The Valkyries dominated the Dallas Wings to open their 2026 WNBA playoff campaign, but Golden State fans should temper expectations before thinking about a championship.
Natalie Nakase's side beat the Wings, 104-80, and unlike the other double-digit wins on Sunday, the Valkyries overwhelmed their opposition the whole game.
Golden State shot 50% from the 3-point line and scored over 100 points for the first time this season. Five players scored in double figures, and nine players made at least one 3-pointer.
It was quite nearly a perfect game from the Valkyries, and we saw the ideal way Nakase wants her team to play: Shoot efficiently and play punishing defense. It's why Golden State is among the title favorites, but it's worth taking a step back and looking at this first-round matchup with more context.
The Wings might be a team everyone wants to play
There's an old cliché in sports about a "team no one wants to play." You can make an argument for almost any playoff team this year, but Dallas might have had the thinnest argument.
The Valkyries went 3-0 against the Wings in the regular season, and only one of those games ended in a single-digit victory for Golden State.
Of course, Paige Bueckers' playoff history from her college years is a positive for the Wings, but they are one of the more uniquely vulnerable playoff teams.
Dallas was the fifth-worst paint defense per 100 possessions this season. Starting Awak Kuier next to Jessica Shepard was one way Jose Fernandez tried address that problem, but that's a lot to ask for a player with little WNBA playoff experience.
The Wings also are the third-worst team at getting stops per 100 possessions, per Databallr. That adds more context to their sixth-best defense per 100 possessions. They've had some luck, but they also don't do anything unique on defense to stop an opposing team from getting into their game plan.
This is what led to poor defensive rotations that allowed open Golden State shooters, which is what will make the next round very interesting.
Do the Valkyries have an extra gear in the playoffs?
Based on their respective Game 1s, it appears the Valkyries and Las Vegas Aces are set up to face each other in the next round.
A'ja Wilson showed how limitless her ceiling can be in the postseason, and Golden State will need to show they also can reach another gear.
The Valkyries went 0-3 against the Aces in the regular season, and only one of those matchups was decided by less than 10 points.
Nakase has proven herself to be one of the best coaches in the WNBA, so she could find an answer to halt the Aces' dynasty.
Her star players played reduced minutes in the regular season, so there is potential for a higher minutes ceiling and potential for that aforementioned second gear. Their bench also can help give Nakase more ways to try to win a series.
Those are the questions that will loom over Golden State if it wants to win its first WNBA Championship in franchise history.
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