10 Problems WWE Must Solve In The 2023 Draft

9. An Obvious Flaw With “Supplemental” Picks

WWE Draft 2023 Roman Reigns Triple H Vince McMahon Raw SmackDown
WWE.com

Wrestlers immediately come across as second-rate when they're lumped in with the off-air "supplemental picks". In 2021, WWE announced 16 picks on opening night during SmackDown, and another 24 on the subsequent Raw. Meanwhile, WWE.com revealed a further 30 on the website/social media streams.

Names such as Alpha Academy, Toni Storm, Liv Morgan and The Miz instantly seemed less-than because they hadn't been mentioned on TV. This 'best of the rest' approach is probably something the company feels it needs to do (they don't have enough time on programming to hype every single pick), but they really, really don't.

The solution? Stream more picks and reactions on YouTube, and at least try to make it seem like careers will be affected by jumps from Raw > SmackDown or vice versa. Generally, more emphasis needs to be placed on how different a wrestler's run could be going forwards once the Draft is over with.

Drop the "supplemental" name too.

Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.