Golden State Valkyries Articles - Page 2

Very rarely does a team re-sign a player after waiving them in training camp. But the Golden State Valkyries are a weird and rare exception. As an expansion team built on many European players, the Valkyries brought back Laeticia Amihere, the breakout sensation from the preseason, to reinforce the team’s frontcourt. And in Golden State’s […]

It takes an incredible combination of coaching, scheme, and personnel to slow Caitlin Clark down. And even then, she still might burn an opposing defense despite every variable going right. But Golden State Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase had a game plan for Clark, and she stated it in the clearest terms before the game: pick […]

Less than 48 hours removed from a disappointing 80-71 loss to the Dallas Wings, the Golden State Valkyries are looking to up the intensity ahead of their most anticipated matchup of the season. With Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever in the Bay Area for the first time, the Valkyries will aim to rectify the […]

With injuries and Eurobasket absences racking up around the WNBA, players who narrowly missed making a roster are getting another deserved chance to shine. Bree Hall is one of the latest to benefit after being offered a contract to join the Golden State Valkyries. After news broke of the Valkyries’ signing, Hall’s South Carolina women’s […]

The Golden State Valkyries have reportedly agreed to a contract with guard Bree Hall, per Kendra Andrews of ESPN. “The Valkyries have announced they’ve signed Bree Hall, the 20th pick in this year’s draft who spent the preseason with Indiana,” Andrews wrote on X, formerly Twitter. As mentioned, Hall was selected by the Indiana Fever […]

There are plenty of reasons why the Golden State Valkyries’ suffered an 80-71 loss to the Dallas Wings, who were 1-11 before this game. Wings’ rookie sensation Paige Bueckers continued her hot streak with 2o points and four steals, along with Arike Ogunbowale’s 19 points and six assists. Additionally, the Valkyries were down four critical […]

A heartwarming reunion took place between two former UConn women’s basketball stars just before Tuesday night’s game between the Golden State Valkyries and the Dallas Wings at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas. Rookies Paige Bueckers of the Wings and Kaitlyn Chen of the Valkyries met each other on the sidelines, as captured in a […]

No college basketball coach has more alumni in the WNBA than UConn’s Geno Auriemma, who is always rooting for his players’ success. After the Golden State Valkyries re-signed rookie guard Kaitlyn Chen, Auriemma heaped praise on the organization and his former pupil. Auriemma said Chen deserves to be in the league when asked about her […]

The Golden State Valkyries have shattered all expectations just 10 games into the season. What began as a feel-good story about a brand-new WNBA franchise bringing women’s basketball to the Bay Area has quickly become something much more than that. As cool as it is that the Valkyries are continuing to sell out the maximum […]

Amid the temporary departure of four players to EuroBasket 2025, the Golden State Valkyries have re-signed guard Kaitlyn Chen and forward Chloe Bibby for the time being. The two training camp attendees who did not make the initial 12-player roster will reinforce the shorthanded but red-hot Valkyries in the coming days. The team announced that […]

SAN FRANCISCO — Ten games into the WNBA season, it’s clear that Kayla Thornton has established herself as the Golden State Valkyries’ de facto X-factor. With her third double-double in a row, Thornton’s career-high 22 points alongside 12 rebounds fueled the Valkyries to a 76-70 win over the red-hot Seattle Storm. Thornton’s versatility on both […]

he Golden State Valkyries signed veteran guard Aerial Powers as they continue to adjust their roster with players leaving for the upcoming EuroBasket tournament. Powers’ addition follows the Valkyries’ 79-74 win over the Los Angeles Sparks and comes as the team’s point guard, Julie Vanloo, departs for EuroBasket. Golden State made the signing announcement Tuesday […]

While Kayla Thornton recorded an 18-point, 11-rebound double-double for the second game in a row, and Janelle Salaün collected a career-high 21 points, only one Valkyrie made WNA history in Golden State’s overtime win over the Los Angeles Sparks. Temi Fagbenle became the first WNBA player to record 8+ offensive rebounds, 4+ steals, and 4+ […]

