CHICAGO (April 15, 2024) — The Chicago Sky have selected Kamilla Cardoso (Kuh-ME-lah Car-DOE-so) from the University of South Carolina with the 3rd overall pick in the first round of the 2024 WNBA Draft presented by State Farm, airing this evening on ESPN.
No. 3 – Kamilla Cardoso
Center | 6’7” | South Carolina | Montes Claros, Brazil | Previous School: Syracuse
“We are beyond excited,” Chicago Sky General Manager Jeff Pagliocca said. “This is who we were so excited to get at number three. She has everything we want at six foot seven. She is athletic, a great person, a great teammate, she comes from a winning program and we cannot wait to get her here to Chicago.”
Cardoso joins the Sky after three successful years at South Carolina and one year at Syracuse. A two-time NCAA national champion, Cardoso made her mark on the women’s college basketball scene throughout her career. She most recently earned NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player honors while recording a career-high 17 rebounds and 15 points to tally her 28th career double-double of the season in the national championship game against Iowa on April 7. She helped the Gamecocks achieve a perfect 38-0 season, including an SEC Tournament title and a spot in the NCAA Final Four for the fourth straight season.
She became the first player from the Gamecocks program to receive the 2024 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) NCAA Division I Defensive Player of the Year award, averaging a nationwide top-15 2.5 blocks per game. In her senior year, she led the team in points (14.4 ppg), rebounds (9.7 rpg), blocks (82 total), and field goal percentage (59.4%).
Over her collegiate career, the Brazil native finished her collegiate career ranking in the top-10 in South Carolina’s all-time list in blocks per game at 2.0 bpg (No. 3), total blocks at 198 (No. 5), offensive rebounds at 317 (No. 7), total rebounds at 791 (No. 8), total rebounds per game at 7.8 rpg (No. 5) and defensive rebounds at 474 (No. 7).
As a freshman at Syracuse, Cardoso became the first player in program history to be named ACC Freshman of the Year in 2021 and helped the Orange to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. She averaged 13.6 points and 8.0 rebounds over one year at Syracuse.
She previously played in high school at Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where she was ranked the No. 5 overall player in the country and the No. 1 center in the Class of 2020. In her senior year campaign, Cardoso averaged 24.1 points, 15.8 rebounds and 9.2 blocks.
The WNBA Draft site is now live to see the latest news updates, in-depth analysis of draft prospects and more.
Entering their 19th WNBA season, the Sky finished the 2023 season with a record of 18-22. The Sky clinched their fifth straight postseason berth in 2023 and this season welcomes new Head Coach Teresa Weatherspoon and General Manager Jeff Pagliocca.
The Chicago Sky tip off the 2024 regular-season on Wednesday, May 15 against the Dallas Wings in Dallas at 7:00 p.m. CST. Follow @chicagosky on social media and sky.wnba.com for the latest news, content and ticket purchasing.
KAMILLA CARDOSO ACCOLADES
- NCAA National Champion (2022, 2024)
- NCAA Most Outstanding Player (2024)
- NCAA All-Tournament (2024)
- WBCA Coaches’ All-American (2024)
- SEC Defensive Player of the Year (2024)
- Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Finalist (2024)
- First-Team All-SEC (2024)
- USBWA Women’s All-America First-Team (2024)
- AP All-America Second Team (2024)
- The Athletic All-America Second Team (2024)
- All-SEC Tournament (2024)
- John R. Wooden Award All-American (2024)
- Lisa Leslie Center of the Year Award Finalist (2024)
- Honorable Mention All-America (2023)
- Second-Team All-SEC (2023)
- SEC 6th Player of the Year (2023)
- FIBA AmeriCup Gold Medal (2023)
- FIBA AmeriCup MVP (2023)
- FIBA South American Championships Gold Medal (2022)
- FIBA South American Championships MVP (2022)
- FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament All-Star 5 (2022)
- SEC Academic Honor Roll (2022)
- FIBA AmeriCup Bronze Medal (2021)
- ACC Co-Defensive Player of the Year (2021)
- ACC Freshman of the Year (2021)
- First-Team All-ACC (2021)
- ACC All-Defensive Team (2021)
- ACC All-Freshman Team (2021)
- McDonald’s All-American (2020)
- WBCA All-American (2020)
- Jordan Brand Classic (2020)