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WNBA Draft History: Three Blue Devils Selected in 2011
4/11/2020 8:27:00 AM | Women's Basketball
DURHAM, N.C.— Three Duke women's basketball student-athletes -- Jasmine Thomas, Karima Christmas and Krystal Thomas -- were selected in the 2011 WNBA Draft on April 11, which was held at the ESPN Headquarters in Bristol, Conn.
Jasmine Thomas was selected in the first round with the 12th overall pick to the Seattle Storm, while Christmas was taken in the second round with the 23rd pick to the Washington Mystics and Krystal Thomas was taken with the 36th selection to the Seattle Storm in the third round.
"I'm really proud of Jasmine, Karima and Krystal," said Duke Head Coach Joanne P. McCallie. "This is a wonderful opportunity for all of them, and it's a very exciting time to think about playing professional basketball and the enormous opportunity it is. I'm eager for them and excited for them and hope they can make the most of their time there."
It marked the second time in school history the Blue Devils have registered three players taken in the WNBA Draft as in 2006 Monique Currie, Mistie Bass and Jessica Foley were picked. Duke was the only school with three selections in 2011.
Thomas, a native of Fairfax, Va., led sixth-ranked Duke to a 32-4 overall and 12-2 mark in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) action in 2010-11. She was named ACC Tournament MVP for the second straight year after guiding Duke to its second consecutive ACC Tournament crown.
"(The selection announcement) made my heart kind of start racing," said Thomas. "Just the anticipation of finding out where I was going to be was pretty nerve-wracking. It was just exciting and relieving to finally hear my name."
The 5-9 guard averaged 15.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.4 steals and 0.6 blocks on the season. Thomas was a finalist for the John R. Wooden and Naismith National Player of the Year awards, while being named to the All-ACC Defensive Team and ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
"That's exciting," commented Thomas on going to a great team. "I've been watching Sue Bird since I was younger, and she's such a great point guard, one of the best there is. Just to have the opportunity to meet her and play with her and learn from her, that's such a good place for me to be. It's different from when I went to Duke. I was coming in as the only point guard, and I was expected to come in and make an impact right away."
A product of Houston, Texas, Christmas averaged 9.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.6 steals for the Blue Devils. She started 35 of 36 games and was named to both the All-ACC Tournament First Team and Philadelphia Regional All-Tournament teams. She scored double-digits in 16 contests, while collecting 20 or more points in four games. Christmas became just the 27th player in school history to reach the 1,000 points mark as she finished with 1,052 in four years.
One of the top shot-blockers in Duke history, Krystal Thomas averaged 7.6 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.6 blocks as she started all 36 contests. A native of Orlando, Fla., Thomas became just the second Blue Devil to pull down 300 rebounds in a single season as she finished her senior campaign with 300 boards. A 6-5 center, Thomas totaled 13 career double-doubles and swatted 196 shots in four years to rank 14th on the ACC all-time charts. She was named the Full Court Press ACC Defensive Player of the Year and All-ACC Third Team.
"I just think it reflects on the character of Jasmine, Karima and Krystal -- the way they've pursued everything," said McCallie. "Certainly our program benefits tremendously from all of the pros, and I just think it's a wonderful thing to see them earn a Duke degree, an incredible degree, and then match that with a pro opportunity, I think that's terrific."
"Obviously coming into the Seattle team where they're the defending champions and have the great group there already, it's really going to come down to my hard work and showing I have potential to be a great player and a player they can see fitting into their system somehow," said Jasmine Thomas.
The complete draft order follows.