Kayla Thornton stood tall when it mattered most. With the game hanging in the balance and the clock ticking down, she buried a dagger three that helped the Golden State Valkyries seal a dramatic 89-81 overtime win against the Los Angeles Sparks on Monday night at Crypto.com Arena. THORNTON TRIPLE ⚡ Valkyries now up 6 […]

With the upcoming Eurobasket, a few WNBA teams are going to be losing key players as they head overseas to compete with their national teams. The Golden State Valkyries are one of those teams, and the organization made a few roster moves this weekend related to Eurobasket departures. One of the Valkyries’ roster moves this […]

SAN FRANCISCO — It’s fitting for Natalie Nakase that the Golden State Valkyries’ best performance of their inaugural season came against the Las Vegas Aces and Becky Hammon. The former Aces assistant coach, who helped Hammon and the team to back-to-back WNBA titles, secured a signature 95-68 upset win in front of a raucous Chase […]

Amid a four-game losing streak and all the Natalie Nakase and Becky Hammon reunion storylines, the Golden State Valkyries came away with a stunning 95-68 blowout win over the Las Vegas Aces on primetime television. The unexpected upset was a brilliant all-around team-wide effort. And thanks to Kayla Thornton, Veronica Burton, and Monique Billings, the […]

The Golden State Valkyries have been a formidable team during their inaugural season in the WNBA even if their overall record of 3-5 might not completely reflect that. The Valkyries notched their best win of the season so far with their 95-68 demolition of the Las Vegas Aces on Saturday. Aside from the final score, […]

When the WNBA hosted the Golden State Valkyries’ expansion draft in the 2024-2025 offseason, Kate Martin was one of the team’s first targeted players. While she did not make much of an impact in her lone season with the Las Vegas Aces, Martin made Becky Hammon wish she were back on her roster on Saturday […]

It was not a surprise for Becky Hammon when the Golden State Valkyries hired Natalie Nakase to lead the expansion franchise as their first-ever head coach. Ahead of the Las Vegas Aces and Valkyries’ first-ever matchup on primetime television, Hammon revealed that her former assistant coach was highly sought after around the WNBA before she […]

Every team needs an identity if it wants to win games, especially a brand-new expansion franchise looking to establish itself in the WNBA. For Natalie Nakase and the Golden State Valkyries, that identity has been defense. While the shooting has been streaky and the turnovers have been a problem, their hard-nosed, hustling defensive identity is […]

The 2025 FIBA EuroBasket tournament quickly approaching means question marks for the Golden State Valkyries, the newest addition to the WNBA. Starters Janelle Salaün (France) and Temi Fagbenle (Great Britain) headline the international players likely headed for EuroBasket, as well as key role players Julie Vanloo (Belgium) and Cecilia Zandalasini (Italy). While only Salaün and […]

The Golden State Valkyries have been a competitive team during their inaugural season in the WNBA, even if their record doesn’t quite show it. In addition to their competitiveness, the Valkyries have had strong home fan support with three straight home sellouts amid their 2-4 overall record. As the team looks to get back in […]

While the Golden State Valkyries lost their third game in a row after falling 86-75 to the Minnesota Lynx, they still made history. The Sunday night game marked the first time in WNBA history that a franchise sold out its first three home games with 18,000+ fans in the arena. It’s been less than a […]

The purest emotion of an expansion team going through its first season in the WNBA is optimism, and the Golden State Valkyries are no different. From the historic support of the Bay Area fanbase to the established culture of commitment in all facets of the organization, there are plenty of green flags pointing to a […]

Kate Martin’s playing time has been all over the place early in the Golden State Valkyries’ inaugural season. Sometimes she’ll play upwards of 20 minutes. Other times, she’ll only see limited stretches on the court. Martin even caught a DNP in the Valkyries’ second game versus the New York Liberty. That’s just the reality of […]

