Maybe it’s too soon to consider the possibility. Or maybe it’s not. Fifty-one regular-season games into franchise history, can we talk right now about the Golden State Valkyries as WNBA title contenders?
This is a conversation that once seemed like it would be more realistic in a year or two. Or in the five-year window that owner Joe Lacob gave his executives and coaches when the franchise was announced in October 2024. But are we ready to have it now, less than 10 games into the Valkyries’ second season?
Why not? The second-place Valkyries are preparing to take on the defending champion Las Vegas Aces in a nationally broadcast game that will show off the sport’s first billion-dollar franchise; its diehard fanbase; and a healthy, complete roster that has shown depth, versatility and grit.
With the arrival of 20-year-old guard Justė Jocytė, the Valkyries’ top pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft, the team that general manager Ohemaa Nyanin and head coach Natalie Nakase have constructed is finally complete.
It’s also stable. At least, it’s a lot more stable than last season, when the EuroBasket tournament gave the Valks the churn-iest roster in the W. They still became the first expansion franchise in league history to make the playoffs in Year 1.
A season later, the pieces are in place, and they look really, really good together.
Golden State is off to a 5-2 start and coming off the most exciting win in franchise history on Thursday, a 90-88 nip-and-tuck win over the Indiana Fever that showed off its best attributes. A 25-point game by point guard Veronica Burton that also included a career-high five blocks. Nineteen points each from Gabby Williams and Janelle Salaün. The defense holding Fever stars Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston to a combined 7-for-23 shooting night. Collecting 11 blocked shots as a team and stifling Indiana down the stretch.
And still, the best may be yet to come.
“We’ve had three practices together as a healthy team,” Nakase told reporters before Thursday’s game. “It’s still early having them all in one gym. I’m looking for the connections being made. I am looking behind the scenes. I am looking at the communication, the connections at practice, chatting with each other at the practice table.”
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On the court, the Valkyries rank first in the league in scoring defense (78.0 points allowed per game), first in 3-pointers made per game (10.9), third in turnovers forced per game (14.1) and third in opponent field-goal percentage (41.7%).
The balanced scoring and fundamental unselfishness of this team shows in the fact that 11 players are averaging at least 10 minutes per game. On Memorial Day, at home against the Connecticut Sun, the Valks tied a league record with 12 players scoring and put up a season-high 53 bench points.
Meanwhile, the addition of Williams, with her versatility and ability to be a defensive disruptor, in free agency has been seamless in terms of both style and substance.
Still, getting to this point, seven games into the season, has not been without its bumps.
Iliana Rupert’s pregnancy was surprising, leaving the Valkyries without a true big inside.
Ballhalla didn’t like the draft night trade of rookie Flau’jae Johnson to Seattle, or the subsequent waiving of the player they got for her, Marta Suarez. And it definitely didn’t appreciate fan favorite Kate Martin getting cut right before the start of the regular season. But Golden State now has the players it wants on the floor.
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This franchise is built on its identity as much as on any star player, even with the seamless addition of Williams and as Burton’s profile rises across the league. A team of defensive grinders willing to embrace their roles, be ready when their numbers are called and play to Nakase’s vision is coalescing into something worth watching every night.
“When you add a player like Gabby Williams, you are adding somebody with championship experience and somebody who can play a lot of different roles,” Fever head coach Stephanie White told reporters. “And I’ve always been a big fan of Veronica Burton and Tip Hayes [who played for White in Connecticut].
“This roster is good from top to bottom, and they play so well together. … There is a toughness and a grit about them. They make you earn everything on both ends of the floor.”
Related reading: A lot has actually changed at Golden State
The WNBA is full of teams in transition this season, with new players, coaching changes, key injuries and chemistry issues. Golden State has more players back — nine — than any team in the league. Nakase is cementing her coaching bona fides. And the Valkyries are proving that the “super team” model is not the only one that can win.
“The most important thing is approaching each game with that winning mindset and with attention to detail,” Burton said. “The buy-in is incredible. Every single night, it’s someone new, it’s a different rotation and we just have so much trust in each other. We support each other. We ride for each other.”
The ride, and the road ahead, is long. It’s getting more compelling by the day. And it might well be long enough to support a title run.
I think they have a great roster, Burton and Williams have been exceptional. Thornton will pick it up I’m sure as season progresses (inside and out…not an easy thing to recover from knee injury). They may be missing a player that can score it inside and defend inside. Thank you for the great article.
All true, but this has got to be the “least talented” team in the W. None of their players were high picks and all were rejects. It goes to show that coaching, team work and hunger goes a long way. But when they face a talented team that is playing well such as LV, NY or MIN, the Valkyries are severely weak in the post.