How the Golden State Valkyries became the first-ever WNBA expansion team to make the playoffs

The Golden State Valkyries, the WNBA’s newest team, had just clinched a spot in the playoffs thanks to their win over the Dallas Wings. No expansion team had ever made the playoffs in their first year in WNBA history, but in what has been a rollercoaster of a season, the Valkyries did the unthinkable.

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“This is awesome,” Veronica Burton told the media after Thursday night’s game. “I think it’s a testament to all the work that we put in, testament to the belief that our coaching staff had in us. Ohemaa [Nyanin], front office, all of them. Just to do it with the group that we did, just enjoying it, soaking it all in. Obviously, there’s a long road ahead of us, but being able to sit in it and enjoy it, and to do it in front of this crowd, it was really special, and a moment I’ll remember forever.”

It wasn’t their prettiest win by any means, but a 13-point comeback over the final 15 minutes of the game allowed the Valkyries to secure their 23rd victory and, more importantly, their first-ever playoff berth.

Earning the win

The game didn’t start well for Golden State as Dallas scored the first 10 points of the game. The crowd’s nervous energy was evident as the Valkyries came out flat. However, as the Golden State fans have done all season, they continued to cheer on their home team through the struggle. They knew what was at stake, and they were going to stick behind their team, as they’ve done throughout this first season.

The energy came back to the gym as Golden State started to find its rhythm late in the first. However, the fans’ anxiety came back as the Valkyries once again went flat late in the second and into the third quarter. During a timeout midway through the third quarter, head coach Natalie Nakse fired up her team in the only way she knew how — with curse words — and it seemed to work.

“I basically said, ‘This is a choice,’” Nakase told the media of what she said in the timeout. “ ‘You guys want to f’in make the playoffs, this is all choice, and it’s also a choice whether you guys pick each other up. And I know we’ve been preparing for these moments, these tough moments when you’re fatigued. But guess what? You guys are in the best shape. Go out there and finish this, if this is what you guys want to do.’ And I walked away and boom, right away, they were on top of it.” 

The Valkyries found their groove and did the thing that gets their crowd the most excited: hit threes. It started with Janelle Salaun and Kate Martin, whose threes sent the crowd into a frenzy as Golden State went on its run. Then, rookie guard Carla Leite got hot, and before you knew it, it was a four-point game with a raucous crowd behind the Valkyries going into the fourth quarter.

During the fourth quarter, it was a back-and-forth game with neither team leading by more than one possession for over eight minutes. Then, with just 22 seconds remaining, Veronica Burton scored an and-one to put the Valkyries up five. The 18,064 people at Chase Center erupted louder than they had cheered before the entire season.

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“I think, honestly, to do it in such a team-oriented way,” Burton said. “Honestly, these two [Leite and Salaun], especially Kate, [Monique Billings, Laeticia Amihere], everyone stepped up and everyone contributed in such a big way, we’re not winning that game without literally our entire team. I think it’s even more rewarding to know we did it just fully as a team. That’s what we’ve done all year, but it was special.” 

Some traded buckets and free throws filled the final seconds, and as Paige Bueckers missed a three as time expired, the crowd let out one long, loud roar as the players embraced at midcourt. The joy on their faces told the story as they had just accomplished a goal they had put in front of themselves many months prior. 

The way the Valkyries came back on Thursday was a culmination of their entire season. This hasn’t been a team full of stars, but rather a group that has played together, supported one another and blocked out the noise to defy all odds.

They had five players in double figures and 35 points from their bench against Dallas. They were without two of their best players due to injury and playing their fourth game in six days, but despite all that, they came together and found a way to win, like they have done all season.

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“It was just hard,” Nakase told media about the third-quarter run. “I know we’re a well-conditioned team. I think they take pride in it, and so I think it was great that our bench just really kind really came to life. I was sitting there trying to find a rotation that I liked, and LA came in, brought great energy in terms of rebounding, defense. Carla kind of just navigated herself in the pick-and-rolls. Kate obviously came in with a ton of energy from the jump. … I think everyone just stepped up tonight, which is really nice.” 

Road to the postseason

The journey to a playoff berth began with an expansion draft back in December when the Valkyries selected one player from every other WNBA franchise, except Seattle. They added players through free agency to create their initial group that would compete in training camp. After camp, Golden State trimmed its initial roster down to 12 players. However, the story of the Valkyries all year has been how they’ve navigated roster changes and continued to thrive.

