{"id":605076,"date":"2026-04-25T05:58:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T05:58:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/605076\/"},"modified":"2026-04-25T05:58:24","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T05:58:24","slug":"valkyries-lone-preseason-game-vs-seattle-offers-one-chance-to-fine-tune-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/605076\/","title":{"rendered":"Valkyries\u2019 lone preseason game vs. Seattle offers one chance to fine-tune"},"content":{"rendered":"

OAKLAND \u2014 The Golden State Valkyries<\/a> won\u2019t have the luxury of getting many tune ups leading up to their season opener on May 8.<\/p>\n

While most WNBA teams will have multiple preseason games to sort through rotations and experiment with lineups, the Valkyries<\/a> scheduled just one \u2014 Saturday\u2019s home matchup against the Seattle Storm \u2014 to simulate real-game conditions before the regular season begins.<\/p>\n

That makes the margin<\/a> for evaluation razor thin.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For players on the roster bubble, it\u2019s the only live audition that counts, a single night to translate training camp flashes into something tangible against an opponent.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just a scheduling situation for us,\u201d coach Natalie Nakase said. \u201cI\u2019m big on not traveling too far, so it\u2019s just being mindful, and then just making the best of it. Sometimes you can\u2019t pick everything, especially our schedule. We\u2019re gonna have long road trips. We\u2019re gonna have short ones. It\u2019s about how you can prepare your team for an environment that\u2019s set for you. And that, to me, is more important than worrying about one preseason game or two preseason games.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"GoldenGolden State Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase chats with players during the team\u2019s first day of training camp at the Sephora Performance Center in Oakland, Calif., on Sunday, April 19, 2026. (Jose Carlos Fajardo\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

Saturday also has multiple layers of intrigue.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Valkyries\u2019 matchup with the Storm will mark the first meeting against guard Flau\u2019jae Johnson, the eighth overall pick Golden State dealt away in a stunning draft-night move. Valkyries\u2019 free agent signee Gabby Williams is expected to touch down in the Bay and will have her introductory press conference prior to Saturday\u2019s game.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Nakase said she doesn\u2019t have a timeline for when Williams will play, but is happy to have her on the bench for the preseason opener.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll do a check in with her when she gets here, where her mindset is, where her physical body feels,\u201d Nakase said. \u201cShe does know the Bay. She\u2019s been here before. So I\u2019m just really excited just to see her reaction.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Valkyries All-Star Kayla Thornton has a chance to make her return to the court after missing half of last season with a knee injury. Following Friday\u2019s practice at the team\u2019s training facility in Oakland, Nakase alluded to the 33-year-old\u2019s status as a game-time decision. Participating in preseason action could go a long way for Thornton to play in the team\u2019s regular-season opener at Seattle on May 8.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be day-by-day,\u201d Nakase said of Thornton\u2019s return. \u201cI\u2019m giving KT the space to let me know how her body feels every single day.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

When asked if she plans on playing, Thornton said, \u201cWe\u2019ll see how they want me to go. Just kind of taking it day by day.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Valkyries are the only team in the league to have just one preseason game. Teams such as the Indiana Fever and Minnesota Lynx are holding three exhibition contests before their season opener.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But Golden State isn\u2019t sweating the lack of live competition. Instead, the Valkyries are honing in on making training camp practices more competitive in the leadup to the season opener.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI think (practices) are very important,\u201d Valkyries guard<\/a> Tiffany Hayes. \u201cI think we need to get better every day and we come here to do so.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"GoldenGolden State Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase claps while watching her players practice during the team\u2019s first day of training camp at the Sephora Performance Center in Oakland, Calif., on Sunday, April 19, 2026. (Jose Carlos Fajardo\/Bay Area News Group)<\/p>\n

With most of the Valkyries\u2019 roster spots locked up, there undoubtedly will be pressure for players on the fringes of the roster to perform. Key position battles at backup point guard and center will be watched closely. Rookies Marta Suarez and Ashlon Jackson will play in their first game, giving them their first real chance to make an impression as they push to earn a spot on the roster.<\/p>\n

Knowing the stakes, Nakase said she just wants each player to be themselves.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t look at just one game \u2026 I\u2019ve been looking at the five practices, you know, and how they behave,\u201d Nakase said. \u201cFor me, it is totality. It\u2019s not just one game. I don\u2019t know exactly the minutes for everyone. \u2026 So I\u2019m evaluating a lot more than just one game, and I think that will give them a little bit of go out there and have fun.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s game will be a good test run for Golden State as the Valkyries will see Seattle approximately two weeks later on the road to begin the season.<\/p>\n

Seattle arrives with length, youth and a roster built to pressure the paint with their young frontcourt trio of Ezi Magbegor, Dominique Malonga and Awa Fam. Golden State leans into pace, spacing and a willingness to live beyond the arc. The Storm can overwhelm with size and second chances while the Valkyries counter by stretching the floor and turning possessions into a barrage of 3-point looks.<\/p>\n

Nakase said the Valkyries will prioritize health going into Saturday\u2019s game as the last few practices have been the most intense so far.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But make no mistake, Nakase and the team know exactly what they are prioritizing in their first and last preseason contest.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to go for the (win),\u201d Nakase said.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"OAKLAND \u2014 The Golden State Valkyries won\u2019t have the luxury of getting many tune ups leading up to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":605077,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[2356,14059,5415,36930,10834,10835,47689,7234,10841,10842,5414,99,434],"class_list":{"0":"post-605076","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wnba","8":"tag-california","9":"tag-lake-county","10":"tag-marin-county","11":"tag-mendocino-county","12":"tag-monterey-county","13":"tag-napa-county","14":"tag-north-coast","15":"tag-northern-california","16":"tag-santa-cruz-county","17":"tag-solano-county","18":"tag-sonoma-county","19":"tag-sports","20":"tag-wnba"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/605076","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=605076"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/605076\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/605077"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=605076"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=605076"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=605076"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}