{"id":17570,"date":"2025-07-17T23:49:12","date_gmt":"2025-07-17T23:49:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/17570\/"},"modified":"2025-07-17T23:49:12","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T23:49:12","slug":"golden-state-valkyries-kayla-thornton-kept-putting-in-work-now-shes-an-all-star-andscape","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/17570\/","title":{"rendered":"Golden State Valkyries\u2019 Kayla Thornton kept putting in work. Now she\u2019s an All-Star. \u2014 Andscape"},"content":{"rendered":"

Golden State Valkyries forward Kayla Thornton<\/a> calls the period between 2014 and 2016 the hardest years of her career.\u00a0<\/p>\n

After ending her college career as the best women\u2019s basketball player in the history of the University of Texas at El Paso<\/a> and earning Associated Press honorable mention<\/a> All-America honors her senior season, Thornton declared for the 2014 WNBA draft. <\/p>\n

On draft night, however, she went unselected. Thornton signed a training camp contract with the Washington Mystics, but she was waived on the final day of cuts<\/a> ahead of the season opener. <\/p>\n

Thornton opted to play overseas in Puerto Rico<\/a> before getting another shot with the Mystics in 2015. She would make the Mystics\u2019 opening day roster but would be cut again, just 10 games<\/a> into the season.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Over the next year, Thornton played overseas for four different teams in three different countries. The experience of changing teams and re-adapting to new cultures weighed on Thornton \u2013 but she wouldn\u2019t break.\u00a0<\/p>\n

After making the Dallas Wings\u2019 opening day roster in 2017, Thornton would never know the experience of being outside of the league again. Instead, she steadily established herself as one of the most proficient \u201c3 and D\u201d talents in the WNBA, reliable as a 3-point shooter and defender.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I didn\u2019t go through getting cut twice or go through what I did, then I don\u2019t think I would be who I am,\u201d Thornton said. \u201cI don\u2019t think I would have the fire that I have in me now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Golden State Valkyries forward Kayla Thornton celebrates a play during the fourth quarter of a game on July 14, 2025, at Chase Center in San Francisco. <\/p>\n

Brandon Vallance \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n

The 2025 season, though, has marked a new chapter for Thornton. After winning a championship with the New York Liberty and being selected in an expansion draft<\/a> by the Golden State Valkyries last December, she has showcased a new, elite level to her game that has propelled her to being one of the top players in the WNBA this season. <\/p>\n

On Saturday, Thornton, 32, will make her first appearance as a WNBA All-Star. According to ESPN Stats and Info, she\u2019ll be just the seventh undrafted player in WNBA history to suit up for the game and the first player to make the All-Star Game as a member of a first-year expansion team since 2006.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s a cerebral player that can do a lot of things and is one of the best defensive players I think I\u2019ve seen in our league,\u201d said Atlanta Dream assistant coach and WNBA champion LaToya Sanders<\/a>. \u201cHow she developed her game over her years has been a credit to her hard work and determination to be a great WNBA player.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Thornton calls being named an All-Star the second best moment of her career. The first, unsurprisingly, was a season ago when she won a WNBA championship with the Liberty.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It was Thornton\u2019s second year in New York after she was acquired in a three-team trade in 2023<\/a> that ended her six-season stint in Dallas. Thornton was the perfect fit on a Liberty team that was cluttered with All-Star talent. She made her mark as a defensive specialist, bringing a needed grit and energy to New York\u2019s rotation. Thornton also provided a lift from the perimeter and in 2024 made a career-high<\/a> 45 3-pointers.<\/p>\n

Thornton\u2019s experience in the WNBA had largely been as an integral complementary player but never as a team\u2019s first or second option.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Kayla Thornton poses for a portrait with the 2024 WNBA championship trophy after the New York Liberty\u2019s win on Oct. 20, 2024 in Brooklyn, New York.<\/p>\n

David Dow \/ NBAE via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Of course, there were times when she felt she wanted more for herself \u2013 after all, nobody\u2019s hoop dream maxes out at \u201crole player\u201d \u2013 but Thornton\u2019s focus, more often, was on doing what was asked of her. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t about me,\u201d Thornton said. \u201cIt was about the team and what the team needed at that moment and where I was at. Whatever that needed to be, I made sure that I was my full self for that and gave that my all.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thornton understands that the idea of being content in a role, though the responsibilities may fall short of the player\u2019s on-court potential, can be hard to grasp for some.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I think that\u2019s why I am who I am now,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

To understand Thornton\u2019s line of thinking is to understand her upbringing. Her father served in the military, and her mother is a preacher. Thornton, who grew up in El Paso, Texas, was raised on the principles of faith and discipline.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing from a Southern place and, you know, always saying, \u2018Yes, ma\u2019am\u2019 and \u2018Yes, sir,\u2019 and making sure, you know, when I wake up in the morning, I make my bed up all the time,\u201d Thornton said. \u201c[My parents] are also God-fearing people \u2013 we grew up in the church. \u2026 I\u2019m still growing, I\u2019m still learning myself, but those have been, like, the keys to why I\u2019m kind of where I am today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thornton embodies what it means to take what\u2019s given and to make the most of the current opportunity. She doesn\u2019t look beyond, but instead she focuses on the moment, placing her energy in her work ethic and preparation \u2013 and believing that if there is a chance for something greater, it will find her.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That opportunity has come in Golden State where, for a team that was focused on assembling a team with a defensive foundation, Thornton was the perfect building block. While Thornton\u2019s defensive contributions have come as advertised, she also was asked to step up her game on offense. As she has her whole career, Thornton met the team\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n

