Taking the Leap for the 2026 WNBA Draft: Tonie Morgan

There is no team I’ve enjoyed watching more this college season than the Georgia Tech Yellowjackets. Running a Princeton offense with a ton of enticing twists and variations, this team just rocks. They play with speed, but also with intention and precision, spacing the floor with shooters, but attacking with cuts, screens, and patience.

Watching a really young Tech team last season, you could see so much potential in this group, particularly down the stretch of the year. Getting out to the best start in school history in the face of a solid schedule, man that’s been special to watch!

In spite of stumbling to Virginia tech for the first loss of the season, I can’t help but think about Tonie Morgan and her growth, as multiple players across the roster have made significant developments.

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While there’s maybe not a massive change in Morgan’s box score, she is considerably more polished and well rounded as an upperclassman than her first two years in Atlanta. One of the biggest leaps we’ve seen from Morgan is her efficiency, a byproduct of what I’d consider her overall best development, patience and control.

Finishing

I filtered out a per minute factor for points in the paint, showcasing the most frequent paint scorers in the ACC, and then utilized 2-Point percentage on the opposite axis to highlight efficiency versus frequency.

Only 3 guards appear in the upper right quadrant (Most frequent paint scorers and most accurate) amongst 16 total players: Ta’Niya Latson, Hannah Hidalgo, and Tonie Morgan, Morgan being the most efficient on two-pointers of the 3.

To add another layer, here’s the halfcourt rim field goal percentages for the trio of guards:

• Morgan: 63.3%

• Latson: 60.4%

• Hidalgo: 58.5%

This is not to say that Tonie is “better” as a finisher the other two guards, but it’s a fun stat to look at in reminding that Morgan should be mentioned as one of the elite creators in the ACC in college basketball, because she is!

***as a brief aside, Morgan and Hidalgo have both taken a wealth of shots at the rim, around 50 each at time of writing. Ta’Niya Latson has taken 91, and takes the 6th most rim attempts per game in the country per Synergy, which is just bonkers***

Her ability to contort in traffic, while simultaneously playing at the level of the rim is fairly unparalleled, and a huge reason for why she’s such a potent threat in the paint.’

Morgan has always had the ability to pull off highlight level plays on drives, but again, the refined patience has led to her shooting nearly 8% better on two-pointers this season! That’s massive for her viability as a lead guard and primary engine of an offense.

Ball Control & Feel

What stands out most to me about Morgan is her ability to just bend the court to her will. While Morgan is not currently a respected outside shooter, I think that’s what makes the control and pacing from her that much more standout. Becoming a respected shooter will be key for her in the coming years, without a doubt, but her consistent aggression keeps defenses honest, and she routinely grabs more than one pair of eyes when she has the ball.

Athleticism is so interesting to dissect, because I wouldn’t necessarily say Morgan is blow-by fast, but she is always creating advantages. Her handle, in tandem with a great first step, makes her a lethal threat downhill. She has a pretty special flexibility and bend that allows her to generate power quickly, leading to one of the better first steps in college basketball.

Yet this year, she’s combined those physical tools she’s had with an even better blend of counters and handle combinations.

She’s been elite working the two player game with Ariadna Termis, a pick and pop threat at the 5, forcing overs with patience and the potential of that pop out. I’ve loved watching her set up her screens with subtleties. That extra 5% makes a world of difference. She rarely feels sped up, out of control, or off kilter: Tonie Morgan plays at her speed at all times, and opposition struggles to match it for a full 40 minutes.

Morgan has been phenomenal in the pick and roll, a staple for the Yellowjackets, as she’s near the top of the country in volume and efficiency.

But, part of what makes her and this Tech team special is how she creates when plays break down or she has the opportunity to attack one on one. It will be interesting to see how this maintains in ACC play, as they take on more teams with varying builds, but I don’t think there’s been a team yet that has been able to contain Morgan in isolation.

I have the Notre Dame game on the 16th CIRCLED.

Morgan has been one of the most efficient scorers and facilitators out of isolation in the country this season, and while it’s a rather small part of her game, it might be one of the most crucial for the next level.

So much of the game has evolved into switchability and working to take away pet actions. How do you react when what you routinely get is taken away?

Manipulation & Playmaking

Morgan has taken that notion and run with it.

When teams do sell out to double her or work hard to under every ball screen, she finds ways to adapt, and Georgia Tech has great built in counters as well. She’s going to touch the paint and draw attention.

Morgan has one of the best assist to turnover rates in the country, and particularly the ACC. That stands out even more so when you plot it with usage percentage to show that she’s one of the better facilitators in the ACC when factoring in how much she has the ball in her hands and runs plays.

She was a bit turnover prone in 2023-24, but has nearly halved her turnovers this season, which is a noteworthy development.

You can tell going back through and watching how she’s thinking a step or two ahead, feeling out a possession, and making plays on the fly, which is another reason for what makes her playmaking special. There’s certainly system assists in there, which is a good thing, systems are an important structure for good offenses! But, creating when faced with a problem to solve is when I feel you learn the most about a player.

She’s thrived in situations where she can manipulate a tagger with her eyes and her feet. I love the way she dances into look-offs and knows where her cutters are going to be.

While this has primarily been an offensive focus, I do want to note that Morgan has made strides as defender this year. I want to see it more consistently, but it’s been there. She’s been better anticipating screens, using her quickness to wall off, and not getting caught off the ball. The tape is there to point to, but again, seeing that come to fruition more and more will be key.

Virginia Tech really took it to this GT team by making them work on defense similarly to how GT makes opposition work. I want to see the Yellowjackets (and Tonie) play more consistently with some physicality on defense. That’s something they did really well against a much bigger Oregon squad, and know they can replicate it moving forward.

I’ll have a new Draft Board for 2026 before the end of the month, and I expect to have Morgan in the first round or near it. Every game makes me contemplate it more, and she’s certainly a player to be very excited about for the next level, and in the immediate as this Georgia Tech team gets into the teeth of conference play.