WNBA: Emergence of Kaitlyn Chen forced Valkyries to make a cruel cut

Imagine returning home from a long trip just to see that all your furniture is gone.

That’s basically what happened to Julie Vanloo, who returned from EuroBasket Women 2025 and, instead of showing off her gold medal to her teammates, was informed that she was getting cut. She quickly moved on and signed with the Los Angeles Sparks, but the decision made some scratch their heads. Vanloo, a solid and experienced point guard, is a player that any team can use, right?

Well, yes and no. The Valkyries already have their share of experienced players, and while the decision to cut the Belgian, who apart from great basketball skills has the personality to match, is hard to defend, it’s not indefensible.

The biggest reason behind the move is the rise of Veronica Burton, who has emerged as the team’s primary playmaker due to her play style, on both offense and defense, fitting the vision of head coach Natalie Nakase. Keeping a player like Vanloo on the bench for close to 30 minutes per game would be unfair to her, and with the way Burton is playing, she needs all the reps she can get to truly reach her potential.

Another reason Golden State parted ways with Vanloo was the way Kaitlyn Chen, the No. 30 overall pick of the 2025 WNBA Draft, was able to immediately immerse herself into the roster. After being cut prior to the season, Chen was signed to fill-in for Vanloo and has been doing an awesome job. She’s also younger than Vanloo (23 to 32) and slightly taller (5-foot-9 to 5-foot-8). Chen is also on cheaper contract and has a marketable narrative, as she’s a local girl from San Marino, CA who won a national championship with UConn. Then there’s Chen’s defense. which nicely fits the identity of this Valkyries team.

Consider her two steals from the 80-61 win over the Fever. The first came on Caitlin Clark. Chen was playing help defense and left Kelsey Mitchell, her primary assignment, when she saw that the ball was within reach. The second steal came thanks to instinctively knowing where to position herself. Again, she left her defensive assignment on the wing after seeing that Mitchell was driving towards the basket. She crowded the paint with two other players and forced a turnover. Her court awareness and intelligence were on full display during both plays, and when you have a player like that, she needs the minutes to further develop those intuitive skills.

Sometimes, it’s not about who’s the better player, but who better fits the team concept. And that’s exactly what happened in Golden State. At the moment, Vanloo might still be the better player, but that doesn’t mean that Chen isn’t the better piece for the Valkyries.