Of the 12 initial rostered players out of training camp, only seven were active Thursday night. Three more are still on the roster but were inactive due to injury. Through Thursday, the Valkyries have had 18 different players suit up for them this season due to a myriad of reasons.

“I think our ability to step up and not be phased by different rotations or playing different positions, we have people that are really selfless on our team and think bigger than themselves,” Burton said after a game in August. “When we play for each other, it doesn’t really matter who’s on the court; we trust each other. We love each other. So, from a confidence standpoint, I think we genuinely believe in every single player on this roster. So, whoever’s playing, whoever’s on that court, there’s an element of trust that allows us to be successful.” 

The Valkyries have had 10 different players lead them in scoring in a single game this season. They’ve also had 16 different players score in double figures at some point during the year. One of the players who has accomplished both those feats is Kayla Thornton, who was the team’s first-ever All-Star. Her breakout campaign was halted right after the All-Star game when Thornton injured her knee at practice and had to have surgery, which ruled her out for the season.

Despite Thornton’s injury, Golden State kept finding a way to thrive. They won 13 of their next 19 games, including Thursday night’s, en route to securing a playoff spot. Through those 19 games, Golden State saw more injuries but continued to find new players to step in.

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“It’s really great to be on this team, because anyone can go off,” Valkyries forward Temi Fagbenle said after Tuesday’s win over the New York Liberty. “We are so supportive of each other, of whoever goes off. It’s not like a ‘Ugh, damn, I didn’t go off today.’ We won, are you kidding? This is the best thing ever! It doesn’t matter who steps up. We won the game, and we all give each other that support, that energy, the happiness, the positivity. It’s a great team to be part of. I was thinking the other day. I was like, ‘I’m so lucky to be on this team. ’ It’s not often you find a team like this in the W.”

Thursday night’s playoff-clinching win showcased a lot of these replacement players’ impact on Golden State. Kalia Charles, whom the Valkyries signed when Billings went down with an ankle injury, got the start for Golden State. Despite not scoring in the win, she played critical defense on Bueckers and grabbed seven rebounds. Burton, who is having a career year and is a favorite to win Most Improved Player, scored 15 points and had five assists to continue her excellent second half of the season. 

Then there is the trio of French players, Salaun, Leite and Iliana Rupert, all of whom are under the age of 25 and have a knack for making Valkyries fans say “Ouah” (French for wow). They epitomize what Golden State has built in its first year, a place where on any given night, anyone can be the star and everyone can feel comfortable growing as both a basketball player and a person. Each of them has had big games and made big plays throughout the season. Salaun led the Valkyries in scoring on Thursday night, and Leite’s big third quarter helped spark the comeback.

“It hasn’t been easy because it’s our first year, so there is a lot of stuff that is new,” Salaun said of her and Leite’s journey together this year with Golden State. “I think both of us, maybe not at the same time, we had to get used to it. I think we’re still learning, we’re still growing. I think for sure it’s not the end, especially for her [Leite]. She has this high, really high potential. But, it’s great to play with her.”

Leading the way

All this success has been led by a head coach who came in from day one and has not stopped working. Even after securing a playoff spot, Natalie Nakase didn’t celebrate too hard. She called herself a “party-pooper” and was already worried about Saturday’s game against Minnesota. However, her mindset of not looking too far ahead and trying to stay grounded has been key in the Valkyries’ ability to block out the outside noise and focus on each game as they come.

The recipe Golden State put together in their first-ever season is going to be hard for others to duplicate. They put together the right players with the right coach, front office and owner, and it turned into a beautiful mix. Not many thought that would be the case back when the expansion draft occurred in December, or when Nakase was hired, or when the team was announced. However, the players and coaches in the Golden State locker room believed. They worked hard and, in the end, they did what has never been done before: make the playoffs in a franchise’s inaugural season.

“We called ourselves a new team from the jump,” Nakase said. “We all talked about we don’t want the label of expansion team. We want to create our own story, we want to create our own culture, our own environment. Again, credit to Joe [Lacob]. Joe kind of said, ‘Hey, this is your guys’ team, and I’m going to support you in any way. ’ So, with that type of trust, too, coming from the ownership, that’s really nice that he kind of lets us write our own story, and that’s kind of been the theme. So, we’ve written it our way. We’re not copying anyone. We’re not kind of going based off of the history of expansion teams. This is credit to Jess [Smith], to Ohemaa, and I’m just trying to follow their lead.”

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