Valkyries set tone, preach defense in first day of camp

The Golden State Valkyries officially kick-started their inaugural season Sunday, hosting the first day of training camp. It was the first day the entire roster, coaching staff and front office shared a room, but the standard they want to set — and the identity they want to take on — is already clear.

“We’re killers,” said guard Kate Martin, who was brought over from the Las Vegas Aces in the expansion draft. “We want to be gritty; we want to be relentless. We want to be the ones diving on the floor for loose balls. We went to be the ones getting stops, we want to be playing together and work our tails off.”

Day 1 of the camp was spent almost exclusively running defensive drills — a key part of how the Valkyries intend to develop their “killer” identity. Coach Natalie Nakase said that although the coaching staff went through some offensive floor spacing and reads, the team will continue to focus on defense until “we feel that it’s an appropriate time to move on to offense.”

Nakase’s emphasis on defense is nothing new for her. She was feisty on defense as a player, and she instilled that same tenacity as an assistant in Las Vegas.

Now, that focus will shape her squad in the Bay Area. According to Nakase, the style will be a natural fit.

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“[Being ‘killers’] is who they are internally,” Nakase said. “If you watch the film on all of these players, that’s what I see when I watch film on them and I got to see it firsthand.”

She continued: “Everyone had the mindset of win or die. I do believe that was the mentality, and that’s how we want to approach every practice — like it’s a battle. I thought every single player did that today.”

After starting the day with a film session, Nakase said she saw players diving into walls, chairs and bleachers as they went for basketballs, exerting all of their willpower to set a tone — both for the day and for the franchise.

These are the characteristics Nakase and her staff are looking for as they assess the talent pool through camp.

Setting this kind of mindset is important for a team building from the ground up, as the Valkyries are. With teammates who have never played together and a brand-new system, Golden State views it as the best way to build a stable foundation.

“We have to lock in on those little things because we’re just getting started together,” guard Tiffany Hayes said. “We have to build our foundation so that in the future we know what we’re coming from. It’s very important to [find an identity early], and the way to do that is to be yourself and just do that to the best of your abilities. When you do that, everybody knows where they need to be, and they know what they are going to get from me, and me from them.”