The Indiana Fever are set to pick third in Friday night’s WNBA Draft. Because of that, IN online sportsbooks have drummed up some WNBA Draft betting markets on that pick and more. Which way the Fever go might be decided by another WNBA franchise, however.

Most mock drafts split between one of two players at No. 3 overall. Because of that, the betting markets have a small spread in the lines between those two prospects. That’s isn’t the only thing IN residents and visitors can wager upon, however.

Top WNBA Draft betting options WNBA Draft betting markets

As of Friday morning, the only three IN online sportsbook offering wagers on this evening’s WNBA Draft are BetRivers, FanDuel and PointsBet. The draft is set to begin at 7 p.m. EST on ESPN.

WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert will announce each selection remotely. Several prospects and team personnel, such as top prospect Sabrina Ionescu, will also take part in the remote broadcast from their locations.

To get your bets in before the event, download the BetRivers, FanDuel, and/or PointsBet app onto your device. Alternatively, you can visit the sportsbooks’ IN websites on a desktop if you prefer. From there, you can either create an account or log into your existing one.

You might need to deposit on an Indiana online sportsbook in order to have money for betting. Currently, BetRivers only has markets for the first two picks while FanDuel’s and PointsBet’s markets extend further.

That third pick, barring any trades, will be the Fever’s first crack at adding to its roster. FanDuel and PointsBet have clear favorites, but it’s far from a foregone conclusion that the Fever will select that player on Friday night.

Lauren Cox or Satou Sabally? The Fever will likely take whichever is available

Most analysts consider the best available prospects in this year’s draft class to be, in order: Ionescu, Satou Sabally, and Lauren Cox. If the picks go according to the chalk, therefore, Cox should be the best available sitting on the board when the Fever’s pick comes up.

While it’s almost a lock that the New York Liberty will take Ionescu first overall, Sabally going second overall is no sure thing. There is some motivation for the Dallas Wings to select Cox with their first pick instead.

As a 6’4″ power forward, Cox fits Dallas’s need better than Sabally, a small forward. Additionally, Cox is a local hero for the Wings. She grew up in Flower Mound, TX, and was one of the stars for the Baylor National Championship team in the 2018-19 season.

Yet, Sabally’s talent might be too good for Dallas to let the Fever have despite the upside of selecting Cox. The only thing that seems certain is whichever of these two prospects Dallas doesn’t take, the Fever will.

All three books are confident that Sabally will go second overall, giving the Fever leave to take Cox. The best odds on Sabally at No. 2 are at BetRivers, currently slated at -182.

Even if the Fever does trade back in the draft, it’s still likely that whichever team moves up into this slot will take whichever of these players is still on the board. As of Friday morning, the Wings have revealed nothing about their intentions with the second overall pick.

Strategies for maximizing your investment for Friday night’s draft

Unless some inkling about Dallas’s plans emerges, it’s unlikely any of these books will move the lines on the second and third overall picks much. Almost every reputable mock draft has Ionescu first, Sabally second and Cox third.

With this information in tow, it may seem the opportunities to cash in on these markets are limited. That isn’t necessarily the case, however. Like with a lot of other markets, it just means you have to get creative and take some risks.

FanDuel has Sabally +200 in its market for the third pick while both that book and PointsBet have Cox +200 for the second selection. If you’ve got a gut feeling, there might be some surprises with these selections; those seem to be your best odds.

FanDuel also has markets on the fourth overall selection, currently held by the Atlanta Dream. The site also has two exciting prop bets that might be the most interesting markets of all.

There is an over/under of former Oregon players drafted in the top three, set at 2.5. The line on the over currently sits at +300, but for a very good reason. After Sabally, the next-best former Duck is Ruthy Hebard. Analysts expect her to be a first-round choice but don’t consider her a prospect on par with Cox or Sabally.

The line on the under is a much less desirable -400, however. The other FanDuel prop bet is whether Erica Ogwumike, the younger sister of WNBA All-Star sisters Chiney and Nneka Ogwumike, who both currently play for the Los Angeles Sparks, will be drafted. Current odds are +190 that she will not.

Whether or not that includes a third Ogwumike sister, the lives of 36 women will change forever tonight. For the clever WNBA Draft betting participants, tonight could be a lucrative night as well.