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You have to love Golden State Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase’s approach to coaching.
Like the legendary soccer coach Jose Mourinho, Nakase never shies away from mind games, using press conferences and interviews to send messages to her team, rather than communicating with the fans and the press. This is a spot on strategy, as her work depends on how her players respond to her, not what we write here or the fans write on social media.
After her team’s Game 1 loss to the No. 1-seed Minnesota Lynx, she blamed the referees fot taking away her team’s momentum and was fined for it. In a game that her team lost by almost 30 points, where the Valkyries were called for fewer fouls (22 to 23) and went to the line more times (27 to 24), she still voiced frustration with what she perceived to be unfair officiating. Here’s what she said about the fine after Golden State’s practice on Tuesday, via ESPN’s Kendra Andrews:
I said what I said. I’m always going to fight for my team when I feel that. The calls were the calls, and I got fined. So, you know, throwing in that donation, or whatever it is. So I paid for it, and I’m going to donate that. I heard it was a tax write-off.
It’s clear what Nakase is doing here: taking pressure and responsibility off her team by being willing to take on any and all criticism so that her players can focus on the game. This is exactly what makes her such a good coach, maybe the best in the league this season.
Still, will the Valkyries be able to prevent a sweep against the Lynx on Wednesday night in San Jose (10 p.m. ET, ESPN)?
Up until the moment in which, according to Nakase, the Valkyries’ momentum was stopped by “bad” calls, this was an even contest. The Valkyries were up by 10 points in the first quarter, Veronica Burton had made two 3s and Temi Fagbenle was driving to the basket. In short, things were clicking for the team from the Bay.
But the Lynx are just too good and have too many weapons for the Valkyries to sustain momentum for 40 minutes. You can’t expect to win a game shooting 34 percent from the floor, let alone when the opponent is draining 52 percent of their attempts.
And the Lynx are also so selfless. The player who took the most shots wasn’t MVP-candidate Napheesa Collier or sharpshooter Kayla McBride, but Sixth Player of the Year candidate Natasha Hiedeman. Hiedeman had 17 attempts from the floor, while Collier came in second with 11. Bridget Carleton, another shooting threat, made just one shot.
The Lynx don’t care about stats. They just want to win. And in that manner, they’re just like the Valkyries, just more experienced, more talented and deeper. And thus, favored to advance to semifinals in sweeping fashion.
