The WWE Draft is finally here, and it all begins on SmackDown. The blue brand will get the first pick of tonight’s draft, and there is one very logical choice for that pick, but you just never know what could happen. The draft will take place across tonight’s SmackDown and next week’s Monday Night Raw, and you can find the complete draftable pool of superstars right here. Tonight’s pool includes some huge names, including The Bloodline, Bianca Belair, Liv Morgan, Seth Rollins, LA Knight, Andrade, Jey Uso, and more, and then there’s the ability to draft from NXT as well. It should be a fun night, and you can keep track of every single pick for SmackDown and Raw on the next slide, updating as new picks are revealed.
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There are some new rules in effect for this year’s draft, with one big change regarding the current WWE Champions. Then there’s the wild card of NXT, as those will be complete surprises and are not listed as part of either night’s draft pool. Granted, there are a few names that seem like surefire picks, but we’ll just have to wait and see.
On ComicBook Nation, me and Nick Valdez assembled our mock draft picks for Raw and SmackDown, as well as two NXT superstars who should absolutely be called up to the main roster. You can watch those picks in the video below, and you can find the official draft rules for SmackDown and Raw below as well.
WWE Draft 2024 Rules
- Champions on each brand will be protected and are not eligible to be drafted. As a result, Damian Priest, Becky Lynch, Awesome Truth and Sami Zayn will remain on Raw. Cody Rhodes, Bayley, A-Town Down Under and Logan Paul will remain on SmackDown.
- Even though their status as champions allows them to go to both brands, WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Asuka and Kairi Sane are eligible to be drafted. They will be assigned to that brand if they lose the titles.
- Friday’s SmackDown will feature four rounds of draft picks being announced. Each round will consist of the brands making two picks apiece for a total of 16 picks being announced (8 for SmackDown and 8 for Raw).
- Monday’s Raw will feature six rounds of draft picks being announced. Each round will consist of the brands making two picks apiece for a total of 24 picks (12 for Raw and 12 for SmackDown).
- SmackDown will have the first pick on Friday, and Raw will have first pick on Monday.
Who do you want to see move to Raw and SmackDown? You can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads and Twitter @mattaguilarcb!
SmackDown: Blair Davenport
SmackDown‘s final pick of the 2024 WWE Draft was NXT’s Blair Davenport. NXT had a big showing across both nights of the Draft, and someone like Davenport will add a lot of depth to a stacked women’s division.ย
Raw: Bronson Reed
Raw‘s final pick of the 2024 draft was none other than Big Bronson Reed, adding yet another monster among men to their roster with the inclusion of Braun Strowman earlier in the night. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Raw would want to retain a talent like Reed who will undoubtedly do big things in the next few years.
SmackDown: DIY
SmackDown‘s next pick is DIY, reuniting all active members of The Way on the blue brand! Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa have endless potential in the tag team division, and they’ll likely be mixing it up for the titles sooner than later.
Raw: The Final Testament
Raw‘s first pick in the sixth and final round was The Final Testament stable. They will make the move from SmackDown and it’s Karrion Kross’ first time back on Raw since 2021.
SmackDown: Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell
SmackDown‘s final pick of the fifth round was Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell. The tag team have been on a bit of a mean streak as of late, namely LeRae, who has really taken it to Maxxine Dupri. Since their call ups from NXT a few years ago, they’ve both been regularly featured on Raw. However with this year’s draft, they move from the red brand to the blue brand.
Raw: Lyra Valkyria
Raw‘s final pick in the fifth round of the draft was another call up from NXT — Lyra Valkyria. This was another one that seemed obvious as the potential is endless for the young star. Similarly to Dragunov, Valkyria dropped the NXT Women’s Championship during WrestleMania weekend to Roxanne Perez. After that loss, it seemed like that was one of her last times in an NXT ring for the foreseeable future.
SmackDown: Pretty Deadly
SmackDown was up next, deciding to retain Pretty Deadly who had been in the midst of a feud with New Catch Republic. Interestingly, Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate, though eligible, weren’t selected during all six rounds of the draft.
Raw: New Day
Raw’s first pick in the fifth round was none other than the future WWE Hall of Fame tag team The New Day. Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston will remain on Rawย where they’ve been a mainstay for the last year.ย
SmackDown: Chelsea Green & Piper Niven
In the final pick of the fourth round, SmackDown selects Chelsea Green and Piper Niven as they move from the red brand. Given Raw General Manager Adam Pearce’s issues with Green, it doesn’t come as a surprise that they’d move over to the blue brand.ย
Raw: Ilja Dragunov
Raw‘s final selection in the fourth round was a pick from the incredible crop of NXT talent — Ilja Dragunov. It seemed like his days were numbered down in NXT following his huge championship loss to Trick Williams, but now he joins the red brand with top talent like CM Punk, Drew McIntyre, and Seth Rollins.
