Kysre Gondrezick Went Fourth Overall in the 2021 WNBA Draft
kysre gondrezick went fourth overall to the Indiana Fever in the 2021 WNBA Draft, a top-five selection that put her on a different tier of prospect value. After the pick, she told Pat Boylan she felt relief and could “finally breathe.”
Indiana Fever Picked Number Four
The Fever used the fourth overall selection on Gondrezick in April 2021. She framed the moment as validation, saying it was “kind of like proof to let me know you've finally caught up, and it's time to take off.”
For Indiana, that meant investing a premium draft slot in a guard with a profile built on skill and feel rather than hype. Gondrezick said her “IQ is something that people are enamoured with,” and she tied that to the way she played after growing up around basketball.
Grant Gondrezick and Lisa Harvey
Grant Gondrezick played for Pepperdine University and was drafted by the Phoenix Suns in 1986. Lisa Harvey played for Louisiana Tech University and helped that program reach a national championship. Gondrezick also said her older sister played basketball for Michigan State University.
That family line is not just decoration. It explains why she described the sport as something that “runs in my blood,” and why she said being around the game from a young age let her play “free” and understand it from both ends.
After the Fever Came Chicago
Gondrezick later joined the Chicago Sky’s training camp in January 2022 after being waived by the Fever. She did not make Chicago’s final roster for opening night, then returned to the Sky’s training camp in February 2024.
That arc gives the draft pick its edge: a fourth-overall selection brings expectation, but it does not guarantee a long runway. Gondrezick’s own account of hearing her name announced, then feeling she could “finally breathe,” reads like a player who knew the climb was real even before the first roster squeeze hit.
Benton Harbour to the Pros
Gondrezick grew up in Benton Harbour, Michigan, and said after the draft that her father had “spoke everything into existence.” She added that he believed she could reach the WNBA and even told her she would need to get in shape, have an All-American season, and become a top five draft pick.
That is the cleanest read on her place in the league: not a celebrity side story, but a player whose draft stock, family track record, and own words all pointed to the same expectation. The Fever made the bet at No. 4, and the rest of her early pro path showed how narrow the gap can be between draft status and roster security.
