Chinese center Li Yueru selected by Atlanta Dream in WNBA draft 2019

Chinese center Li Yueru, 19, was selected by Atlanta Dream in WNBA draft 2019 in New York on Wednesday, becoming the third player from China drafted directly to the top-level women's basketball league in the world.

Li Yueru [File photo: IC]

Earlier in the draft, Han Xu, also a 19-year-old Chinese center, was chosen by New York Liberty in the second round of the draft tonight, the 14th pick overall.

Li was selected in the third round, the 35th overall, about one hour after Han's success.

Li just helped Guangdong beat Bayi 97-81 in the WCBA final on March 23, 2019, winning the glory 3-2 on aggregation. Li also took the Asiad title in 2018 with Team China.

Both Han and Li were among the 53 draftees in the pool. The draft was divided into three rounds with each of the 12 WNBA sides picking one player each round.

Atlanta Dream finished runners-up last season, and New York Liberty stood 11th.

Zheng Haixia, former elite center of China, was the first Chinese women player selected in the WNBA draft, by the Los Angeles Sparks in the second round (16th overall) on February 27, 1997. However, Zheng played only one season for the Sparks and retired in 1998 due to injuries.