SmackDown: Naomi
SmackDown‘s first pick of the fourth round was Naomi who will join both Jade Cargill and Bianca Belair on the blue brand. Naomi had previously signed with SmackDown upon her return but now she looks to make a statement against some of the best female talent in WWE.ย
Raw: Judgment Day
With Damian Priest locked on Raw due to him being World Heavyweight Champion, the rest of the Judgment Day will be joining him. Dominik Mysterio will also be on the same brand as his father for the first time in quite a while so things on the red brand sure are heating up.
SmackDown: Shinsuke Nakamura
SmackDown‘s final pick of the third round included Shinsuke Nakamura, capturing him from the red brand. He hasn’t been part of the blue brand for a few years but it’s definitely a good change of scenery for him.
Raw: LWO
The LWO were Raw‘s next back in a shocking turn of events. They’ve been exclusive to SmackDown for quite some time but with Carlito having turned on the group and also being drafted with them, it’s sure to cause some chaos on the red brand.
SmackDown: Legada Del Fantasma
SmackDown was next, retaining Legada Del Fantasma. As they move away from their feud with the LWO, they’ll have plenty of talent to mix it up with on the blue brand.ย
Raw: Drew McIntyre
In the third round of the WWE Draft, Drew McIntyre was drafted to Raw. Though he wasn’t too pleased being drafted in the third round behind CM Punk, he will get to continue his reign of dominance (and next level hating) on Rawย where Punk and Sheamus have also been drafted.
SmackDown: Tiffany Stratton
It’s Tiffy Time — Tiffany Stratton will remain on SmackDown where she previously signed. Stratton has made waves in the women’s division since her main roster call up from NXT and she shows no signs of slowing down.
Raw: Braun Strowman
Raw was up next and will retain the monster among men, Braun Strowman. Strowman has been out of action for quite some time due to neck surgery. He made a big splash on his return, saving Jey Uso with a chokeslam to Finn Balor.ย
SmackDown: The Pride
SmackDown‘s next pick was The Pride (Bobby Lashley, Montez Ford, Angelo Dawkins, and B-Fab). The team is fairly new but they’ve all been competing on the blue brand in recent months and that doesn’t look to be changing any time soon. With SmackDown having its own set of tag titles again, perhaps the group will hold gold sooner than later.ย
Raw: CM Punk
In the second round, Raw rather unsurprisingly selected none other than CM Punk. Though Punk is currently out injured, he has several storylines brewing within WWE, including with former World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre. With Cody Rhodes now on SmackDown, Punk makes the perfect face to fill the gap.ย
SmackDown: Kevin Owens
The final pick of the first round was Kevin Owens, one of the most consistent members of the WWE roster. Owens, a multi-time champion, will remain on SmackDown.
Raw: Damage CTRL
WWE’s most dominant female stable is officially on the red brand. Although the tag team champions will be able to wrestle across both brands given there is only one set of titles, should they lose them they will be exclusive to Raw.
SmackDown: Jade Cargill
Much like her new tag team partner Bianca Belair, Jade Cargill was the first overall pick for SmackDown on night two of the WWE Draft. SmackDown retains the star who previously gave her allegiance to the blue brand. Cargill and Belair fight Damage CTRL this Saturday for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships at Backlash.ย
Raw: Imperium
Raw got the first pick of the night and they opted to retain one of their most dominating groups in Imperium. After the shocking split of Imperium and Giovanni Vinci being no more, former longest-reigning Intercontinental Champion Gunther and Ludwig Kaiser look to prove themselves as a team on the red brand.ย
SmackDown – Bianca Belair
With the very first pick in the 2024 WWE Draft, SmackDown chose The EST Bianca Belair, solidifying that the blue brand’s Women’s Division would retain one of its biggest superstars moving forward.
Raw: Jey Uso
With Raw’s first pick of the 2024 Draft, they chose to retain a superstar as well, and it was none other than Main Event Jey Uso. Jey has become a fixture of Raw ever since departing SmackDown last year, and now he will continue to call the red brand home.
SmackDown: Carmelo Hayes
With the third pick in the draft, SmackDown decided to make the first pick from the talented NXT roster and choose Carmelo Hayes. Melo Don’t Miss even made an appearance on the stage, and it took no time at all for Melo to get his first opponent of the new era in the Champion himself Cody Rhodes.
