Los Angeles Sparks select McKenzie Forbes in third round of 2024 WNBA Draft

The Los Angeles Sparks selected USC Trojans forward McKenzie Forbes with the No. 28 pick in the third round of the 2024 WNBA Draft.

Forbes played for USC just for one season following a few years at Harvard. She actually started her career in 2018-19 at California before transferring to the Ivy League.

Forbes had to sit out one season due to the transfer rules at the time and then the 2020-21 season was canceled for all Ivy League schools. She played the next two seasons with the Crimson before taking her grad year at USC this past season.

In 35 games in 2023-24, Forbes finished with 14.3 points per game, 3.1 rebounds, 3.3 assists, shot 38.4% from the floor and 37.4% from three-point percentage.

Technically, Forbes could’ve had one more season of eligibility, but she simply said she was done following USC’s Elite Eight loss to UConn.

“Yeah, like Ju said, it’s an amazing group,” Forbes said of the USC Trojans team she was apart of this year. “I’m just really grateful to end my career with Coach G, to be able to kind of rewrite, like, the history of what USC women’s basketball is and can be in the future. Yeah, just grateful.”

Forbes was a veteran presence on USC, but was excited to see the Trojans in the hands of star freshman JuJu Watkins in the future.

“Yeah, I mean, I told her on the way here, these people got to deal with you for three more years,” Forbes said. “If I was a coach, would be my worst nightmare. Just really excited to see her grow. As incredible as she is, it’s scary because she still can get so much better.

“But I think more than how good she is, like, Coach G kind of alluded to, it’s really rare that you get a superstar that can come in. She’s selfless. She’s mature. She’s a winner. She only cares about winning. She’s (expletive) 18 years old. Sorry. Excuse my language … Yeah, I’m just grateful that I got to be a small part of her journey. I think SC women’s basketball is in great hands.”

Forbes doesn’t have to go far for her pro career. Being a USC Trojan, she can basically go across the street in LA as a member of the Sparks!