• ESPN announced Thursday that it would air the 2020 WNBA Draft on its main channel.
  • The decision comes mere hours after the company announced that it would broadcast the draft on ESPN2 as originally scheduled.
  • WNBA fans criticized the brand for the initial choice given the lack of live sports due to the coronavirus pandemic.
  • Even presumed No. 1 overall pick and Oregon Ducks standout Sabrina Ionescu tweeted that the draft “should be on ESPN” before the switch was formally announced.
  • You can tune into the 2020 WNBA Draft on ESPN starting at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, April 17.
  • Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.

The 2020 WNBA Draft will now be aired on ESPN.

The decision is a reversal from an announcement the brand made hours earlier indicating that the draft would be broadcast on ESPN2 as originally scheduled.

WNBA fans took to social media and flooded the comments of the ESPN Women's Hoops tweet to criticize the move given the lack of live sports due to the coronavirus pandemic.

https://twitter.com/j_runx/status/1243208468938571776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Even former Oregon Ducks standout and presumed No. 1 overall pick Sabrina Ionescu chimed in before the brand officially announced that it had walked back the decision. She has since deleted the tweet.

ionescu

Foto: Source: Sabrina Ionescu/Twitter

In light of the COVID-19 outbreak and shelter in place orders around the country, this year's WNBA Draft will be held virtually.

WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert will announce the picks and top prospects will participate remotely, per a statement from the league published on Thursday. Currently, the New York Liberty own the first pick in the upcoming draft, with the Dallas Wings and Indiana Fever rounding out the top three.

As of now, the WNBA season is still set to begin on May 15 as initially scheduled, but the league has stressed that it will continue to "scenario plan" in the wake of mounting public health concerns.