First Round
1.       Minnesota Lynx               Maya Moore      Â
2.       Tulsa Shock               Elizabeth Cambage                      Â
3.       Chicago Sky       Courtney Vandersloot                      Â
4.       Minnesota Lynx from Connecticut Sun       Amber Harris                      Â
5.       Los Angeles Sparks       Jantel Lavender                      Â
6.       San Antonio Silver Stars       Danielle Robinson              Â
7.       Tulsa Shock from Phoenix Mercury       Kayla Pedersen      Â
8.       Atlanta Dream       Ta'Shia Phillips              Â
9.       Indiana Fever       Jeanette Pohlen      Â
10.       New York Liberty       Alex Montgomery      Â
11.       Washington Mystics       Victoria Dunlap      Â
12.       Seattle Storm       Jasmine Thomas
Second round
13.       Minnesota Lynx from Tulsa Shock       Jessica Breland*      Â
14.       Minnesota Lynx       Felicia Chester*      Â
15.       Chicago Sky       Carolyn Swords      Â
16.       Connecticut Sun       Sydney Colson*      Â
17.       Chicago Sky from Los Angeles Sparks       Angie Bjorklund      Â
18.       Atlanta Dream from San Antonio Silver Stars       Rachel Jarry*
19.       Phoenix Mercury       Brittany Spears      Â
20.       San Antonio Silver Stars from Atlanta Dream       Danielle Adams
21.       Tulsa Shock from Indiana Fever       Italee Lucas      Â
22.       New York Liberty       Angel Robinson*      Â
23.       Washington Mystics       Karima Christmas      Â
24.       Seattle Storm       Ify Ibekwe      Â
Third Round
25.       Tulsa Shock       Chastity Reed
26.       Minnesota Lynx       Kachine Alexander
27.       Chicago Sky       Amy Jaeschke
28.       Connecticut Sun       Adrienne Johnson
29.       Los Angeles Sparks       Elina Babkina
30.       San Antonio Silver Stars       Porsha Phillips
31.       Phoenix Mercury       Tahnee Robinson*
32.       Atlanta Dream       Kelsey Bolte
33.       Indiana Fever       Jori Davis
34.       New York Liberty       Mekia Valentine
35.       Washington Mystics       Sarah Krnjic
36.       Seattle Storm       Krystal Thomas
                                             Â
* The following trades were completed following the Draft:
New York traded Kalana Green to Connecticut for the draft rights of Sydney Colson (16th pick).
Phoenix traded draft rights of Tahnee Robinson (31st pick) to Connecticut for Connecticut's third round pick in 2012.
Minnesota traded draft rights of Jessica Breland (13th pick) to New York for the draft rights of Angel Robinson (22nd pick) and New York's own second round pick in 2012.
Minnesota traded the draft rights of Felicia Chester (14th pick) to Atlanta for draft rights to Rachel Jarry (18th pick) and the Dream's 2012 2nd round pick.
#GoDuke
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Jasmine Thomas was selected in the first round with the 12th overall pick to the Seattle Storm, while Christmas was taken in the second round with the 23rd pick to the Washington Mystics and Krystal Thomas was taken with the 36th selection to the Seattle Storm in the third round.
"I'm really proud of Jasmine, Karima and Krystal," said Duke Head Coach Joanne P. McCallie. "This is a wonderful opportunity for all of them, and it's a very exciting time to think about playing professional basketball and the enormous opportunity it is. I'm eager for them and excited for them and hope they can make the most of their time there."
It marked the second time in school history the Blue Devils have registered three players taken in the WNBA Draft as in 2006 Monique Currie, Mistie Bass and Jessica Foley were picked. Duke was the only school with three selections in 2011.
Thomas, a native of Fairfax, Va., led sixth-ranked Duke to a 32-4 overall and 12-2 mark in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) action in 2010-11. She was named ACC Tournament MVP for the second straight year after guiding Duke to its second consecutive ACC Tournament crown.
"(The selection announcement) made my heart kind of start racing," said Thomas. "Just the anticipation of finding out where I was going to be was pretty nerve-wracking. It was just exciting and relieving to finally hear my name."
The 5-9 guard averaged 15.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.4 steals and 0.6 blocks on the season. Thomas was a finalist for the John R. Wooden and Naismith National Player of the Year awards, while being named to the All-ACC Defensive Team and ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
"That's exciting," commented Thomas on going to a great team. "I've been watching Sue Bird since I was younger, and she's such a great point guard, one of the best there is. Just to have the opportunity to meet her and play with her and learn from her, that's such a good place for me to be. It's different from when I went to Duke. I was coming in as the only point guard, and I was expected to come in and make an impact right away."
