Subscribe
Follow Us
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 both players will be available for Monday's road game with the Dallas Wings, which makes for a timely UConn Huskies reunion for Chen and her old teammate Paige Bueckers.
The return of Chen and Bibby is not unexpected, given they left the Valkyries on good terms with head coach Natalie Nakase. Before Golden State's very first game of the season, Nakase described how difficult it was to lose Chen, Bibby, and the other players they had to waive to reach the final roster maximum.
“It was hard to cut all of them. All five of them … Every player who came to camp brought it. It was competitive. I told you from day one, that first day, they were diving into the chairs and bleachers,” Nakase said at the time.
She also spoke specifically about the difficulties of cutting a player like Chen. “A true pro. Probably one of the best-conditioned players that came into camp. High IQ. Fun to be around. She really likes to make fun of herself, which I love. And she's a great teammate, whatever the team needed, she was always like, ‘I can do it, I can do it.'”
However, it's a little surprising the Valkyries did not address their frontcourt needs. Without their starting frontcourt, Janelle Salaün and Temi Fagbenle, and the waiving of center Kyara Linskens, the Valkyries are very thin size-wise. It might not matter because Nakase demonstrated that the Valkyries are more than capable of winning as the undersized team. Either way, the signings indicated that the Valkyries are leaning into their scrappy, fast-paced identity.
How Kaitlyn Chen and Chloe Bibby can help the Valkyries
As the Valkyries roster stands now, they've officially signed four free agents to fill in the gaps caused by EuroBasket 2025. Chen and Bibby join fellow emergency hardship signings Aerial Powers and Laeticia Amihere. It will be on those four players and Nakase to figure out how they can step up in the absence of Salaün, Fagbenle, Cecilia Zandalasini, and Julie Vanloo.
Golden State has already gotten a glimpse of Powers and Amihere, and it looked relatively seamless. Both played in the Valkyries' 76-70 win over the Seattle Storm and looked comfortable in the process. While Powers only played two minutes, Amihere was essentially the backup center. Nakase will lean on Amihere to give Golden State important minutes at center in the absence of Fagbenle.
As for Chen and Bibby, they join a crowded Valkyries guard and wing rotation. While it's possible Nakase will play them on matchup-dependent nights, it's unlikely they get significant playing time. However, if they can provide good spacing and good defense, they'll work their way into the rotation. Those are two traits essential for a Nakase-led team.
Regardless, Nakase wants the new additions to be themselves. Before the Storm game, Nakase was asked if the Valkyries players, still here along with the recent signings, should try to replicate what the EuroBasket players were doing. And she had an emphatic answer.
“Hell no! Why would I want them to play like Ja? Why would I want them to play like Ceci,” Nakase asked rhetorically. “I want Aerial Powers to play like Aerial Powers. I want L-A to play like L-A. That's like saying, ‘Can I play like Michael Jordan?' Hell no I can't play like Michael Jordan, so I want them to be themselves. Again, our philosophy on offense is right reads, create advantage, and stay spaced. They fit really well.”
