‘Not enough roster spots’: Valkyries head coach laments Golden State’s difficult cuts

Nakase’s face fell.

“We need more roster spots,” she said. “I’m going to keep saying that over and over again.”

Maybe someday, but not soon enough. And by the end of the day on Monday, Nakase’s postgame expression made perfect sense.

The Valkyries made some painful roster cuts to make room for the players returning from the EuroBasket Tournament, which ended on Sunday. The players waived included forward Chloe Bibby, guard Bree Hall and most surprisingly point guard Julie Vanloo. Vanloo led Belguim to the EuroBasket title, but reportedly skipped her team’s celebrations to fly 18 hours to the Bay Area, only to be told upon arrival that she was being released.

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In an Instagram story, Vanloo wrote, “Literally just touched down in the bay. I need some time to process all of this man and put my feelings into words. I can’t right now.”

As Janelle Salaûn and Cecilia Zandalasini were re-activated from their temporary suspensions, it was clear that Valkyries’ leadership had chosen to keep rookie guard Kaitlyn Chen and forward Laeticia Amihere, both of whom have played well during their time back on the Golden State roster.

“The players we have pulled in have surpassed my expectations,” Nakase said. “Not only as great teammates and great people, but their skill sets and just being ready.”

Golden State went 5-2 over the seven games in which their European players departed for EuroBasket.

Temi Fágbénlé was the first player back into the fold, having played two games with Great Britain before they were eliminated. Fágbénlé couldn’t remember exactly what day she flew into San Francisco (it was Wednesday), but on Sunday she walked back into the Valkyries locker room for the first time since she left for Europe on June 15, ahead of Golden State’s match-up against the Storm.

“As soon as Temi walked into the locker room she was like, ‘Hey guys!’, and gave me a big hug,” Nakase said. “We missed her and we missed that energy. That energy is not taken lightly. It’s hard to come with that energy every single day and it’s what we need on both ends of the floor.”

Fágbénlé said she was proud of how her teammates played over the past few weeks, and she has every reason to be. The Valkyries are playing some of the most consistent basketball in the WNBA, winning four of their last six games and keeping their losses to single-digits.

“They did a great job. Watching them from overseas was like none of us were gone,” Fágbénlé said. “The integration was seamless. I wish we could keep everyone.”

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But with 12 players allotted per WNBA roster, that’s not possible for Golden State. With a six-day break until they play again in Minnesota on July 5, returning Valkyries will get some time to rest as the team settles on the core of their roster for the rest of the season, likely including a run at the playoffs.

“I want to utilize those five days,” said head coach Natalie Nakase. “We have just had three games in five days and we need to finish that out and this is a very big game for us, and then moving forward, I want to take care of our bodies and our minds.”

On a star-studded Sunday evening at the Chase Center that included figures like South Carolina coach Dawn Staley, Warriors star Steph Curry, as well as Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe, Fágbénlé entered the game with 4:30 left in the first quarter and quickly scored on a pick-and-roll in the paint. The public address announcer punctuated the basket with “Welcome back, Temi Fágbénlé!”

Fágbénlé finished with four points and four rebounds in 20 minutes.

Nakase anticipates the rest of her returning players will need transition time, which the Valkryies fortunately have ahead of them with the six-day break in the schedule.

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Point guard Veronica Burton said she feels like the coming week will be a reset.

“We want to build off what we’ve been doing and we’re grateful to be getting our teammates back as well and whoever sets foot in the gym, we are grateful for them,” Burton said.

“They are going to be tired,” Nakase said. “They all played heavy minutes and there’s the emotions … those girls are going through an emotional roller coaster because they are playing for their country. I anticipate exhaustion, mental and physical. I want to give them grace and space and to recuperate on their own time. Whether they need one day, two or three games, it’s going to be an individual thing. I’m just proud of them. They all played well and they looked like they had a ton of fun.”

“I can’t wait for everyone to come back and be on board,” she added.

But ‘everyone’ might not be nearly as many people as the Valkyries wanted.