Raw: Seth Rollins
With the final pick of the initial four, it was Raw’s turn to choose, and they made a statement with it. Raw chose Seth Freakin Rollins, ensuring that the era of Rollins is far from over on the red brand.
SmackDown: Randy Orton
When Randy Orton made his long-awaited return to WWE, he chose to sign with SmackDown after a fierce bidding war from both shows. During tonight’s Draft, SmackDown chose him with their next pick, making sure he stayed on the blue brand.
Raw: Bron Breakker
Raw had the next pick, and while Orton was staying put on SmackDown, the blue brand lost another recent signing to Raw. That would be Bron Breakker, who signed with SmackDown earlier this year but is now an official part of Monday Night Raw.
SmackDown: Nia Jax
SmackDown was up next, and they took to taking someone from the red brand’s Women’s Division in Nia Jax. The powerhouse superstar will be an instant threat in the women’s division, and someone Bayley will have to look out for.
Raw: Liv Morgan
Raw had the next pick, and it was another women’s superstar in Liv Morgan coming off the board. Morgan has been in a feud with Rhea Ripley, and once Mami gets back from her injury, that will pick right back up with Morgan back on Raw.
SmackDown: LA Knight
To start the third round, SmackDown went for another one of its marquee stars over the past year, and that was LA Knight. Knight has seen his popularity rise substantially over the past few months, and that trend will continue on the blue brand in 2024.
Raw: Ricochet
Raw also looked to retain one of its superstars and chose Ricochet with the second pick of the third round. Ricochet has been one of Raw’s most consistent stars, and that looks to continue throughout this next WrestleMania season.
SmackDown: The Bloodline
After what seemed like forever, The Bloodline was finally chosen with the third pick of the third round. Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Paul Heyman will continue to call SmackDown home, but the pick did not include Roman Reigns, as he had voluntarily withdrawn from consideration earlier in the night.
Raw: Sheamus
Sheamus recently made his return to WWE after a prolonged absence due to injury, and last week he ended up confronting his old friend Drew McIntyre. Raw then chose him with the final pick of the third round, so it seems we’ll be seeing more of that conflict moving forward.
SmackDown: AJ Styles
SmackDown had the first pick of the fourth round, and they chose to retain one of their Superstars by picking the phenomenal one AJ Styles. Styles will be staying put, so we could see more of his rivalry with Rhodes after their match-up at Backlash.
Raw: Alpha Academy
Raw was up next and chose to bring back a fan-favorite stable in Alpha Academy. Plus, this ensures that the evolving story between Chad Gable and Sami Zayn around the Intercontinental Championship isn’t going anywhere.
SmackDown: Andrade
SmackDown then decided to shake things up, bringing a former member of the Raw roster to the blue brand by choosing Andrade. Like Breakker, Andrade was a recent signing of Raw, so getting him over on SmackDown is a big win.
Raw: Kiana James
In the final pick of the night, it was Raw’s turn, and they made an official call-up from NXT with the pick of Kiana James. James has been one of NXT’s premiere heels over the past year, and she now brings that attitude and skillset to Monday Night Raw.
SmackDown: Cedric Alexander and Ashante Thee Adonis
WWE continued their draft on social media, revealing the relatively recent Tag Team of Cedric Alexander and Ashante Thee Adonis would be calling SmackDown home.
Raw: Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn
Speaking of Tag Teams, Raw would pick one with their next pick as well, bringing Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn to the red brand to work their magic.
SmackDown: Baron Corbin
SmackDown then decided to shift to the singles division but added Baron Corbin to the blue brand. Corbin is coming off of a big Tag Team Titles run with Bron Breakker, but now he is back to seeking solo gold.
Raw: Ivar
Another superstar currently working solo is Ivar, who will be sticking around on Monday Night Raw. When Erik comes back the brand will have another Tag Team in the mix, but Ivar has no problem jumping into the ring solo until that happens.
SmackDown: The O.C.
Earlier in the night SmackDown drafted AJ Styles, and now SmackDown has brought over Styles’ former allies in The O.C. That could mean a reconciliation is on the horizon, though it could also mean we’ll see the former allies become bitter adversaries. Either way, their storyline is seemingly far from over.
Raw: Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark
Raw then turned their attention to the Women’s Division and drafted Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark to close out the draft. Baszler and Stark were actually drafted as individuals and not a Tag Team, though they have teamed up quite a bit in the past. We’ll have to wait and see if that will be the case again moving forward, but with both on the same brand still, it remains a possibility.
