If you are wondering how the WNBA views the Golden State Valkyries, the league announced Tuesday the results of an annual 42-question survey sent to the general managers of its 15 teams. The Valkyries, following unprecedented first-year success, were a regular mention.
By far, the Valkyries were awarded the superlative for best home-court advantage with 64% of first-place votes. The Indiana Fever (21%) and New York Liberty (14%) were also mentioned.
All-Star forward Gabby Williams, a marquee Valkyries signing, was voted the player acquisition most likely to make the biggest impact, along with the Atlanta Dream’s Angel Reese. Williams and Reese each received a 26% voting share for that question. Williams, a 2025 first-team All-Defensive selection, was also voted the league’s best perimeter defender by a wide margin (60%) and finished a distant second (20%) for best defensive player, trailing reigning MVP and Defensive Player of the Year A’ja Wilson (53%). Wilson is a four-time MVP and three-time DPOY.
The Valkyries were the runaway favorite for being the WNBA’s best defensive team, hoarding a 50% share of votes, after they held opponents to the fewest points per game (76.3) of any team in their inaugural season.
A credit to her emergence as a double-figure scorer over the past couple of seasons, Williams was also in the conversation for most versatile player, second only to two-time MVP and three-time WNBA champion Breanna Stewart.
Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase, the 2025 Coach of the Year, was listed third in the category of best coach. Longtime coaches Cheryl Reeve (Minnesota Lynx, 53%) and Becky Hammon (Las Vegas Aces, 40%), who have nine WNBA championships between them, finished atop the list. Nakase also received votes in the best motivator, best in-game adjustments and best offensive scheme categories.
French forward Janelle Salaün also repped the Valkyries as the second-ranked international player in the survey with 20% of votes. New York’s Jonquel Jones got 33%.