Mumias-born basketball player Madina Okot has been selected by the Atlanta Dream in the first round of the 2026 Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) Draft, a huge milestone in a journey that started quietly back home in Kenya and has now taken her to the biggest stage in women’s basketball.

Okot was picked 13th overall, becoming one of the top names called in this year’s draft and putting herself firmly among Kenya’s rising stars in global sport.

Before basketball, Okot was playing volleyball in high school at Bishop Sulumeti in Kakamega. It was only later, while at Kaya Tiwi Secondary School, that she switched to basketball, which ended up changing everything for her.  She played in Kenya before moving to the United States, where she first featured for Mississippi State and later joined South Carolina, one of the biggest women’s basketball programmes in the country.

In the just-ended season, Okot stood out as one of the top players in college basketball, averaging 12.8 points and 10.6 rebounds per game. She also recorded 22 double-doubles, underlining the consistency that made her such an attractive pick going into the draft.

At 6-foot-6, she brings size, presence and confidence to the game, but what has also stood out is how quickly she has grown in the game despite only taking up basketball a few years ago.

From Kenya to the U.S. college system and now into the WNBA, Okot’s journey reflects both talent and serious hard work. It is also a moment that many back home are likely to see as bigger than just sport. Speaking after the draft, Okot made it clear that this achievement means more than just personal success. She said the moment was not only about her, but also about Kenya and expressed hope that it would remind others that they too belong on the world stage.

Her selection is also another sign of how far Kenyan women’s basketball can go when talent gets the right opportunity and exposure.