For WNBA draft picks, it’s almost nonstop basketball for 12 months

In 2008, Candace Parker led the Lady Vols to victory, 64-48, against Stanford in the NCAA tournament. The next day, she was drafted as a first-round pick to the LA Sparks.

It wasn’t until 2011 that the WNBA finally moved the draft back, giving players a week between draft night and the final game of the NCAA tournament. WNBA players are no strangers to hard work and little vacation time, though. Since the end of the college season and the WNBA draft are both in April, players have to be ready to gear up for the league by May. If a WNBA rookie made it to the NCAA tournament in their college career and then also made the playoffs in their first pro season, they could be working from October to October. It gets even tougher in the fact that if a player makes it all the way to the NCAA title game and would decide to forego her final season of eligibility (if she’s 22 or has completed four years of college), she only has around a week to declare for the upcoming WNBA season.

After winning a National Title in April, Kaela Davis and Allisha Gray, two Gamecocks from the class of 2018, did just that – they declared for the draft this year and decided to forego their final year. With the coach confirming their declarations on April 4, the two had four days to decide to sign with an agent or return to school. The decision to stay in school is much more common for women’s basketball. While NBA players can make millions after one year in college, most WNBA rookies make about $50,000. Davis and Gray, two guards, are expected to be picked as No. 7 and No. 2 respectively.

This past year, NCAA regular season play started in mid-November and ran until March, when post-season started up. March Madness started Friday, March 17 and ran until Sunday, April 2, where South Carolina beat Mississippi State for their first-ever title. Of the top 10 projected draft picks, three were members of the championship team; after that, though, the furthest any other top pick made it was to the Elite Eight. So most draft picks will get a little time to rest before suiting up.

The WNBA draft is Thursday at 7 p.m. – and the season kicks off in exactly one month. Each team plays 34 games a season, ending Sept. 3. The playoffs then start on Sept. 6 and if a team makes it the Finals, they’ll end their season in October.

On top of playing all the way through to the championship, more and more WNBA players are choosing to play overseas during their offseason. Players like Breanna Stewart, who was drafted in mid-April of last year by the Storm after winning the NCAA championship with UConn, played in every game of the regular season. Stewart got even more time to play in August at the summer Olympics in Rio, where the US beat Spain to win gold. The Storm then went on to the playoffs, but got eliminated by Atlanta in the first round at the end of September. Stewart then left in November to play in China in the offseason, where she dominated for three months, averaging about 31 points and 10 rebounds per game. Stewart is just now taking time off – she was spotted at the NCAA Final Four (where she watched the Gamecocks upset her alma mater).

Playing overseas is common for WNBA players looking to add on to their limited WNBA salary, as well as gain more experience and stay in game shape year-round. NBA players, on the other hand, have months to rest up from their college season before the NBA draft in June and the NBA season start in mid-October. On top of that, the early draft deadline is April 23, but NBA prospects can go to the combine and “test the waters” before deciding whether to declare.

As college hopefuls turn into eager professionals, know that their work starts right away. Here’s how to watch the WNBA draft:

Time: 7 p.m.

First Round: ESPN2

Second and Third Rounds: ESPNU

Livestream: WatchESPN / WatchESPN Apps