Hailey Van Lith isn't waiting for the start of the 2026 WNBA season to grab everyone's attention.
Van Lith, the No. 11 overall pick from the 2025 WNBA Draft, started her college career at Louisville before taking her talents to LSU. After struggling to fin her footing in Baton Rouge, she hit the transfer portal for a second time and announced her commitment to TCU. That turned out to be a wise move on her part.
Despite only spending one season at TCU, Van Lith earned Big 12 Player of the Year and led the program to the Elite Eight. She averaged 17.9 points and 5.4 assists per game for the Horned Frogs.
Unfortunately for Van Lith, she didn't have a huge role on the Chicago Sky last season. She came off the bench and averaged 12.4 minutes per game.
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Although she's known for her work on the hardwood, Van Lith turned plenty of heads last spring when she made her Sports Illustrated Swimsuit debut. She was named SI Swimsuit's digital cover model for April 2025.
“My initial reaction was, I was intimidated,” Van Lith said. “I didn’t know if I would be comfortable in that kind of setting, but I wanted to try something that I had never tried. I would regret it a lot if I let my insecurities or my reservations hold me back from it.”
One particular photo from Van Lith's 2025 photo shoot resurfaced on social media this week, leaving WNBA fans around the country speechless.
Countless WNBA stars have posed for SI Swimsuit.
Sue Bird, Te’a Cooper, Nneka Ogwumike, DiDi Richards and Breanna Stewart had the chance to pose together for the 2012 issue of SI Swimsuit. Their WNBA-themed photo shoot made plenty of headlines that year.
“This is who we are; this is the makeup of our league,” Bird told SI Swimsuit. “The issue for so many years has been iconic and has represented a lot for women. Now you are seeing an evolution in what that can mean and what that can look like, and I think the WNBA players being a part of that is what makes it special. There is no better group of women to showcase that evolution."
The 2026 edition of the iconic magazine will also feature a few WNBA stars in Napheesa Collier and Sophie Cunningham.
“This is probably one of the most empowering things that I have ever done,” Cunningham said in an interview with SI Swimsuit.
The 2026 magazine will hit newsstands in May.
