The Major League Pickleball free-agency draft is this weekend, and to prepare we have gone through the list of the top men and women available and taken a look at what each team needs.

But before we get to that, there was some news this week with how Premier Level roster expansion -- going from four players on a team to six -- will work throughout the season.

Premier Level teams will be allowed to participate in four waiver wire periods to make changes to their rosters during the 2025 season.

Read next: Major League Pickleball team-by-team schedules.

Waivers will run in reverse order of points earned per match and be executed on these dates:

Premier Level Waivers #1: Tuesday, May 6 (after MLP Columbus)

Premier Level Waivers #2: Tuesday, Jun. 3 (after MLP Phoenix)

Premier Level Waivers #3: Tuesday, Jul. 1 (after MLP San Clemente)

Premier Level Waivers #4: Tuesday, Jul. 15 (after Mid-Season Tournament)

Teams will designate their top four players on the Monday following an event, and all teams’ fifth and sixth players will then become available on Waivers.

In order for a team to claim another team’s fifth or sixth player, they must drop one of their own top four players as the corresponding move.

The idea behind this change is to ensure that talent isn't "hidden" on the bench of a team. The league wants its best players to be playing in its events, and this is one way to make sure that's happening. It also will maintain a competitive balance from the top of the standings to the bottom.

Read next: Major League Pickleball teams make keeper selections.

The Premier Level draft is scheduled for Sunday at noon, while the Challenger Level draft is scheduled for Monday at noon. Both drafts will be operated by a dynamic bidding process for each selection spot. This gives teams the chance to utilize whatever bidding strategy they see fit in order to build the best full roster, in a process similar to the 2024 Premier Level draft.

In this year's Premier Level draft, all teams must have four players rostered before any team can bid on a spot to draft their fifth player.

Current rosters and what each team needs

Premier Level Teams (six-player rosters)

Atlanta Bouncers

Roster: Todd Fought, Vivian Glozman, Jaume Martinez Vich
Needs: Two women, one man

Carolina Pickleball Club

Roster: Kaitlyn Christian, Ben Johns, Collin Johns
Needs: Two women, one man

Chicago Slice

Roster: None
Needs: Three women, three men

Columbus Sliders

Roster: Andrei Daescu, Carson “CJ” Klinger, Parris Todd
Needs: Two women, one man

D.C. Pickleball Team

Roster: Dekel Bar, Jackie Kawamoto, Rachel Rohrabacher
Needs: Two men, one woman

Dallas Flash

Roster: Hurricane Tyra Black, Jorja Johnson, JW Johnson
Needs: Two men, one woman

Los Angeles Mad Drops

Roster: Hunter Johnson, Jade Kawamoto, Catherine Parenteau
Needs: Two men, one woman

Miami Pickleball Club

Roster: Eric Oncins, Milan Rane
Needs: Two men, two women

New Jersey 5s

Roster: Will Howells, Zane Navratil, Anna Leigh Waters
Needs: Two women, one man

New York Hustlers

Roster: None
Needs: Three men, three women

Orlando Squeeze

Roster: Dylan Frazier, Lacy Schneemann, Federico Staksrud
Needs: Two women, one man

Phoenix Flames

Roster: Meghan Dizon, Jessie Irvine, Tyson McGuffin
Needs: Two men, one woman

SoCal Hard Eights

Roster: Judit Castillo, Irina Tereschenko
Needs: Three men, one woman

St. Louis Shock

Roster: Anna Bright, Hayden Patriquin, Gabriel Tardio
Needs: Two women, one man

Texas Ranchers

Roster: Christian Alshon, Tina Pisnik, Etta Wright
Needs: Two men, one woman

Utah Black Diamonds

Roster: Connor Garnett, Tyler Loong, Alix Truong
Needs: Two women, one man

Challenger Level Teams (four-player rosters)

Bay Area Breakers

Roster: Allyce Jones
Needs: Two men, one woman

Brooklyn Aces

Roster: Daniel De La Rosa, Mariana Humberg, Andrea Koop
Needs: One man

California Black Bears

Roster: Rafa Hewett, Lina Padegimaite, Layne Sleeth
Needs: One man

Florida Smash

Roster: Martina Frantova, Travis Rettenmaier
Needs: One man, one woman

Las Vegas Night Owls

Roster: Brooke Buckner, Pablo Tellez, Chao Yi “Zoey” Wang
Needs: One man

Nashville Pandas

Roster: Ewa Radzikowska
Needs: Two men, one woman

Top available men in the draft

1. Quang Duong – Once known as just a very good singles player, Duong proved in 2024 that he can compete at the highest level in men’s doubles and mixed doubles as well. Would be surprised if he wasn’t the first man off the board.
   
   
2. Riley Newman – Regressed in 2024, but rounded back into form toward the end of the year and won the men’s doubles title at World’s in November with Hayden Patriquin. Has also been more in the mix on the PPA Tour so far in 2025. Still a top 15 men’s player in my opinion, and has an MLP title to his name with D.C. in 2023.
   
   
3. Jack Sock – Didn’t take the pickleball world by storm in 2024 like many thought he would, but still had a sneaky good year in MLP, leading New York to the playoffs (they lost in the first round). Has had strong singles results so far in 2025 and appears motivated to improve on last year’s performance. Also brings star power to whatever team he ends up on.
   
