Mock drafts are like eating cheese puffs — they’re appealing, but ultimately don’t have much value.

The WNBA Draft is Friday and we’ve been tasked with predicting the first round. We’re no Jerry West when it comes to basketball talent evaluation, so perhaps this is more a mockery than it is a mock draft. Or hilarity. Or mockularity.

No one knows how each team views a player, either. The player who one person might consider a surprise (or a “reach”) could be considered a no-brainer by the team that covets her.

Some folks were taken aback when the Connecticut Sun traded Olympian Shannon Johnson to the San Antonio Silver Stars for draft picks months before the 2004 WNBA Draft because then-head coach Mike Thibault coveted Minnesota senior Lindsay Whalen. The Sun drafted her fourth overall, and she went on to be one of the greatest point guards in league history.

Speaking of trades (and Thibault), the defending world champion Washington Mystics rocked the league Wednesday when it acquired Olympian Tina Charles from the New York Liberty in a three-way deal that included the Dallas Wings. The deal reunites Charles and Thibault, who spent three years together in Connecticut. There's a chance there could be more trades forthcoming.

Connecticut Sun fans, please note that the team doesn't have a first-round pick. They first traded Morgan Tuck and the No. 11 pick to the Seattle Storm for the seventh overall pick in February. Connecticut then shipped the that seventh overall pick and the 10th as well as next year's first-round pick to the Phoenix Mercury for DeWanna Bonner. El Sol picks at No. 23 (second round) and No. 35 (third round).

All that written, we’ll call this a resounding success if we get four of these 12 picks correct. Four out of 12 is 33 percent, and a baseball player is considered a quality hitter if they’re successful 33 percent of the time.

Thankfully, the first pick is a lock (Sabrina Ionescu), so all we need is to get THREE more hits.

Let's do this:

FIRST ROUND

1. New York Liberty: Sabrina Ionescu, Oregon, point guard

Ionescu is one of six players to win the Wooden Award multiple times. The others? Seimone Augustus, Brittney Griner, Maya Moore, Candace Parker and Breanna Stewart, who have 11 WNBA championships between them. That's some mighty fine company.

2. Dallas Wings: Satou Sabally, Oregon, small forward

It’s the first of three of the Wings’ first-round picks thanks to superstars Liz Cambage and Skylar Diggins-Smith both forcing their way out of town over the past two seasons. They also owned the No. 9 pick but traded it to New York as part of the Charles deal.

Sabally is an enticing talent for head coach Brian Agler to deploy. She’s 6-foot-4 and plays small forward — she was named the Cheryl Miller Award winner last week for being the best in the nation at that position. She averaged 16.2 points and 6.9 rebounds this season.

3. Indiana Fever: Lauren Cox, Baylor, power forward

The Fever drafted a leviathan with the third overall pick in last year’s draft — 6-foot-7 center Teaira McCowan. She averaged 10 points and nine rebounds, the latter which is ridiculous given that she averaged 22.1 minutes. Cox, a 6-4 post and an AP first-team All-American this season, would make Indiana even more physically imposing.

4. Atlanta Dream: Chennedy Carter, Texas A&M, shooting guard

Here’s where the mock hits a strip of ice.

The Dream don’t need another off-guard. Tiffany Hayes has started the past six seasons for Atlanta, and theyt added another during the offeseason when they acquired Courtney Williams from Connecticut. Carter is the best player available, though. She was the sixth-leading scorer in Division I this season (21.3 ppg).

5. Dallas Wings (from Phoenix): Tyasha Harris, South Carolina, point guard

What do you get the team that needs almost everything? Someone who could play off of Arike Ogunbowale would certainly work. Harris started in 102 of the 104 games she played during her collegiate career and averaged 12 points and 5.7 assists as a senior.

6. Minnesota Lynx: Megan Walker, UConn, small forward.

We waffled on this one.

The Lynx don’t need a small forward. They drafted another Husky last season, Napheesa Collier, who went on to win Rookie of the Year. And Collier started because All-World wing Maya Moore took last season off (and will again this summer). It’s hard to pass up a first-team AP All-American, though, who averaged 19.7 points and 8.4 rebounds in addition to making 45.1-percent of her 3-pointers.

7. Dallas Wings (from Seattle via Connecticut and Phoenix): Bella Alaire, Princeton, small forward

Hey, an Ivy Leaguer in the first round!

Alarie is one of those freaky players who have become a little more prevalent in the league — someone with the height of a post (6-foot-4) who can ruin a defense by shooting from outside. The four-year starter averaged 16.1 points and 9.1 rebounds during her career.

8. Chicago Sky: Crystal Dangerfield, UConn, point guard

We’ve officially reached the we-have-no-bloody-idea tier.

The Sky don’t need much. They were, after all, five seconds away from beating the Las Vegas Aces in last year’s second-round when Dearica Hamby stole the ball and heaved a near-half court shot for a game-winning 3-pointer.

Chicago has drafted a Husky two years in row (Gabby Williams and Katie Lou Samuelson, respectively). Let’s continue the trend and give it someone who can both back up and learn from one of the three best point guards in the world (Courtney Vandersloot).

9. New York Liberty (from Dallas): Beatrice Mompremier, Miami, power forward

The Liberty have a glut of guards. They signed former Sun Layshia Clarendon this offseason and acquired Tayler Hill and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough from Dallas and Washington, respectively, in Wednesday’s Charles’ trade. And then there’s Sabrina.

Let’s beef up the Libs’ frontcourt with the 6-4 Mompremier. She averaged 16.7 points and 11.4 rebounds over 50 games her last two seasons in Miami, leading the team in both categories in both those seasons.

10. Phoenix Mercury (from Los Angeles via Connecticut): Ruthy Hebard, Oregon, power forward

The Merc traded away two starters in separate deals to Connecticut (Briann January and Bonner) and may have gotten better after acquiring power forward Jessica Breland and Diggins-Smith (guard). As if center Britney Griner and guard Diana Taurasi weren’t dangerous enough.

The Mercury could use some help at the wing but there’s none left that stand out. When in doubt, go BPA (best player available). Hebard (6-4) was a first-team AP All-America pick, started all but three of the 144 games she played over four seasons and averaged 16.4 points and 9 rebounds during her career.

11. Seattle Storm (from Connecticut): Mikiah Herbert Harrigan, Maryland, power forward

The Storm are getting the band back together as 2018 WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart and Sue Bird return from injury, thus they don’t have many pressing needs.

Seattle’s depth looks better in the backcourt than the front with Jewell Loyd, Jordin Canada, Epiphanny Prince and Bird, so let’s go with one of the key players from the top-ranked Gamecocks. She was their leading scorer this season (13.1 ppg) and second in rebounding (5.6).

12. New York (via Washington): Kiah Gillespie, Florida State, power forward

The Liberty add the Meriden native and former Capital Prep standout to both help their frontcourt and rebuild. Gillespie is undersized as a post (6-2) but shoots well from outside could earn a job as a stretch-four.

SECOND ROUND

Please. No. Enough.

This is the opinion of Ned Griffen, who covers the Connecticut Sun  and WNBA for The Day

WNBA DRAFT

WHEN: Friday, 7-9 p.m. (ESPN)

TOP PROSPECT: Sabrina Ionescu, Oregon, point guard.

UCONN HUSKIES AVAILABLE: Crystal Dangerfield and Megan Walker.

MOST FIRST-ROUND PICKS: Three, Dallas Wings and New York Liberty.

CONNECTICUT SUN: Don't have a first-round pick. Have the No. 23 (second round)

and No. 35 (third round) and overall selections.