Kneepkens joined UCLA after four seasons at Utah. During that time, she was no worse than the Utes’ second-leading scorer, and she led the team in points per game in 2024-25. She now joins a Bruins team that is among the deepest in the country in terms of overall talent.
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Not only that, but the Bruins have serious national championship aspirations. With that kind of combination, there will always be some sacrifice involved. Through the first two games of the season, Kneepkens admitted that it has been an adjustment for her, but that it has been a fun process getting to know new teammates.
“I think it makes it almost a little bit easier when you’re surrounded by great players everywhere. Just reading the defense, they find you when you’re open,” Kneepkens said following UCLA’s home-opening win against UC Santa Barbara. “Just figuring out when the team needs me where has been kind of an adjustment I’ve made, but it’s been a lot of fun just working with people. Knowing differently how someone screens for me or someone rolls, but that’s been a fun part of this change in coming to UCLA.”
Through UCLA’s first two games, Kneepkens has been averaging 14.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.0 blocked shots. She’s shooting 45.8% from the field, 33.3% from the 3-point line and 100% from the free-throw line. She’s also been a starter, playing just over 28 minutes per game.
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While Kiki Rice did not start during UCLA’s opening-night win against San Diego State, she returned to the starting lineup against USCB. Although it’s still early in the season, the group that started against Santa Barbara looked like what would be the Bruins’ regular lineup, meaning Kneepkens would likely remain a starter.
For a player who’s used to having the ball in her hands quite often, it’s going to continue to be a learning experience, but one that UCLA coach Cori Close hopes can go smoothly thanks to an assist from the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“I actually showed them a clip, Kiki Rice is the one who sent it to me, we showed them a clip of a press conference from the Oklahoma City Thunder, and they were talking about the rhythm of their offense and how to take advantage of the different people that were hot on any given night,” Close said. “They said, ‘You’re not going to do it every time, but our goal is to touch it more times, that rhythm and flow, every single game.’”
“And I think that’s where we’re not quite there yet, is that we’re not playing with great rhythm. Gianna is a hunter,” Close continued. “Like ‘There’s my chance to do that,’ instead of a reactor, like ‘Is this a good shot?’ And I think we just haven’t totally found that flow yet … we’re still working through some of those different things.
“I think we’re a really talented team … I think we’re a really selfless team right now. We haven’t become this incredible complementary unit yet. And I think that’s what Gianna and others will discover as we get to touch that rhythm more and more often.”
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Kneepkens had her best game of the young season so far against UCSB. She finished with 20 points, three rebounds and three assists in 25 minutes. She shot 7-of-12 from the field and 4-of-8 from the 3-point line.
What was also on display was her ball-handling and playmaking ability. Kneepkens was able to showcase that part of her game with Team USA during the summer, and she feels that UCLA’s system allows for offensive freedom that can be tailored to her strengths.
“This offense, there’s a lot of reading and reacting to kind of what the defense does, just allowing us to play,” Kneepkens said. “There [are] so many weapons that I feel like it’s kind of hard for the defense to choose what to take away. I think … what makes this team special is that any night it could be someone’s night. So that’s a really hard thing to scout.”
