Subscribe
Follow Us
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 in which they avenged their 84-67 home opener loss against the Sparks.
But it wasn't the circumstances of the occasion that made this win an important early-season victory. Rather, it is how the Valkyries won that should have everyone reassessing the team's ceiling moving forward, and it mainly has to do with their defense.
Golden State forced the Sparks into 18 turnovers. They got 13 steals out of an ever-shifting defense full of zone and man coverages, which they converted into 22 points-off-turnovers. In Natalie Nakase's postgame press conference, she talked about what the team did differently defensively in this second meeting with the Sparks.
“Yeah, we actually made no adjustments. We actually just paid attention to the game plan defensively. We actually executed this time. The first time we played them in the regular season, our very first game, we just didn't execute,” Nakase said. “We want to be as disruptive as possible. If we can create more turnovers, that gives us more possessions. If we are not offensive rebounding, then we have to create turnovers to get more possessions.”
It's a straightforward philosophy, leaning on the defense to create more opportunities. Especially considering the Valkyries lack a high-end star talent, it's a method of evening out some of the offensive shortcomings. But it's also important to remember that it's a philosophy built on the culture Nakase's been building from her very first day as the Valkyries' head coach.
From the expansion draft to training camp, Nakase emphasized to the media that the Valkyries are building a competitive, high-character team that trusts one another. While high-level basketball can be dependent on elite physical traits, it's arguable that a high-level defense requires everything Nakase's been preaching. And three games into the season, it's clear her message hasn't fallen on deaf ears.
The Valkyries lead the league in steals with 10.3 per game. Their 93.1 defensive rating is also the best in the league and the eye-test backs it up. The Valkyries have stretches where they chain steal after steal, leading to easy transition offense. When the Sparks went on a 17-2 run midway through the first quarter, the Valkyries responded with a staggering 36-8 run fueled by their defense to take a commanding 17-point lead.
Nakase has a defense that flies around the court, so there's no reason why it can't be sustainable. The Valkyries are statistically one of the W's best defenses, with less than a month of playing with each other. And it feels like they are making improvements by the minute.
After the home opener, Nakase shared that the impromptu zone defense wasn't something they practiced during training camp. She called it a “positive” that the zone defense looked as good as it did despite the lack of preparation. And following their second win of the season, Nakase praised the improved execution.
It's still early to make any absolute statements about this Valkyries team. But if this defense persists, there's no reason why they can't exceed the 8.5 win total BetMGM set before the season.