   
4. Jay Devilliers – Has bounced around in MLP and is coming off an injury that sidelined him for the second half of 2024. But his appeal is being above average in men’s, mixed and singles.
   
   
5. Augustus Ge – A breakout player for the Premier Level champion Dallas Flash last season. He definitely could go higher than No. 5, but in my opinion he was the beneficiary of having elite talent around him in JW and Jorja Johnson and Tyra Black. Will Dallas make a push to get him in the draft and run it back?
   
   
6. Noe Khlif – Was a big part of why Miami won the Challenger Level title last season and has continued to have strong results since. Has also had good results playing both the left and right side.
   
   
7. James Ignatowich – This one pains me because I think highly of Ignatowich. If he was right he would be at the top of this list – the problem is he hasn’t been “right” in quite some time and is currently dealing with a back injury. He appeared to be struggling to get through even one match per day at last week’s PPA Tour Mesa Cup.
   
   
8. Max Freeman – Signed with the UPA at the last minute and moves straight into the top 10. Freeman had good results in men’s and mixed on the PPA Tour toward the end of 2024, and is also a strong singles player thanks to a Vanderbilt tennis pedigree.
   
   
9. Roscoe Bellamy – I think teams will prioritize two things when thinking about who to have as a third men's player on their roster: Can they play big in mixed and are they good at singles. Bellamy fits the bill.
   
   
10. Donald Young – Made big strides in doubles toward the end of 2024, great singles player, brings name ID and professionalism to your squad.
    
    
11. Darrian (DJ) Young – His best is elite. The prospect of capturing that potential will be too good for teams to pass up.
    
    
12. Blaine Hovenier – Made a big jump in 2024, playing multiple events in Premier with the LA Mad Drops. The results were a mixed bag, but he showed that he can hang when he’s playing well.
    
    
13. Anderson Scarpa – Mr. Reliable. I suspect many teams would be happy to have him as a bench player.
    
    
14. AJ Koller – The results haven’t been there in the last year, but he can still compete with the best at times and would be a good veteran player to have on the sideline. Think of him as a player coach.
    
    
15. Michael Loyd – Great singles player, doubles results improving steadily.

Unknowns

Yates Johnson – Has been dealing with an injury lately. If teams are confident that he can be fully healthy soon, he could easily move into the top 15.

Thomas Wilson – Health issues have kept him off the court since the middle of 2024, but he has indicated recently that he’s hoping to get back to playing at some point. Will a team take a flyer on him in hopes that he’s able to come back toward the end of the season?

Also available

Greg Dow
Pesa Teoni
Aanik Lohani
Brandon French
Craig Johnson
Cason Campbell
Eric Roddy
Pat Smith
Martin Emmrich
Ivan Jakovljevic
Wyatt Stone
Zane Ford
Ryan Fu
Mo Alhouni
Gabriel Joseph
Alex Neumann
Spencer Smith
Wes Burrows
Tom Evans
Ryan Sherry
John Cincola
Steve Deakin
Mota Alhouni
Juan Benitez
Marshall Brown
Chuck Taylor
Sam Querrey
James Delgado
Luke Wasson
Danny Jensen
Ed Perez
Tam Trinh
Stefan Auvergne
Altaf Merchant
Stephen Madonia
Carlos Di Laura
Yuta Funemizu

Top available women in the draft

1. Lea Jansen – Hasn’t had the best results lately, but is still a very solid player in all three disciplines.
   
   
2. Kate Fahey – Was a great fit on a strong St. Louis team last year, but much like Ge, I suspect that had more to do with having the second best women’s player in the game and arguably two of the top five men’s players in the game on that team. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was the first woman off the board, but I’d lean toward Jansen’s overall body of work.
   
   
3. Callie Smith – Tried and true. Very consistent player who could make a lot of teams better.
   
   
4. Vivienne David – Had a stretch of great results in late 2023 and early 2024, but has been relatively quiet since. Could see her making another strong push on the right team.
   
   
5. Genie Erokhina – Had solid results last year playing for the Bouncers and Hard Eights at the Challenger Level. I expect her to move into Premier with rosters expanding.
   
   
6. Christa Gecheva – Another player who I expect to move up from Challenger.
   
   
7. Dominique Schaefer – One of the best singles players available on the women’s side, which is something I think teams will value in picking up a third female in Premier.
   
   
8. Lingwei Kong – Will be making her MLP debut after some decent results on the PPA Tour in 2024.
   
   
9. Liz Truluck – Had success last year playing in Major League Pickleball Australia.
   
   
10. Alli Phillips – Put up decent results at the Challenger Level last season.

Also available

Rachel Rettger
Tamaryn Emmrich
Sarah Ansboury
Angie Walker
Alex Walker
Michelle Esquivel
Pierina Imparato
Samantha Parker
Genie Bouchard
Hannah Blatt
Olivia McMillan
Ava Ignatowich
Helena Spiridis
Monica Paolicelli
Christine Trifunovic
Audrey Brown
Brooke Caruso
Camila Zilveti
Danna Funaro
Felicity Di Laura
Helena Jansen
Lauren Hidalgo-Smith
Lindsey Newman
Chloe Igleski
Marcela Hones
Polina Libo
Tatiana Ruhl
Victoria Di Muzio
Zoey Weil
Zoeya Kahn