Indiana Basketball Star Mackenzie Holmes declares for the WNBA Draft but will miss the 2024 Season.

Mackenzie Holmes gave everything she had to the Indiana Basketball program in Bloomington. She leaves IU its all-time leader in points, field goals, field goal percentage, and third in rebounds. Holmes led the Hoosiers to the Sweet 16 this year after a disappointing 2023.

She now looks toward the next chapter of her career, the WNBA. However, there is one more obstacle Holmes needs to overcome: her knee. That knee limited her against Miami in the second round of the 22-23 tournament, and she hurt it again at the end of this season, missing the Big Ten Tournament.

Now, she's going to miss the entire 2024 WNBA season getting surgery on that knee:

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Where does Holmes fit in the WNBA?

The knee surgery does her no favors, but there might be a team that could draft her and give her a redshirt year to recover and be ready. ESPN has her mocked 19th to the Connecticut Sun, which might be a perfect fit for her.

The Sun are deep and are a power in the league. A rookie isn't likely to crack the rotation, and Holmes could take that year to rehab and be ready to contribute in 2025. The two-time defending champion Las Vegas Aces pick 18th and 24th; they too don't need a player to come in an contribute right away.

Going to the Aces would give her the opportunity to learn from Candice Parker, Aja Wilson, and Kiah Stokes. The Atlanta Dream pick 20th could also use frontcourt depth, but they might need someone to come in and contribute immediately.