Los Angeles, CA – Fresh off their triumphant national championship run, UCLA women's basketball is poised to make history in the 2026 WNBA draft, with all six of its graduating seniors projected to be selected. The Bruins' senior class – Gabriela Jaquez, Kiki Rice, Lauren Betts, Gianna Kneepkens, Charlisse Leger-Walker, and Angela Dugalić – dominated the NCAA tournament, scoring every one of the team's 130 points across two Final Four games, a feat unmatched in college basketball history. As the draft approaches less than a week after their title win over South Carolina, these players are bracing for a new chapter that could see them scattered across the league or, in a dream scenario, reunited on the same roster.
The magnitude of this group's potential draft success hit home for Jaquez during a casual conversation with her cousin. 'It's gonna be so weird when you and Kiki play against each other,' the cousin remarked, prompting Jaquez to reflect on the deep bonds formed over years of shared practices and games. 'We've been playing with each other for so long now. Not just Kiki, but all of the seniors. We're bonded. We're a unit,' Jaquez said. 'It's gonna be weird, there's no denying that. But it's just the next step in our journeys. And who knows, we could be teammates again!'
ESPN projections place four of the Bruins in the first round: Betts at No. 4, Kneepkens at No. 8, Jaquez at No. 11, and Rice at No. 12, with Leger-Walker and Dugalić expected in the second round. If all six are drafted, UCLA would eclipse previous records set by programs like South Carolina in 2023, which had five selections including No. 1 overall pick Aliyah Boston, and Notre Dame in 2019, which saw all five starters chosen, headlined by Jackie Young at No. 1 and Arike Ogunbowale at No. 5. Earlier milestones include Tennessee's five draftees in 2008, featuring Candace Parker, and UConn's four first-round picks in 2002, such as Sue Bird and Swin Cash.
The seniors' impact was evident throughout the 2025-26 season, culminating in UCLA's first NCAA title. In the semifinal against Texas on April 4 at the United Center in Chicago, Betts sealed a crucial play with 20 seconds left, stripping the ball from Madison Booker to help secure a spot in the championship game. 'Oh my f---cking God, we're playing in the national championship,' Betts exclaimed amid the celebration at center court. The following day, April 6, UCLA dismantled South Carolina 78-48, building a 13-point halftime lead that swelled to nearly 30 by the end. With three minutes remaining, the seniors left the floor, watching the final moments from the bench in stunned silence before erupting in joy as confetti rained down.
Betts, the 6-foot-7 center who transferred from Stanford before her sophomore year, emerged as a cornerstone of the team's success. She earned MVP honors in the championship game, finishing the Final Four with standout performances that highlighted her paint dominance and rebounding prowess. Earlier in the season, during an 80-46 rout of USC on January 3 at Pauley Pavilion, Betts tallied 18 points and 12 rebounds, powering a second-quarter surge where five Bruins scored. Toronto Tempo head coach Sandy Brondello, scouting from courtside, witnessed the seamless chemistry. Rice contributed 14 points and nine assists in that game, while Jaquez added 12 points and six rebounds.
'I'm only as good as my teammates. I can't do what I do on the court without them. It takes all of us,' Betts said after the USC win. 'And there's six seniors who come out here and show exactly why they are in this position.' She credited the program's support system for elevating the group. 'All of us being put in that position is because of all the people in this program and the way that they've fed into us all this confidence, all this belief that we can do something like that,' Betts added, praising head coach Cori Close, assistant Tasha Brown, and the entire staff.
Close, in her 17th season at UCLA, emphasized the seniors' selflessness as key to their achievements. 'It's really simple,' she said. 'It's work ethic and selflessness and a willingness to put the team above themselves.' With a roster heavy on graduates, Close adjusted strategies to foster unity. For Betts, this meant reducing her individual load after a heavy Final Four performance the prior year, allowing others to shine. 'This season, it's not about one star or five individual stars,' Close explained. 'It's about a unit of five on the court. And for Betts, that meant pulling back her minutes on the court and making the others step up.'
Transfers and injury recoveries added layers to the group's narrative. Leger-Walker, a New Zealand native who joined from Washington State, overcame a torn ACL to become UCLA's top facilitator after being a primary scorer in Pullman. Dugalić, from Serbia and a transfer from Oregon, missed an entire season due to injury but returned as a starter in 2023-24, boosting her field goal percentage to a career-high 50.2% this year. Kneepkens, arriving from Utah, quickly integrated, playing in 37 of 38 games and averaging 12.8 points, proving clutch in high-stakes Final Four moments.
Rice and Jaquez, who spent all four years at UCLA, anchored the class with unwavering loyalty. 'It starts with Gabs and Kiki,' Close said of their commitment. 'But it's also players like Lauren, who stayed three years and then Angela who transferred, but she has been here five years. The loyalty across the board. And the commitment to the growth process.' Close highlighted the program's reputation as a top developer, noting, 'We have earned the right to be one of the best development programs, I think, in the country. And I think that's being acknowledged by the WNBA. We know how to prepare young women for a championship level.'
Assistant coach Michaela Onyenwere, the 2021 WNBA Rookie of the Year and No. 6 draft pick out of UCLA, played a pivotal role in mentoring the seniors. A former Bruin who has suited up for the New York Liberty, Phoenix Mercury, and Chicago Sky – and currently a free agent – Onyenwere helped instill a professional mindset. The group logged extra gym hours together, building habits that Close described as cultural cornerstones. 'This is not just a one off,' she said. 'This is the culture of our team.'
WNBA coaches have taken notice of this dedication. According to ESPN sources, the 'work ethic of the UCLA players' and their 'intentionality for skill development just months and weeks before the draft' stand out. One scout added, 'Putting the team above themselves, putting in work before or after practice, working together toward that goal, we don't always see that. And that's what separates this team and these players.'
For the players, the draft represents both excitement and bittersweet transition. 'It's really unbelievable for me to even think about that. That's a dream come true that we've all had you know, growing up,' Betts reflected post-championship. 'This is something we've all wanted. I am so proud of all the girls. Everyone deserves everything that's coming their way.' Leger-Walker noted the draft buzz fueled their tournament focus: 'We've known all season there was a possibility of us getting drafted. I think it's been a driving force of understanding who we're playing with every day.'
Rice echoed the team-first ethos that defined their season. 'This season has been all about what can we do to achieve our goals. And how can we achieve them together,' she said. Jaquez framed the legacy broadly: 'We've now built a legacy. And we'll continue to build it at the draft. Our legacy will be our national title. It will be the hard work that we've put in from day one. It will be the joy we have playing with each other. It will be the love that we have for one another. And all of that will be seen when we walk across the stage at the draft. It will be all of UCLA basketball's moment.'
As the 2026 WNBA draft nears – scheduled for April 12 in New York – the Bruins' seniors prepare to step into the professional spotlight. Close is optimistic about their futures, drawing parallels to alumni from powerhouse programs who thrived post-draft. 'This is what we prepare them for,' she said. 'I'm so excited for them to watch and chase their dreams and to just watch them come to fruition because of the sacrifices they've been willing to make. We've prepared and developed them and given them a unique parallel skill set that brings them to the WNBA. This is just the beginning for them.'
While the group wouldn't mind staying together – 'If a WNBA team wants to draft all of us together, we would be OK with that,' Dugalić said with a smile – they recognize the likelihood of facing off as rivals. Their UCLA tenure, marked by a championship and unparalleled draft projections, positions them to carry the Bruins' banner into the WNBA, potentially reshaping league rosters and inspiring the next generation of college stars.