The Golden State Valkyries selected LSU guard Flau’jae Johnson with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft, but they decided to trade her to the Seattle Storm in a draft night switch-up.
Johnson was exchanged for draft rights to Marta Suarez, who was selected at No. 16, and a 2028 second-round pick.
“I didn’t know anything, it was a total surprise,” Johnson said in an interview with Good Morning America. “I’m excited to be with the Storm. The main thing for me was getting my name called. It was no stress, all I had to do was look really pretty, and I had no control over who picked me. But I’m glad Seattle got me, they got a good one, they really wanted me, so I’m excited to be there.”
After spending four years with the Tigers, Johnson now begins a new chapter in her life playing professional basketball.
With Johnson being selected eighth overall, she’s now the third consecutive top-10 pick for LSU and head coach Kim Mulkey. Angel Reese was picked seventh by the Chicago Sky in 2024, and Aneesah Morrow was selected by the Connecticut Sun also at the seventh overall pick in 2025.
Joining Johnson in Seattle will be the 6-foot-4 center and No. 3 overall pick Awa Fam Thiam, who played for Valencia Basket in Spain, as well as guard Taina Mair from Duke, selected at pick No. 14 and forward Grace VanSlootoen from Michigan State, selected at pick No. 33.
The Storm finished last season with a 23-21 record and earned the No. 7 seed in the playoffs, where they lost the best-of-three series 2-1 to the eventual champions, the Las Vegas Aces.
Almost stealing the show was her little brother, Aydin, who was invited on stage by ESPN’s Holly Rowe to join his sister to share the moment. Having her family with her on draft night made the experience unforgettable and showed how tight their bond is.
“It meant everything to me,” Johnson said. “For me, it’s just being somebody that they can look up to, being somebody that they’re proud to call their sister, someone that can show them that they can do anything they want to. Be confident and walk in this world like you deserve to be there.”
In her four-year tenure with the Tigers, Johnson averaged 14.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.
In her career, Johnson has solidified herself as one of the greatest athletes to attend LSU, helping bring a national championship during her freshman year in the 2022-23 season.
To go along with the national championship, she never missed an NCAA Tournament, making it to the Sweet 16 four years in a row and going to the Elite Eight twice.
She’s also been selected to the All-American third team twice by the Associated Press and the U.S. Basketball Writers Association.
In her final season with LSU, she joined history by becoming the sixth player in program history to surpass 2,000 career points.
The Savannah, Georgia, native entered her career with the Tigers as the No. 26 player from the class of 2022 and was head coach Kim Mulkey’s first McDonald’s All-American.
