LOS ANGELES -- On Friday's L.A. Sparks match-up against the Chicago Sky, a Southern California native returned home.
Gabriela Jaquez, one of the UCLA Bruins that won the Women's National Championship a few months prior, was back in Los Angeles as a member of the Chicago Sky. Jaquez's stock rose considerably in that tournament run for the Bruins as she was picked fifth overall in the 2026 WNBA Draft.
Jaquez was asked if she talked to her brother, Jaime (who now plays for the Milwaukee Bucks), about being a professional and what things to look out for.
"Not really," Jaquez smiled. "But he's supportive, yeah."
Surprisingly, Jaquez had not played in the hallowed Crypto.Com Arena.
"No, I haven't," Jaquez said when asked about whether she had played in the building before. "So I'm super excited to play here in Crypto.com Arena, growing up knowing it as Staples Centers. And just all the legends that have played here, all the games that I have attended here... I'm just like I walked out there, I told Jacy (Sheldon), my teammate, I was like, 'This is so crazy.' Like I'm just playing in here. I've watched so many games. And so just super excited."
The Sky guard mentioned about her "fan section" as well.
"Yeah, there's going to be a lot of people here, obviously," Jaquez beamed. "But yeah. Super excited. I think my family, they have like two suites that they'll be in majority and I'll have some friends and family out in the arena as well. So it should be a lot of fun."
As all of the players in the league that have gone through, it hasn't been an easy transition.
"Yeah, it's really (a) short (runway). It's a very quick transition," Jaquez admitted. "I don't think you can fully prepare for that transition just because I don't think there's anything like it. But I did know that it was going to be quick and it was going to be fast, but I just try to stay grateful through it all."
At the very least, Jaquez had her team to lean on.
"I think everyone really gives a lot of great advice to someone to talk to," Jaquez said. "I really have appreciated Jacy Sheldon, Rachel Banham, (Natasha) Cloud, and I mean I if I keep listing, it's obviously going to be a lot of them. But like I said, they've just all been super helpful. And even today, I was just having some questions about the scout and Tash was just right there. 'If you have any questions, let me know.' I know it could be hard sometimes and she was just super helpful through it all. So I just really appreciate their help through this process."
And she still has her old Bruin teammates to lean on. All six seniors from that team are in the WNBA.
"We still keep that senior group chat alive and just kind of updating each other," Jaquez said. "Obviously, when we play each other, I'll text I'm coming into town or they'll text me and we always can get dinner the night before. And so that's always super special, especially me being in a new state, in a new city, as I've been in Southern California my whole life until now. It's great to see familiar faces and I'm really grateful that I could catch up with my teammates."
And of course, Jaquez had to take advantage of being back in the West Coast.
"I went to In-N-Out in Phoenix, actually, which was great 'cause Sydney Taylor and Jacy Sheldon hasn't tried In-N-Out yet, and I'm like, 'Well, this needs to change right now.' They ended up liking it, thank gosh. Definitely got to hit up In-N-Out when I'm on the West Coast. Go Greek is like a yogurt place that I got last night. I love it. I love Tender Greens and Blu Jam for breakfast. I have a lot of places that I like and so just going to those places and, obviously, seeing my friends and family, most importantly."
It was pretty much a home game for Jaquez. She got a rousing ovation when she entered the game and immediately scored five points to the delight of the L.A. crowd. However, the Sparks would end up defeating the Sky, 102-87. Jaquez did score 15 points, which tied Taylor and Kamilla Cardoso as leading scorers for the Sky.
But for Gabriela Jaquez, there's no place like home. And she definitely showed that on Friday night.