Gabriela Jaquez WNBA Draft projection: UCLA's title could push her into first round

The UCLA Bruins made it to their second-straight Final Four, but decided they weren't quite satisfied and went on to win the program's first-ever NCAA National Championship — defeating the South Carolina Gamecocks, 79-51. UCLA finished the season with only one loss, to Texas in the regular season, but made up for it when they got the best of Texas in the Final Four.

UCLA had been reliant on its six seniors throughout the whole season, but especially during March Madness. Senior guard Gabriela Jaquez was a key part of their success. Not only did she perform well during the tournament, but it was clear that Jaquez, along with the other senior Bruins, was not leaving UCLA without a title.

With all six seniors being WNBA-hopefuls, the NCAA Tournament was a great opportunity for them to show WNBA GMs what they're made of in the biggest of moments. The 2026 WNBA Draft is guard-heavy with a lot of elite choices set to go in the first round — Jaquez hopes to be among the top of those options.

Gabriela Jaquez emerges as a WNBA Draft prospect

Jaquez spent all four of her collegiate years at UCLA, becoming a consistent starter during her junior and senior seasons. The 6-foot guard has improved with each year as an all-around reliable player for the Bruins.

Across her career, Jaquez averaged 9.9 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 24.9 minutes per game. She shot 50.4 percent from the floor during her time at UCLA. Her energy is a key part of her game and her hustle when it comes to rebounding makes her a threat at all times. As a whole, that energy translates into strong defensive efforts from Jaquez.

This season, Jaquez averaged 13.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.1 steals in 30.4 minutes per game. She shot a career-high 53.9 percent from the floor and 39.0 percent from beyond the arc during the 2025-26 season.

How March Madness could elevate Jaquez's draft stock

With the WNBA Draft happening so quickly after the NCAA National Championship game, there's no guarantee that a solid performance will change the minds of GMs entirely — but if they were still on the fence, it could absolutely sway them. Many NCAA stars who are WNBA hopefuls treat March Madness as an audition tape. They know the GMs are watching, so why not put on your best show and prove your worth?

What evaluators are watching for in March:

• Under-pressure/Clutch performance
• Decision-making
• Versatility and adaptability
• Elite guard play

We've seen March Madness play a role in draft stock before. Alabama's Sarah Ashlee Barker was a top-10 pick last year after a couple of dominant NCAA Tournament performances. Although with a guard-heavy draft class, you really can't go wrong when picking a lot of these young players. So GMS may be looking at other aspects of their games besides the statsheet, like decision-making or overall demeanor.

Key moments from Jaquez's NCAA Tournament performance

With all of UCLA's seniors being so dominant, the points in each game are always fairly spread out, especially amongst the guards. But this doesn't mean that each one of their presences isn't felt every time they're on the court — especially Gabs Jaquez.

In her tournament highlights, so many key plays stick out. For one, in their first round matchup against Cal Baptist, Jaquez showcased her speed and agility with her crafty drives to the basket many times. Early in the fourth, she cut around one defender, driving and laying it into the basket while managing to get the foul called.

A lot of her highlights from this tournament come from the championship game. Despite the Bruins pulling away from South Carolina fairly early, we never saw Jaquez's energy waver. We all know South Carolina is capable of a comeback, but Jaquez was seemingly everywhere the whole game, not letting up on defense specifically. Jaquez was given the task of guarding some of South Carolina's best, including Raven Johnson.

Jaquez in the first round vs. No. 16 Cal Baptist:

• 16 points
• 5 rebounds
• 3 assists
• 62.5 percent from the field

Jaquez in the second round vs. No. 8 Oklahoma State:

• 10 points
• 7 rebounds
• 3 assists
• 2 steals
• 57.1 percent from the field

Jaquez in the Final Four vs. No. 1 Texas

• 10 points
• 4 rebounds
• 2 assists
• 40.0 percent from the field

Jaquez in the National Championship vs. No. 1 South Carolina

• 21 points
• 10 rebounds
• 5 assists
• 57.1 percent from the field

After the tournament, UCLA head coach Cori Close spoke about Jaquez on The Rich Eisen Show. She said, "The biggest games, the most pressurized games, when there is most on the line, the most consistent player was Gabriela Jaquez. I think it shows her mentality; she's just got this warrior spirit."

Strengths that intrigue WNBA scouts

• Scoring efficiency
• Ball-handling and playmaking
• Competitive nature
• Defense against any position

Areas Jaquez must improve for the WNBA

While Jaquez is considered a two-way player because of her ability to rebound and make shots, I do believe her 3-point shooting will need to improve in the WNBA. She doesn't need to become the biggest threat from beyond the arc because she does have a craftiness about her that makes her driving game so good. But I think becoming more of a dual-threat from 3-point land will help her career advance in the league.

She has the competitive nature that a lot of WNBA GMs are looking for and while it was apparent she could guard and play good defense against just about any position, will that continue in the WNBA? These are seasoned veterans whom she might be asked to defend. But there's no real way for her to improve that right now; it will come with time in the league, going against the best of the best.

Where Jaquez could land in the WNBA Draft

Before the tournament and definitely about midway through the season, I would have said Jaquez would be an early second-round pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft. Now, I would feel confident saying she's a first-round pick. Cori Close told Rich Eisen, "Gabs' game doesn't look like most other people. And she's gonna be a top 10 draft pick."

Maybe it's just the hype coming off the National Championship, but I'm going to agree with Coach Close. I think a great landing place for Jaquez would be the Indiana Fever at No. 10 or even the Washington Mystics at No. 9.

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