A product of Houston, Texas, Christmas averaged 9.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.6 steals for the Blue Devils. She started 35 of 36 games and was named to both the All-ACC Tournament First Team and Philadelphia Regional All-Tournament teams. She scored double-digits in 16 contests, while collecting 20 or more points in four games. Christmas became just the 27th player in school history to reach the 1,000 points mark as she finished with 1,052 in four years.
One of the top shot-blockers in Duke history, Krystal Thomas averaged 7.6 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.6 blocks as she started all 36 contests. A native of Orlando, Fla., Thomas became just the second Blue Devil to pull down 300 rebounds in a single season as she finished her senior campaign with 300 boards. A 6-5 center, Thomas totaled 13 career double-doubles and swatted 196 shots in four years to rank 14th on the ACC all-time charts. She was named the Full Court Press ACC Defensive Player of the Year and All-ACC Third Team.
"I just think it reflects on the character of Jasmine, Karima and Krystal -- the way they've pursued everything," said McCallie. "Certainly our program benefits tremendously from all of the pros, and I just think it's a wonderful thing to see them earn a Duke degree, an incredible degree, and then match that with a pro opportunity, I think that's terrific."
"Obviously coming into the Seattle team where they're the defending champions and have the great group there already, it's really going to come down to my hard work and showing I have potential to be a great player and a player they can see fitting into their system somehow," said Jasmine Thomas.
The complete draft order follows.
First Round
1.       Minnesota Lynx               Maya Moore      Â
2.       Tulsa Shock               Elizabeth Cambage                      Â
3.       Chicago Sky       Courtney Vandersloot                      Â
4.       Minnesota Lynx from Connecticut Sun       Amber Harris                      Â
5.       Los Angeles Sparks       Jantel Lavender                      Â
6.       San Antonio Silver Stars       Danielle Robinson              Â
7.       Tulsa Shock from Phoenix Mercury       Kayla Pedersen      Â
8.       Atlanta Dream       Ta'Shia Phillips              Â
9.       Indiana Fever       Jeanette Pohlen      Â
10.       New York Liberty       Alex Montgomery      Â
11.       Washington Mystics       Victoria Dunlap      Â
12.       Seattle Storm       Jasmine Thomas
Second round
13.       Minnesota Lynx from Tulsa Shock       Jessica Breland*      Â
14.       Minnesota Lynx       Felicia Chester*      Â
15.       Chicago Sky       Carolyn Swords      Â
16.       Connecticut Sun       Sydney Colson*      Â
17.       Chicago Sky from Los Angeles Sparks       Angie Bjorklund      Â
18.       Atlanta Dream from San Antonio Silver Stars       Rachel Jarry*
19.       Phoenix Mercury       Brittany Spears      Â
20.       San Antonio Silver Stars from Atlanta Dream       Danielle Adams
21.       Tulsa Shock from Indiana Fever       Italee Lucas      Â
22.       New York Liberty       Angel Robinson*      Â
23.       Washington Mystics       Karima Christmas      Â
24.       Seattle Storm       Ify Ibekwe      Â
Third Round
25.       Tulsa Shock       Chastity Reed
26.       Minnesota Lynx       Kachine Alexander
27.       Chicago Sky       Amy Jaeschke
28.       Connecticut Sun       Adrienne Johnson
29.       Los Angeles Sparks       Elina Babkina
30.       San Antonio Silver Stars       Porsha Phillips
31.       Phoenix Mercury       Tahnee Robinson*
32.       Atlanta Dream       Kelsey Bolte
33.       Indiana Fever       Jori Davis
34.       New York Liberty       Mekia Valentine
35.       Washington Mystics       Sarah Krnjic
36.       Seattle Storm       Krystal Thomas
                                             Â
* The following trades were completed following the Draft:
New York traded Kalana Green to Connecticut for the draft rights of Sydney Colson (16th pick).
Phoenix traded draft rights of Tahnee Robinson (31st pick) to Connecticut for Connecticut's third round pick in 2012.
Minnesota traded draft rights of Jessica Breland (13th pick) to New York for the draft rights of Angel Robinson (22nd pick) and New York's own second round pick in 2012.
Minnesota traded the draft rights of Felicia Chester (14th pick) to Atlanta for draft rights to Rachel Jarry (18th pick) and the Dream's 2012 2nd round pick.
#GoDuke
Â
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