Report: WWE Draft Edition Of Raw Expected To Feature More Brand Switches

WWE held the first night of the WWE Draft on the April 26 edition of Friday Night SmackDown with four rounds of draft picks and a total of 16 talents being selected during the live broadcast. There were only a few brand switches on SmackDown, though, and many of the wrestlers selected ended up remaining on their current brand. Two NXT talents in Kiana James and Carmelo Hayes were called up to the main roster, with James moving to Raw and Carmelo Hayes joining SmackDown. 

Fightful Select reported there were so few brand switches as WWE wanted to put forward the idea that retaining talent familiar to the brand was important. More brand switches are expected to take place during night two of the WWE Draft on Monday Night Raw on April 29. The expectation is more NXT talent will be moving to the main roster on Raw too.  

Fightful Select also noted that Kiana James was "genuinely surprised' by her main roster call-up as WWE didn't tell her what brand she would be on following the Draft. A talent in NXT noted she was previously one of the best in-ring talents on the Tuesday night show's roster. 

Talents available to be drafted on Monday Night Raw are as follows:

• #DIY 
• Apollo Crews 
• Braun Strowman 
• Bronson Reed 
• Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell 
• Chelsea Green and Piper Niven 
• CM Punk 
• The Creed Brothers (Julius Creed, Brutus Creed and Ivy Nile) 
• Damage CTRL (IYO SKY, Dakota Kai and Kabuki Warriors) 
• Drew McIntyre 
• Final Testament (Karrion Kross, AOP, Scarlett and Paul Ellering) 
• Giovanni Vinci
• Imperium (Gunther and Ludwig Kaiser)
• Jade Cargill
• Judgment Day (Finn Bálor, Dominik Mysterio and JD McDonagh)
• Kayden Carter and Katana Chance
• Kevin Owens
• Legado del Fantasma (Santos Escobar, Angel, Berto and Elektra Lopez)
• LWO (Rey Mysterio, Carlito, Dragon Lee, Cruz Del Toro, Joaquin Wilde and Zelina Vega)
• Naomi
• Natalya
• New Catch Republic (Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate)
• New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods)
• Odyssey Jones
• Pretty Deadly (Elton Prince and Kit Wilson)
• Shinsuke Nakamura
• Tegan Nox
• The Pride (Bobby Lashley, Street Profits and B-Fab)
• Tiffany Stratton