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Against the Seattle Storm on June 14<\/a>, Thornton totaled 22 points and 12 rebounds, both game highs, to lead the Valkyries to their third straight win<\/a>. She posted a double-double in each of those three games. Her five double-doubles<\/a> this season tied her career total through her nine previous seasons.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI love when people show me that they want to be that person. They don\u2019t just talk it, \u201d Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase said after the June 14 win. \u201cKT backs it up with action. When she is solid, consistent and vocal, we usually come out with a W.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thornton is averaging a career-high 14.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game this season<\/a>. <\/p>\n

She has worked closely with Valkyries director of player development Sidney Parsons<\/a>, whom Thornton credits with having a big role in her success this season. Parsons has worked with Thornton on fine-tuning the mechanics of her shot and troubleshooting her on-court play through film breakdowns. <\/p>\n

\u201cWith Sidney, she will watch things and really be very critical and detailed into why am I missing and why is this and that,\u201d Thornton said. \u201cHaving her has been a blessing.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Nakase also has praised Thornton\u2019s leadership on the court, specifically how she \u201ccommands and demands\u201d the team when her voice is needed. When the Valkyries got out to a slow start<\/a> against the Chicago Sky on June 27, Nakase looked to Thornton to inject energy into her team.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was not our greatest start, and we kinda struggled. So we leaned to KT. \u2018Hey, can we hear your voice a little louder?\u2019 Then boom, she responded,\u201d Nakase said<\/a> following the game, in which the Valkyries won 83-78. Thornton had a game-high 29 points<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Atlanta Dream guard Allisha Gray<\/a>, who played with Thornton in Dallas and calls the Valkyries forward one of her best friends, said she couldn\u2019t be happier for her former teammate\u2019s new chapter in San Francisco.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that is the perfect place for her. She\u2019s been able to show what type of player she is,\u201d said Gray, a 2025 All-Star Game starter<\/a>. \u201cIn my eyes, she\u2019s always been an All-Star, but to be able to go to Golden State and prove it \u2013 I\u2019m just so happy for her.\u201d <\/p>\n

In addition to her on-court production, Thornton is the quintessential vibe curator, bringing energy \u2013 and most certainly laughs \u2013 to any locker room she occupies. She is equipped with a sense of humor that is effortlessly funny, and those who have played alongside her say that her joy positively impacts a team.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery time, no matter who\u2019s with her, she\u2019s always going to make you laugh no matter what,\u201d New York Liberty forward Kennedy Burke<\/a> said. \u201cShe has this spirit and this vibe about her that\u2019s just so contagious.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

As the Valkyries trotted out of their locker room ahead of their July 7 contest with the Atlanta Dream, they began their pregame walkout, which has become customary in the WNBA. Valkyries players step into a circle and dance as their teammates hype them up. After grooving into the circle, Thornton began to mimic hitting<\/a> a bass drum \u2013 a playful nod to the popular \u201clove the drum\u201d scene<\/a> from \u201cDrumline,\u201d one of her favorite movies. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s who I am. I always try to bring light to my teammates. When my energy\u2019s high, then it\u2019s kind of like everybody else\u2019s energy [is] high,\u201d Thornton said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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When she takes the floor this weekend, Thornton will be the first undrafted All-Star since Erica Wheeler in 2019. Wheeler memorably was named All-Star MVP<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Liberty point guard Jaylyn Sherrod<\/a> finds inspiration in Thornton\u2019s pro journey and breakthrough. As a player who herself went undrafted out of Colorado in 2024 and is spending her early years in the WNBA finding her footing, Sherrod has looked to Thornton as an example.<\/p>\n

\u201cKT showed a great deal of just will and overall strength to continue to wait for her moment and trust that her moment was going to come. She\u2019s been in this league for a while and this is her first All-Star, so it\u2019s all about the journey and all about staying true,\u201d said Sherrod, who added that Thornton is like an older sister to her. \u201cShe\u2019s really standing in her purpose and she\u2019s standing in her journey, and that\u2019s just amazing to see. It\u2019s a light to be around.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thornton is proud that, as she\u2019s traversed her WNBA career, she has never had to ready herself for the moment. Staying level-headed through every role she was assigned while continuing to elevate her game has allowed her to take full advantage of this opportunity with the Valkyries.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Even after showing the league what she is capable of, there is no sense of \u201cI told you so\u201d that radiates from Thornton. There isn\u2019t a need to prove people wrong or be demonstrative to those who may have believed her ceiling in the league had already been reached. For Thornton, each stop in her story has held value, and this moment wouldn\u2019t happen without them. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou got to go through tough moments to come out and have great moments like these,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

When asked what her message would be to her younger self, fighting for the chance just to stick on a WNBA roster, the first-time All-Star said: \u201cStay with it and let it come to you. What\u2019s meant for you will be for you.\u201d <\/p>\n

Sean Hurd is a senior writer for Andscape who primarily covers women\u2019s basketball. His athletic peak came at the age of 10 when he was named camper of the week at a Josh Childress basketball camp.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Golden State Valkyries forward Kayla Thornton calls the period between 2014 and 2016 the hardest years of her…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":17571,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[99,434],"class_list":["post-17570","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wnba","tag-sports","tag-wnba"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17570","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17570"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17570\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17570"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17570"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17570"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}