The Golden State Valkyries are not playing around this season. If the team keeps this up, they'll end up in the championship game in only their second year in the league—well before owner Joe Lacob's stated goal of snagging a title within the first five years.
In fact, the rest of the WNBA might not even be ready for what the Valkyries are bringing this season. Golden State, who joined the league only last year, are currently third in the standings with a 13-7 record. The team has moved so far beyond the idea of smashing expectations for expansion teams that we need to come up with a new phrase—sure, the WNBA has since added two more teams with the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire, but the Valkyries are still very new.
But you'd never know that if you're watching them this season. The team's defensive prowess is so strong, so impressive, that it almost doesn't matter what else they do on the floor. The Valkyries held the New York Liberty to below 70 points on Sunday—the second time they've done that this season—and there's more where that came from. They've mastered the ability to force other teams into iso play, often leveraging their length more than anything.
On top of all of that, the Valkyries also have what's possibly the strongest second unit in the league. Players like Janelle Salaun can come into a game without missing a beat, which isn't something a lot of other teams can brag about.
Gabby Williams is a gamechanger for the Valkyries
And, and, and! On top of all of that, the Valkyries relentless pursuit of Gabby Williams has turned out to be one of the smartest decisions the organization has made, and they've made a lot of them. Williams told The San Francisco Standard that Lacob told her she would "be stupid to go anywhere else"—so she decided to buy in. The team wanted Williams so much that head coach Natalie Nakase traveled to Turkey, where she was playing for Fenerbahce during the offseason, to convince her to come onboard. The Standarda also noted Williams meets the original vision of GM Ohemaa Nyanin.
The team has handed Williams everything she wants and needs to make this season a success, and in response, she's playing harder than she has so far in her career.
The team will be tested, maybe, when they travel to Atlanta to meet the dream on July 4. They barely managed a 78-75 win when they hosted the Dream on June 26, but they bested the team 77-66 two days prior.
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