Portland finally has a WNBA team again, and now the Fire have an important early decision to make. After the March 27 coin toss, Portland landed the No. 7 pick in the first round of the 2026 WNBA Draft, while Toronto chose No. 6, and Portland got the first pick in the April 3 expansion draft. That means the Fire can shape their roster in expansion first, then use the college draft to add a real building block.
If Portland is looking for the smartest, safest, and most useful choice at No. 7, that player is Kiki Rice.
Rice is a 5-foot-11 senior guard at UCLA from Bethesda, Maryland, where she starred at Sidwell Friends before heading west. She entered college with major expectations, and across four seasons at UCLA, she has steadily grown into exactly the kind of player pro teams love: poised, productive, unselfish, and increasingly efficient. UCLA lists her as a senior guard, and her college résumé already includes First Team All-Big Ten honors, Associated Press All-America honorable mention, and a spot as a 2025 Nancy Lieberman Point Guard of the Year finalist.
This season, Rice has been one of the most complete guards in the country. In 35 games, she is averaging 15.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.4 assists in 30.5 minutes per game while shooting 49.9 percent from the field, 38.4 percent from three, and 90.7 percent from the foul line. She also has 59 steals against 56 turnovers, which is a nice little summary of her overall game: productive, active, and under control.
And if you want the advanced numbers, they back her up. Her Hoop Stats credits Rice with a 54.5 effective field goal percentage, a 22.5 assist rate, an 11.5 turnover rate, and a 2.72 assists-to-turnovers mark. That last number especially jumps off the page for a lead guard. It says she is not just creating offense; she is doing it without playing reckless basketball. Her Hoop Stats also gives her a 31.1 PER, 7.1 win shares, a 136.0 offensive rating, and an 82.1 defensive rating. Those are strong indicators of a player who impacts winning on both ends.
That is a big reason she makes sense for Portland.
Expansion teams are weird. They do not just need talent. They need players who can help make the whole thing feel less like an emergency. They need someone who can organize possessions, defend their spot, make smart reads, and avoid wasting trips. Rice looks like that kind of player. NBC Sports recently wrote that she may have made one of the most meaningful jumps in draft stock this year, with a WNBA evaluator pointing to her improved shooting and noting that she has increased her scoring, overall field goal percentage, three-point percentage, and rebounding while cutting turnovers.
That profile feels especially relevant for the Fire because of who is building this roster. Portland hired Vanja Černivec as general manager and Alex Sarama as head coach, and the organization has already signaled that Sarama’s approach will emphasize long-term player development and athlete wellbeing. The team’s official announcement said Sarama’s philosophy is built around helping players extend their careers and reduce wear and tear. That may sound broad, but it points toward a thoughtful, modern basketball operation, one that should value decision-making, versatility, and guards who can think the game quickly. Rice checks all of those boxes.
She also fits where Portland is drafting. At No. 7, the Fire are probably not getting one of the obvious top-of-the-board stars unless something unexpected happens. Rice is the kind of prospect who sits in that sweet spot, talented enough to justify a lottery-level investment, polished enough to help early, and versatile enough that she still makes sense even if Portland comes out of the expansion draft with more backcourt depth than expected. NBC Sports currently has her ranked No. 4 on its March 25 draft board, which suggests Portland would be getting very good value if she is still there at seven.
What I like most about Rice for Portland is that she does not need the ball every second to matter. She can handle, pass, rebound, defend, and score efficiently without hijacking the offense. She had 170 assists last season at UCLA, led all players in the 2025 NCAA Tournament with 32 assists over five games, and has improved her shooting percentages year after year. That is the kind of growth curve expansion teams should trust.
Could Portland go another direction? Sure. Flau’jae Johnson brings athleticism and star power. Raven Johnson would make sense if the Fire wants a more traditional distributor. Gabriela Jaquez has the sort of all-around game coaches tend to love. But if the Fire wants a player who combines polish, efficiency, leadership, and real two-way value, Rice stands out.
Portland does not need to get cute here.
The Fire need a guard who can help a brand-new franchise look organized from the jump. They need someone who can grow with the team but also settle the game down when everything gets messy. They need somebody who fits modern basketball and still looks sturdy enough for the less glamorous parts of the job.
That sounds a lot like Kiki Rice.
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