Gabriela Jaquez missed Mexico's summer. Mexico should save the big ask for 2028

On 18 July, Mexico's women played Puerto Rico for the Centrobasket title, the qualifier for Central America and the Caribbean, in Managua and lost 82-68. A month later, at home in Guadalajara, they beat Brazil 83-64 in a semi-final and reached another final. They did both without Gabriela Jaquez. She was in the middle of her rookie season with the Chicago Sky, and she played for Chicago during both tournaments.

That is not a complaint. It is the calendar Mexico will face again next July, and I think it tells the federation where to spend its one big request.

A Californian who chose Mexico

Jaquez was born in California on 19 November 2003 and grew up in Camarillo, northwest of Los Angeles. Her great-grandparents came to California from Mexico, and she holds Mexican citizenship as well as American.

She played four seasons at UCLA, and in April she helped the Bruins win the national title. Eight days later the Sky took her fifth in the WNBA draft. As a rookie she played 39 games, started 18 and averaged 7.1 points in 19.5 minutes. Her best night was 22 points against New York in June.

Her Mexico record is short and good. In August 2024, at 20, she averaged 21.8 points over four games at the World Cup pre-qualifying tournament in Mexico City. At the 2025 Women's AmeriCup in Santiago, Chile, she averaged 12 points and 6.1 rebounds over seven games. Mexico finished seventh, their best AmeriCup since 2011, and FIBA named Jaquez the tournament's Rising Star.

What the rules say

FIBA's rules, in Book 3 of its Internal Regulations, settle two questions differently.

The first is which country she plays for, and that one is closed. A player who has been on a final roster at a FIBA event has chosen that country for good. The one exception for adults needs at least five years away and no more than five official games. Jaquez has 11 games for Mexico, the latest in July 2025.

The second is whether she counts as a local player or as Mexico's one "restricted" player, the place usually called the naturalised spot. She was born outside Mexico, so she is a local only if she held a Mexican passport before her 18th birthday, or if FIBA finds significant links to the country. To play her at all, Mexico had to send FIBA her written choice, so the federation and FIBA have the paperwork. No public record we could find says when her passport was issued, so on this page her status is marked as not settled. Mexico should know the answer before it builds a roster around her.

The summer Mexico had without her

The Centrobasket tournament ran from 12 to 18 July. Jaquez played for the Sky on 12, 15 and 17 July. The Olympic pre-qualifying tournament in Guadalajara ran from 17 to 23 August. She played for Chicago on 19 and 21 August.

Mexico did well anyway. The runner-up finish in Managua earned a place at the 2027 Women's AmeriCup. Anisa Jeffries made the all-star five in Guadalajara and Mariana Valenzuela in Managua. Canada won the Guadalajara final 83-53 and took the only place it offered, a spot in the Olympic qualifying tournaments for Los Angeles 2028.

Where the road to Los Angeles goes next

Mexico's route to LA 2028 now runs through the AmeriCup, in San Salvador from 3 to 11 July 2027. FIBA gives the four highest-ranked teams there places in the Olympic qualifying tournaments in early 2028. FIBA's rules also say a spot can be taken from the region whose team won the pre-qualifier, and Canada is from the Americas, so that number may fall.

The 2027 WNBA schedule is not out. In July 2026 Jaquez played nine games for the Sky. If next July looks the same, the AmeriCup will fall in the middle of Jaquez's second season.

The Olympic qualifying tournaments are different. They are played in early 2028, and the WNBA does not play in winter.

Noor Haddad made a similar case about Elliot Cadeau and Sweden this week: build for the players the calendar leaves free. I agree, and I would add one step. A college coach has a schedule to protect. A WNBA team also has a contract, and a request to a professional club is worth more if it is rare. Sumayah Sugapong's March showed that a federation cannot plan on a season ending early.

What Mexico should do

Confirm her status with FIBA in writing now, so the roster plan rests on a known answer.

Then plan the AmeriCup around the team that reached two finals this summer, and treat Jaquez as a bonus if the Sky can spare her. Do not spend the federation's goodwill on a July release that a WNBA team may refuse.

Spend it on early 2028. If Mexico gets out of San Salvador with a qualifying place, the games that decide whether they go to Los Angeles will be played when Jaquez is free. That is the request worth making, and Mexico should make it to the Sky this winter, before anyone in Chicago has a reason to say no.