With the CBA uncertainty now in the rearview mirror, the WNBA is shifting its full focus to growth. The WNBA is officially getting bigger, setting the stage for the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo to build their inaugural rosters in the 2026 Expansion Draft.

So, where can you watch the expansion draft ahead of the 2026 season, and what are the complete details about the Expansion Draft? Let’s find out.

2026 WNBA Expansion Draft

Date: Friday, April 3

Time: 3:30 p.m. ET

TV: ESPN | Streaming: Fubo (try for free)

What is the format, and which team gets to pick first?

To determine the order of the expansion draft, the WNBA conducted a coin toss on Friday. The Tempo won the toss and opted to pick No. 6 overall in the annual draft, which gives the Fire the first pick in the expansion draft.

The two-round expansion draft will feature a snake format, with teams alternating up to 12 picks (six each) and the pick order reversing between rounds; this snake format will also apply to their picks in the annual draft.

As expected, the Tempo decided that the No. 6 pick in the annual draft and the second and fourth picks in the expansion draft were more valuable than the No. 7 pick in the annual draft and the first and third picks in the expansion draft. Of course, they did have to make that decision before knowing what players were available in the expansion draft; otherwise, it wouldn’t have been a fair contest.

Now, let’s look at the picks each team has in the annual draft and expansion draft:

Toronto Tempo: Picks Nos. 6, 22, and 36 in the WNBA Draft and picks Nos. 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 17, 19, 21, and 23 in the expansion draft.

Portland Fire: Picks Nos. 7, 21, and 37 in the WNBA Draft and picks Nos. 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, and 24 in the expansion draft.

Deciding the Player Pool

Before the expansion drafts start, however, there will be some formalities that will have to be addressed. Each of the 13 existing teams will be required to submit a list to the league of every player to whom it has rights: players on the team’s active, suspended, draft list/reserved, core, or retired lists as of the final day of the 2025 regular season.

The teams had to provide the list by Sunday, March 29, two days after the coin toss. The 13 existing teams will then be allowed to designate five “protected players” who will not be available for selection in the expansion draft. The other players who are not on that list will become eligible to be picked by the Fire and Tempo.

How many players can be selected from each existing team?

Two players can be selected, but only one in each round. To ensure fairness in the expansion draft, some guidelines have been set. The Fire and Tempo will, combined, be allowed to select a maximum of two players from each of the 13 existing teams.

This step would prevent a situation where one team (or teams) has its roster ruined, while others are left intact. But then there are other factors to bear in mind as well. Only two players can be selected from each existing team; each expansion team is not limited to one player from each of the existing teams.

Furthermore, the teams are not required to make all 12 selections.

Upcoming Free Agent Situation With The Expansion Draft?

With the CBA deal aiming to bring major shifts to the pay scale for basketball players, many athletes chose to enter free agency. Naturally, we have over 100 free agents this year. If the Fire or Tempo select a player who is an upcoming free agent, they will receive whatever contract rights the previous team had with said player.

Thus, if a player was set to become a restricted free agent, for example, the Fire or Tempo would have the right of first refusal on a contract offer from another team. The Fire and the Tempo can each only select one player in the expansion draft who will be an unrestricted free agent.

This is very different from the Golden State Valkyries’ expansion draft in 2024. In that one in particular, there was no hindrance in selecting an unrestricted free agent, even if they can no longer be designated as a Core Player.

Coming back to the Tempo or Fire case now, if they choose to select a player who is an unrestricted free agent, they will be the only team that can offer that player a supermax contract.

Can Fire and Tempo Make Trades?

Another interesting question is whether the Fire and Tempo can engage in trades. Now this is what the league has to say on the subject.

“Between the time that the roster lists are submitted and a designated time on the day before the expansion draft, Portland and Toronto will be permitted to make the following trades with existing teams: (i) an agreement to select a particular player from an unprotected list and trade that player to a team other than her existing team; and (ii) an agreement to select (or not select) a particular player from such trading team’s unprotected list,” the league said on the matter.

The biggest question is whether the new teams will prioritize building for the future with young talent or poaching veterans for immediate impact, a decision that will define their franchises for years to come.