Just like the city she was set to join the following night, Jazmine Jones wasn’t sleeping. It was Thursday night, and the former Louisville Cardinal — too wound up about her future prospects — lied in bed restless, not able to get any shut-eye until 2 a.m.

She woke up at 7:30, her heart racing for that evening’s virtual WNBA Draft, when she would become the surprise of the first round. Although she’d been projected as a third rounder, Jones was selected by the New York Liberty with the No. 12 overall pick. The Florida native would be heading to The City That Never Sleeps.

But the dream was only beginning.

Not only was Jones a first-rounder on a presumably upstart Liberty team, she’d be joining Cardinal legend Asia Durr New York. And not only would she join three-year teammate Durr, but also Kylee Shook, a four-year teammate who was selected immediately after Jones as the Liberty's No. 13 overall pick. Shook, too, had been projected as a third round pick.

“There’s just no better picture,” Jones explained. “Me and Kylee have been together four years straight and we have grown so tremendously with our relationship off the court and on the court. And with me and Asia, it's a one-two punch, honestly. We've been close since my freshman year. I’ve learned so much from her.”

Should each of those players remain on the Liberty’s season roster, one-quarter of the squad would be former Cardinals.

Jones was named All-ACC first team after averaging 14.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.5 steals as a senior. Her defensive versatility and elite mid-range jump-shooting made her a tantalizing prospect, but mock drafts still had her sliding into the second or third round. Even Jones didn’t expect to hear her name in the first round.

“Jaz has some high upside,” Liberty coach Walt Hopkins said earlier this week. “She’s athletic, she shoots the 3 at a high clip. Doesn’t shoot a ton of them, but is a really high-character person.”

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Jones, watching the draft with teammates in Louisville, said she started crying upon realizing she was a first round WNBA Draft pick. Moments later, she called Shook, who tried to congratulate her teammate.

But Jones wasn’t looking to receive congratulations, she was seeking to give them; she’d just seen that Shook was the opening pick of the second round.

“Jaz called me and was like, ‘Congratulations!’ and I’m like, ‘Wait, what happened? I thought I was saying it you,’ and she’s like, ‘No, you made it. Back-to-back!’” said Shook, who watched the draft in Colorado with her family. “It was amazing.”

The draft was held as scheduled despite the coronavirus, but instead of a live event, it was aired virtually on ESPN. The Liberty had five of the opening 15 picks in the draft, first selecting Oregon’s Sabrina Ionescu, the national player of the year, before adding Jones and Shook, who were a part of the winningest senior class in Louisville history. They eclipsed the win total set by Durr’s senior class.

“It’s crazy,” Jones said of joining Durr and Shook in the pros. “It’s gonna be a Card Nation reunion in New York, right?”

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Shook, a 6-foot-4 power forward, is Louisville’s all-time leader in blocks, and she earned ACC Defensive Player of the Year honors this past season after averaging 10.1 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game. She leaped in the air when Jones was drafted and was then shocked to learn of her own fortune shortly afterwards.

“To be honest, I was surprised,” Shook said.

Little is certain about the 2020 WNBA season amid the coronavirus; it was slated to begin in mid-May, but has been postponed. While its future is hazy, there is nothing unsure about the happenings of Friday’s draft. Becoming high draft picks on the same team as Durr may have been a dream scenario for a couple of former Cardinals bound for the City That Never Sleeps, but there’s no need for them to pinch themselves. It happened.

“It’s un-explainable, honestly,” Jones said.

2020 WNBA draft

FIRST ROUND

New York Liberty: Sabrina Ionescu, G, Oregon

Dallas Wings: Satou Sabally, F, Oregon

Indiana Fever: Lauren Cox, F, Baylor

Atlanta Dream: Chennedy Carter, G, Texas A&M

Dallas Wings: Bella Alarie, F, Princeton

Minnesota Lynx: Mikiah Herbert Harrigan, F, South Carolina

Dallas Wings: Tyasha Harris, G, South Carolina

Chicago Sky: Ruthy Hebard, F, Oregon

New York Liberty: Megan Walker, F, Connecticut

Phoenix Mercury: Jocelyn Willoughby, F, Virginia

Seattle Storm: Kitija Laksa, G, South Florida/Latvia

New York Liberty: Jazmine Jones, G, Louisville

SECOND ROUND

(13) New York Liberty: Kylee Shook, F, Louisville

(14) Indiana Fever: Kathleen Doyle, G, Iowa

(15) New York Liberty: Leaonna Odom, F, Duke

(16) Minnesota Lynx: Crystal Dangerfield, G, Connecticut

(17) Atlanta Dream: Brittany Brewer, C, Texas Tech

(18) Phoenix Mercury: Te'a Cooper, G, Baylor

(19) Seattle Storm: Joyner Holmes, F, Texas

(20) Los Angeles Sparks: Beatrice Mompremier, F, Miami

(21) Dallas Wings: Luisia Geiselsoder, C, Germany

(22) Los Angeles Sparks: Leonie Fiebich, G, Germany

(23) Connecticut Sun: Kaila Charles, G, Maryland

(24) Washington Mystics: Jaylyn Agnew, F, Creighton

THIRD ROUND

(25) Atlanta Dream: Mikayla Pivec, G, Oregon State

(26) New York Liberty: Erica Ogwumike, G, Rice

(27) Atlanta Dream: Kobi Thornton, F, Clemson

(28) Indiana Fever: Kamiah Smalls, G, James Madison

(29) Phoenix Mercury: Stella Johnson, G, Rider

(30) Chicago Sky: Japreece Dean, G, UCLA

(31) Seattle Storm: Haley Gorecki, G, Duke

(32) Chicago Sky: Kiah Gillespie, F, Florida State

(33) Las Vegas Aces: Lauren Manis, F, Holy Cross

(34) Los Angeles Sparks: Tynice Martin, G, West Virginia

(35) Connecticut Sun: Juicy Landrum, G, Baylor

(36) Washington Mystics: Sug Sutton, G, Texas