Maryland's Shatori Walker-Kimbrough, Brionna Jones are projected top-10 WNBA Draft picks

Shatori Walker-Kimbrough and Brionna Jones’ historic Maryland basketball careers are weeks from finishing, and the two have a few final games to showcase their worth in front of scouts. The WNBA Draft is just over a month away, and both are already heralded as first-round picks. There are just 12 picks in each of the draft’s three rounds.

In CBS’s most recent mock draft, published Friday, Walker-Kimbrough is projected to the Washington Mystics at No. 6 overall, while Jones comes in at No. 10 to the Dallas Wings.

The pair has spent this season climbing up Maryland’s all-time leaderboards. Walker-Kimbrough’s 2,036 points are fifth in program history; Jones is eighth on the list with 1,792. Jones also has 1,139 career rebounds, which is tied with Marissa Coleman (currently of the Indiana Fever) for third all-time. In the duo’s four years and 136 games together, the Terps are 120-16. They were the focus of a special Senior Day celebration Sunday, becoming the 10th and 11th players in Maryland history to have their jerseys honored in the Xfinity Center rafters.

Jones led the Terps with 19.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per game in the regular season, while Walker-Kimbrough averaged 18.5 points, 3.8 boards and 3.7 assists. Both were unanimous All-Big Ten first team selections, and each was named to the conference’s all-defensive team this week.

Walker-Kimbrough’s shooting and athleticism should serve her well at the next level. She’s a career 44 percent three-point shooter at Maryland, which will make her valuable to any team. Jones is an incredibly efficient low-post scorer and defender who currently leads the nation with a .690 field-goal percentage. She isn’t as athletic as most WNBA centers, but she’s spent her whole Maryland career making up for that.

The Mystics would be an exciting landing spot for either player. They would get to remain in the DMV and join a Washington team that acquired superstar forward Elena Delle Donne signed former Maryland point guard Kristi Toliver this offseason. In those two and Emma Meesseman, the Mystics have three of the four best three-point shooters in the WNBA from last season. Walker-Kimbrough would fit right in, and Jones’ inside game would complement those stars well.

Dallas, meanwhile, has three of the top 10 picks in the draft: No. 3, No. 4 and No. 10. It’s possible both Terps end up with the Wings, but CBS has them taking South Carolina center Alaina Coates third and Ohio State guard Kelsey Mitchell fourth (Mitchell is only a junior, but is eligible to enter the draft because she turns 22 this year).

Walker-Kimbrough and Jones led the Terps to a 27-2 record in the regular season, and Maryland earned the No. 2 seed in this week’s Big Ten tournament.

The team will open tournament play Friday against either Minnesota or Penn State, and all signs point to a rematch with Ohio State in Sunday’s championship game. The Buckeyes knocked off Maryland in Columbus on Feb. 20 to earn the tournament’s top seed. That game would garner league-wide attention.

The WNBA Draft is on April 13, and the 2017 season starts May 13.