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In a few short months, the Golden State Valkyries will begin their inaugural season at Chase Center against the Sparks. It will be Natalie Nakase’s first game as a head coach after she spent the past few seasons on Becky Hammon’s staff in Las Vegas.
Nakase and the Valkyries began piecing the roster together in December at the WNBA Expansion Draft, leaving with a list of players including Veronica Burton and Kate Martin.
Golden State then set its sights on a star by pursuing Kelsey Plum, who was set to become a free agent before Las Vegas cored her. The Valkyries didn’t have enough ammo to get Plum, who went to LA in a three-team deal. Golden State did end up signing former All-Star Tiffany Hayes in free agency.
The Valkyries will add another top young talent in the 2025 WNBA Draft in April, as they have the No. 5 pick.
The assumption about the WNBA’s new Bay Area team is that they’ll be a work in progress for the first couple of seasons, but that’s not what Nakase is aiming for. One of her offseason adventures proves she expects her team to make noise in year one.
SB Nation’s Noa Dalzell recently published a piece about Nakase finding a mentor in Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla. Nakase connected with Mazzulla via Sam Cassell, who was on the Clippers staff with Nakase several years ago. The Valkyries head coach flew to Boston on two separate occasions at the end of 2024 — before and after the expansion draft. The goal was to learn as much from the 2024 champion head coach as possible.
Natalie Nakase found an offseason mentor in Joe Mazzulla
Nakase got to see how Mazzulla interacts with players and staff and learn more about what makes him tick. At 35, he took over the Celtics and won a championship a year and a half later. His situation differs from Nakase’s, as he took over an already established roster with players like Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
Nakase and Mazzulla have similarities, though, including their desire to do things the right way, put the work in, and win. One of the things Nakase told SB Nation sums it up:
“My biggest thing was: how can I pick the brains of head coaches that win quickly?”
The 2025 season will be a learning experience for the Valkyries, but with Nakase at the helm, you can bet they’ll pull off some unexpected wins. Get ready because Golden State will be a playoff team before you know it.
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