Kitija Laksa
Latvian basketball player
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kitija Laksa (born 21 May 1996) is a Latvian professional basketball player for the Toronto Tempo of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She previously played for Fenerbahçe of the Women's Basketball Super League, EuroLeague Women and the Latvian national team.
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| |
| Toronto Tempo | |
|---|---|
| Position | Small forward |
| League | WNBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | 21 May 1996 Riga, Latvia |
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Listed weight | 155 lb (70 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Riga French Lycée (Riga, Latvia) |
| College | South Florida (2015–2019) |
| WNBA draft | 2020: 1st round, 11th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Seattle Storm |
| Playing career | 2019–present |
| Career history | |
| 2019–2023 | TTT Riga |
| 2023–2024 | Fenerbahçe |
| 2024–2025 | PF Schio |
| 2025 | Phoenix Mercury |
| 2026–present | Toronto Tempo |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
Playing career
Laksa played for the American collegiate team South Florida Bulls. She suffered a knee injury in November 2018 and missed the rest of her senior season.[1] Instead of returning for a fifth year, Laksa signed with Latvian professional team TTT Riga in July 2019.[2]
Laksa was drafted in the first round, 11th overall, by the Seattle Storm in the 2020 WNBA draft. She signed a contract with the Storm on 25 April 2020, but did not play at all during the 2020 season and she was waived by the team on 13 May 2021.[3]
Two years later on 28 February 2023, Laksa signed a contract with a Dallas Wings but was waived on May 10 before playing a game for them.
On 12 February 2025, she signed a contract with the Phoenix Mercury.[4]
On 21 May 2025, five years after being drafted, Laksa finally made her WNBA debut in a 89 - 86 win over the Los Angeles Sparks where she recorded 9 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals in 23 minutes off the bench.[5]
On 3 April 2026, she was drafted 21st overall by the Toronto Tempo in the 2026 WNBA expansion draft[6] becoming the first Latvian-born player to be drafted from an expansion draft from either the WNBA or the NBA.[citation needed]
Career statistics
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
| APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| TO | Turnovers per game | FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| Bold | Career best | ° | League leader |
WNBA
Regular season
Stats current through end of 2025 season
Playoffs
College
Source[8]
| Year | Team | GP | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RBG | APG | BPG | SPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | South Florida | 29 | 39.7% | 42.0% | 86.5% | 2.35 | 0.69 | 0.48 | 0.35 | 12.55 |
| 2016-17 | South Florida | 33 | 40.3% | 38.8% | 84.5% | 3.52 | 0.82 | 0.18 | 0.64 | 19.21 |
| 2017-18 | South Florida | 34 | 39.9% | 38.2% | 96.5% | 3.38 | 1.29 | 0.41 | 0.65 | 21.09 |
| 2018-19 | South Florida | 3 | 34.0% | 33.3% | 71.4% | 4.33 | 2.00 | - | 0.33 | 16.33 |
| Career | 99 | 39.8% | 39.1% | 89.6% | 3.15 | 0.98 | 0.34 | 0.55 | 17.82 |
| Year | Team | GP | FG | FGA | 3P | 3PA | FT | FTA | REB | A | BK | ST | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-16 | South Florida | 29 | 129 | 325 | 74 | 176 | 32 | 37 | 68 | 20 | 14 | 10 | 364 |
| 2016-17 | South Florida | 33 | 231 | 573 | 101 | 260 | 71 | 84 | 116 | 27 | 6 | 21 | 634 |
| 2017-18 | South Florida | 34 | 240 | 602 | 126 | 330 | 111 | 115 | 115 | 44 | 14 | 22 | 717 |
| 2018-19 | South Florida | 3 | 16 | 47 | 7 | 21 | 10 | 14 | 13 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 49 |
| Career | 99 | 616 | 1547 | 308 | 787 | 224 | 250 | 312 | 97 | 34 | 54 | 1764 |