The Golden State Valkyries drew a little bit of criticism from fans when they did not keep any of their 2025 WNBA Draft picks on the final roster for the regular season. It should be mentioned though that only their second and third round picks were in training camp as No. 5 overall pick Justė […]

The Golden State Valkyries were one or two plays away from upsetting the New York Liberty. Trailing 78-77 with 42.6 seconds left in the fourth quarter of the two teams’ second meeting this week, head coach Natalie Nakase called a timeout to set up a set baseline out-of-bounds play. It was a smart timeout considering […]

While the Golden State Valkyries came up short against the defending champion New York Liberty, Janelle Salaün played one of the best games in her young WNBA career so far. The rookie from France collected her first WNBA double-double, leading the Valkyries with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Averaging 13.8 points and 7.8 rebounds through […]

While the Golden State Valkyries clawed and chipped at the defending WNBA champs, they never made the New York Liberty nervous, falling 95-67 at Barclays Center. New York blitzed the Valkyries right from the jump, opening the first quarter with a 22-3 run. While Golden State got the lead down to 11 midway through the […]

While there weren’t many positives for the Golden State Valkyries in their 95-67 loss to the New York Liberty, there was one feel-good moment: Kayla Thornton’s return to the Barclays Center. Thornton’s reception back in New York was fit for a WNBA champion. Right before tip-off, Thornton’s former Liberty teammates welcomed her at halfcourt and bestowed […]

The Golden State Valkyries’ upset 82-73 win over the Los Angeles Sparks was impressive for many reasons. For starters, they entered the game as 11.0-point underdogs and won by nine. It was also the Valkyries’ very first road game, a small milestone for the newest WNBA franchise. More dramatically, the victory was a bounce-back game […]

Before the season began, the Golden State Valkyries fans weren’t happy about how the team handled their 2025 WNBA draft. It began with confusion around the Valkyries waiving Shyanne Sellers in training camp. That confusion then escalated into anger when No. 5 overall pick Justė Jocytė chose to prioritize her national team duties for EuroBasket […]

Minutes after securing her first career win as a head coach, Golden State Valkyries’ Natalie Nakase strolled into the press conference decked out in a fuzzy black robe. The Valkyries beat the Washington Mystics 76-74. Natalie Nakase’s retelling of the locker room celebration after the franchise’s first win: https://t.co/9Tj2FDUEPI pic.twitter.com/WFf9VGRz3d — Kenzo Fukuda (@kenzofuku) May […]

The Golden State Valkyries finally have their first win, and it came in dramatic fashion. In front of a roaring home crowd at Chase Center, the expansion franchise pulled off a thrilling 76 to 74 victory over the Washington Mystics. It was the kind of night that felt like more than just a tally in […]

Even for seasoned veterans like  Julie Vanloo and Tiffany Hayes, who have a combined 29 years of professional basketball experience, the Golden State Valkyries’ historic WNBA debut was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. While the Valkyries could not pull off the inaugural debut victory in front of the 18,604 Chase Center fans, Hayes and Vanloo both took in […]

Kelsey Plum dominated in the season opener between the Los Angeles Sparks and Golden State Valkyries on Thursday night. This prompted praise from Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase. In 40 minutes of action, Plum finished with a stat line of 37 points, six assists, five steals, and two rebounds. She shot 11-of-19 from the field, […]

While the Golden State Valkyries’ inaugural game was ruined by an 84-67 loss to the Los Angeles Sparks, it was still a monumental night for the new team. With improvements to be made for the Valkyries, there’s no denying the support that showed up for the contest, as even Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers […]

It began a new era in the WNBA on the West Coast. The Golden State Valkyries started their inaugural season on Friday, leaving an impression that left head coach Natalie Nakase feeling confident.  Their first game against the Los Angeles Sparks brought out a sold out crowd, per Kendra Andrews of ESPN. Significantly, the Valkyries […]