Portland Thorns FC coach Mark Parsons was struggling during the first round of the 2021 NWSL Draft. Throughout the first four picks, the Thorns’ staff were working on a trade so they could secure the No. 4 pick in the draft. The plan was to use the pick on the team’s top target — Yazmeen Ryan.
Portland couldn’t secure the fourth pick and all the sudden a new wave of nerves washed over Parsons. Eventually everything worked out, although it might not have been how they drew it up the night before. The Thorns traded the seventh and 32nd picks of the draft and a 2021 international slot for the sixth pick and they drafted Ryan.