The Golden State Valkyries surprised many people this season. One early surprise was the team‘s first-ever draft selection. With the fifth overall pick, the Valkyries selected Lithuanian teenager Justė Jocytė. They chose to go with a little-known (at least in the U.S.), young European player instead of an established college star, who would draw fans to the games. Jocytė didn’t join the Valkyries this season, but the plan is for her to debut next season.
Valkyries fans got a chance to see Jocytė play during EuroBasket this summer. She led the Lithuanian national team to a quarterfinal appearance, averaging 16 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 5.2 assists over six games. Her best game came against Turkey. She scored 23 points, grabbed five rebounds, and dished out eight assists. While Jocytė is only 19, this wasn’t her first stint with the senior national team. She made her debut in 2019 when she was only 13.
Jocytė is an incredibly exciting young prospect who could be part of the Valkyries’ core for years. However, her WNBA debut will still have to wait. First, she will take the EuroLeague by storm.
Justė Jocytė is poised for a big 2025-26 season
After spending several years with ASVEL Féminin in Lyon, Jocytė will play this season with the Spanish Club Spar Girona. She will play in EuroLeague games for the first time since the 2023-24 season. Last year, Lyon competed in the EuroCup—a second-level competition across Europe—and saw Jocytė’s best season yet. She averaged 12.1 points, 3 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in around 25 minutes over 14 games. In the LBWL, she averaged 11.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.8 assists over 21 games.
Jocytė played in EuroLeague games in the 2019-20, 2020-21, and 2023-24 seasons. In 2019, she became the youngest player ever to play in EuroLeague Women at 14 years and 29 days old. Hungarian star Diana Kmezic had previously held the record. She was 14 years, 10 months, and 20 days old when she made her debut. While Jocytė made waves as a young phenomenon, her averages didn’t jump off the page.
Her best EuroLeague season saw her average 3.7 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 10.7 minutes over three games. She should be able to greatly exceed those averages this season.
This season marks the first EuroLeague season in which Jocytė will have a starting role and act as one of her team’s go-to players. Her new team played one game so far, securing an 80-58 win over Estepona. Jocytė started and recorded 14 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, and 3 steals in 25 minutes. She finished the game with the second-most points on the team and the third-most minutes.
Jocytė’s role should look similar for the rest of the season, which will cause her averages to skyrocket. It is the perfect opportunity for Jocytė to take EuroLeague by storm and prepare for her eventual WNBA debut. Although younger, Jocytė could follow into Janelle Salaün’s footsteps with the Valkyries. Salaün immediately became a key player and made the All-Rookie Team. Now, she hopes to continue her successful run with the Czech club ZVVZ USK Praha. Spar Girona and Praha are in the same group this season, so the Valkyries youngsters will face off early. The two teams are scheduled to meet for the first time on October 15.