The Valkyries earn the No. 1 spot for a number of reasons.
First, they will have most of their key players back next season. Surely they’ll want to re-sign free agents Tiffany Hayes, Cecilia Zandalasini, Kayla Thornton and Kaitlyn Chen, but even if they lose some of them, they’ll be fine with Gabby Williams, Veronica Burton and Kiah Stokes leading the way.
But what feels more likely to happen is they’ll have an even better roster next season.
They have a great culture, a raucous home crowd, an outstanding head coach (Natalie Nakase) and a quality front office. A top-level free agent, such as Napheesa Collier, should be attracted to what they’ve built.
If the Valks land an offensive star to pair with Williams, they could dominate the W next season.