Making a quick visit to New York during the NBA’s play-in tournament week, Cason Wallace flew across the country to attend the 2026 WNBA draft. As the Oklahoma City Thunder await their Round 1 opponent for the 2026 NBA playoffs, it’s the least he could do for his girlfriend, Kiki Rice.
Still enjoying the highs of a national championship, UCLA’s Rice has seen her life completely change over the last couple of weeks. The latest chapter includes her joining the expansion team, Toronto Tempo, as their first-ever draft pick.
Advertisement
The Tempo added Rice with the No. 6 pick of the 2026 WNBA draft. She was part of five UCLA players who went in the 15-player first round. The others were Lauren Betts and Angela Dugalic to the Washington Mystics; Gabriela Jaquez to the Chicago Sky; Gianna Kneepkens to the Connecticut Sun.
In total, UCLA saw six players get drafted among the three-round, 45-player WNBA draft. Shouldn’t be a shocker considering the Bruins went a historic 37-1 on their way to a national championship with a blowout win over South Carolina.
Rice and Wallace can now relate to having a championship ring. Wallace won his last year when the Thunder brought home the Larry O’Brien trophy after beating the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals. He talked about attending the WNBA draft to support her and her family for the big moment.
“It was a lot of fun,” Wallace said. “Just seeing my lady get drafted. Her and her family have fun.”
Advertisement
The stars aligned for Wallace to get the opportunity to fly out to see Rice get drafted. The Thunder hope he can one-up her with another championship ring. OKC is the title favorite once again. Let’s see if they can repeat last year’s success.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Cason Wallace says it was ‘fun’ supporting Kiki Rice at 2026 WNBA draft
