Logic to Atlanta; Stokes to New York

Samantha Logic has landed her Dream job.

A consensus all-American women's basketball player at the University of Iowa, Logic was selected by the Atlanta Dream with the 10th pick of the WNBA Draft on Thursday.

She said she'll head to Atlanta with 'an open mind and open ears.”

'I'll do whatever Coach (Michael Cooper) asks me to do,” she said via telephone after the draft. 'I'll learn whatever they're going to teach me, and I'll work my butt off.”

Kiah Stokes, a former Miss Iowa Basketball from Linn-Mar, was chosen next at No. 11 by the New York Liberty.

Stokes was a back-up center at the University of Connecticut, winning three NCAA championships.

'I was so nervous while I was waiting. I was all clammy,” said Stokes, who set UConn's single-season blocked-shot record this season. 'Then when they read my name, I thought I was going to fall off the stage.”

Logic is the only player in Division-I women's basketball history to accumulate 1,500 points, 800 rebounds, 800 assists and 200 steals in her career. She ranks in the top 10 at Iowa in all four of those categories, and is the school's all-time assists leader.

According to ESPN analyst Charlie Creme, Logic is 'always around the ball and might be the best player in the draft at making teammates better.”

Logic led the Hawkeyes (26-8) to their first Sweet 16 in 19 years. Iowa was ranked No. 11 in the final USA Today coaches' poll.

And thus begins a whirlwind before Logic's pro career begins in June. She will graduate from Iowa on May 16. The Dream's camp opens the following day.

'There's not much time to get my plans worked out and figure out what I'm supposed to do,” she said. 'But this is awesome. I'm excited to take my game to the next level.”

The Dream was the Eastern Conference regular-season champion last year, finishing 19-15, but was upset by the Chicago Sky in the first round of the playoffs.

New York traded up for the No. 11 pick, and snagged Stokes.

'The best part is, they picked me because they like what I can do,” said Stokes, who led Linn-Mar to a state title in 2010. 'They like my defensive presence. And I know I can get better on the offensive end.”

Creme called Stokes 'probably the best pure rim protector in the draft. She will help right away in that area. Her ceiling could be quite a bit higher.”

Stokes averaged 4.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game as a senior.

New York was 15-19 last season and missed the playoffs. The Liberty are coached by Bill Laimbeer, one of the Detroit Pistons' 'Bad Boys” of the 1980s and ‘90s.

Iowa State point guard Nikki Moody was picked in the third round (33rd overall) by the San Antonio Stars.

Both of the top two picks were underclassmen.

Notre Dame's Jewell Loyd was the first selection, by the Seattle Storm. Minnesota's Amanda Zahui B., who torched the Hawkeyes with 39 points and 29 rebounds in a win at Minneapolis, was tabbed No. 2 by the Tulsa Shock.

2015 WNBA DRAFT

Round 1

1. Jewell Loyd - Seattle Storm

2. Amanda Zahui B. - Tulsa Shock

3. Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis - Seattle Storm

4. Elizabeth Williams - Connecticut Sun

5. Cheyenne Parker - Chicago Sky

6. Dearica Hamby - San Antonio Stars

7. Crystal Bradford - Los Angeles Sparks

8. Ally Malott - Washington Mystics

9. Brittany Boyd - New York Liberty

10. Samantha Logic - Atlanta Dream

11. Kiah Stokes - New York Liberty

12. Isabelle Harrison - Phoenix Mercury

Round 2

13. Brianna Kiesel - Tulsa Shock

14. Cierra Burdick - Los Angeles Sparks

15. Natasha Cloud - Washington Mystics

16. Reshanda Gray - Minnesota Lynx

17. Betnijah Laney - Chicago Sky

18. Alex Harden - Phoenix Mercury

19. Brittany Hrynko - Connecticut Sun

20. Vicky McIntyre - Seattle Storm

21. Chelsea Gardner - Indiana Fever

22. Aleighsa Welch - Chicago Sky

23. Amber Orrange - New York Liberty

24. Zofia Hruscakova - Phoenix Mercury

Round 3

25. Mimi Mungedi - Tulsa Shock

26. Nneka Enemkpali - Seattle Storm

27. Laurin Mincy - New York Liberty

28. Michala Johnson - New York Liberty

29. Ariel Massengale - Atlanta Dream

30. Dragana Stankovic - San Antonio Stars

31. Andrea Hoover - Los Angeles Sparks

32. Mrica Gajic - Washington Mystics

33. Nikki Moody - San Antonio Stars

34. Lauren Okafor - Atlanta Dream

35. Shae Kelley - Minnesota Lynx

36. Promise Amukamara - Phoenix Mercury

l Comments: (319) 368-8857; jeff.linder@thegazette.com