounds.

In all, Prince started 37 games, much than she ever had successful a azygous season. She was a unanimous All-Big 12 first-team selection. It was unequivocally her champion play connected the court.

"Sedona has grown a lot," TCU defender Madison Conner said to ESPN successful March. "I've seen her mature a batch connected and disconnected the court, conscionable handling her concern successful the mode that she needs to and not caring astir what different radical person to say. I deliberation that's wherefore she's succeeding truthful overmuch this year."

But the play ended with that mediocre show against Texas conscionable 2 weeks anterior to the WNBA draft.

When Prince walked disconnected the tribunal successful Birmingham, Alabama, aft fouling out, patrons astatine an Austin women's sports barroom whooped and cheered.

It was a Texas-friendly assemblage (it is Austin), truthful immoderate TCU subordinate fouling retired would person garnered immoderate cheers, but this solemnisation seemed antithetic to the pistillate who posted a video connected X.

"It was an absorbing infinitesimal to maine to spot the assemblage respond each successful the aforesaid mode and crook from enactment of the Texas squad to disdain for her," said Megan, who requested that lone her archetypal sanction beryllium utilized for this story. "I deliberation it's disappointing that she's been allowed to play."

During the last weeks of her NCAA career, TCU's Campbell repeatedly praised Prince, calling her a "superstar" and complimenting her maturation arsenic a player, saying "it's arsenic overmuch arsenic immoderate idiosyncratic I've ever been astir successful the assemblage game."

In a 4 minute, 40-second telephone interrogation with ESPN connected April 3, helium abruptly ended the telephone erstwhile helium was asked astir Prince's coachability and however she arrived astatine TCU. "I would alternatively beryllium disconnected the grounds close now, truthful I americium going to region myself," helium said.

He declined a petition for a follow-up interrogation 5 days later.

WILL PRINCE BE drafted Monday? ESPN spoke with representatives from 7 WNBA franchises, and respective expressed assurance that she volition spell astatine immoderate point. But erstwhile and where? Most mock drafts, including ESPN's, don't task her arsenic a first-round pick. Prince volition not be the draught successful New York.

"I mean, however galore 6-7 players are there?" 1 GM said. "How galore 6-5-plus players are determination that tin sprout successful the midrange, are 70% escaped propulsion shooters? And truthful you adhd 2 much inches, like, she's an outlier."

Prince sometimes plays smaller than her frame. She often avoids interaction alternatively than finishing done it. Prince draws plentifulness of fouls and makes her escaped throws, but she is not a top-tier violative imaginable successful a carnal league that often stretches the level with bigs who tin sprout from deep.

"I deliberation there's a large quality betwixt the players she can, for deficiency of a amended word, conscionable dominate," different GM said. "When you spell up against existent size and athleticism, she's not capable to determination arsenic well, she's not capable to finish, she's not going to beryllium capable to get to her spots. I deliberation that's concerning."

A 3rd GM besides noted that Prince was overmuch older and had much acquisition than astir of her NCAA opponents.

"She's similar a 24-year-old playing against what, sometimes 18-year-olds?" the GM said. "That's a humongous gap. She's older than immoderate W players. And truthful it's conscionable hard to tell, 'Are you that good, oregon are you conscionable dominating radical that are, like, literally, 4 and 5 years younger than you?'"

Then determination are the injuries. A breached leg, a dislocated elbow, a breached finger, bumps and bruises, tweaks and twinges. Prince struggled to enactment connected the level each done college; that's partially wherefore she's been successful schoolhouse for 7 years.

And then, determination are the allegations.

WNBA players person been progressive successful home unit incidents. There was a 2015 incidental betwixt Brittney Griner and her then-fiancée Glory Johnson. Griner and Johnson were arrested and suspended for 7 games. Former Sparks and Aces defender Riquna Williams was suspended 10 games successful 2019 aft being arrested for burglary with battle oregon artillery and aggravated battle with a deadly limb without intent to kill. The charges stemmed from a home unit incident. Williams was aboriginal indefinitely suspended by the Aces successful July 2023 aft being arrested for home violence. Those charges were dropped, but she did not rejoin the team. She is nary longer connected a roster.

The WNBA and WNBPA person a home unit and intimate spouse unit argumentation that has investigative authorization implicit WNBA players. Additionally, the CBA has a clause stating a declaration tin beryllium terminated if a subordinate "at immoderate clip fails, refuses oregon neglects to conform her idiosyncratic behaviour to standards of bully citizenship, bully motivation character, and bully sportsmanship." But a imaginable draught prime coming into the WNBA with nationalist allegations is caller territory.

"She is 1 of the apical 38 players who person made themselves disposable for this draft. If the [concern] is due to the fact that of the allegations, I would ask, 'Has that ever kept a men's subordinate from being eligible to beryllium drafted into a sport?'" a GM said. "There are countless instances of allegations against antheral athletes, and their quality to beryllium employed is mostly unaffected."

"You privation to beryllium just astir it and don't privation to needfully clasp it against her," different said. "But from an organizational standpoint, you besides person to beryllium cautious and bash your owed diligence."

Quarterback Jameis Winston was accused of intersexual battle successful 2012 by a chap Florida State student, and the accusation became nationalist successful 2013. He was never charged, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected him archetypal wide successful the 2015 NFL draft. The pistillate aboriginal sued Winston successful civilian tribunal and Winston settled. Running backmost Joe Mixon was suspended by Oklahoma for the full 2014 play aft punching a pistillate successful a deli. He accepted a plea woody and settled a civilian suit. Video of the incidental was released 2 years later, months earlier the 2017 NFL draft. Mixon was selected 48th wide by the Cincinnati Bengals. Winston and Mixon proceed to play successful the NFL.

"I tin conscionable talk for [my team]," different WNBA GM said erstwhile asked astir the anticipation of drafting Prince. "Like, we wouldn't interaction it, but I deliberation that everybody's astatine a antithetic spot. Everybody has antithetic information. But wherever we're astatine with this franchise, right, incorrect oregon indifferent, there's a hazard associated and that's not a hazard connected someone's quality that we'd take."

The conundrum isn't a conundrum astatine each for different GM.

"We person nary interest."

BACK IN THE Birmingham locker room, Prince has yet freed her limb of its tape. Still wearing her purple TCU azygous and purple tights, she leans backmost successful her seat and considers a reporter's question astir what she would alteration successful her assemblage career.

She reflects connected the bullying arsenic a kid and the aesculapian attraction she received astatine Texas. She recalls however those things made her consciousness undeserving of enactment and attention. She says she wishes she hadn't believed the radical who made her consciousness that way. She wishes she had prioritized healing her injuries and taking amended attraction of herself.

"The 1 happening I would alteration is to speech to my younger aforesaid and beryllium like, 'You're loved, you merit better,'" Prince says. "And conscionable beryllium benignant to her."

She glances astir the room. She nods and picks up her shoes. She stands up and walks away.

Reporting from ESPN's Alexa Philippou contributed to this story.