Golden State Valkyries: Rankings, predictions and more for 2025 WNBA season

SAN FRANCISCO -- Kelsey Plum scored 26 of her 37 points in the second half and the Los Angeles Sparks spoiled the first game in Golden State Valkyries history with a 84-67 victory Friday night.

Even the loss couldn't dampen the excitement from the sellout crowd of 18,064 at the arena that has been transformed into Valkyries purple rather than the typical court for the NBA's Golden State Warriors.

The Valkyries are the WNBA's first expansion franchise since 2008 and bring professional women's basketball to the Bay Area.

Dearica Hamby added 14 points and Rickea Jackson scored 13 for the Sparks, who won in their first game under new coach Lynne Roberts.

Kayla Thornton scored the first basket in Valkyries history on the team's first possession and there were quickly chants of "G-S-V! G-S-V!"

Tiffany Hayes scored 19 points to lead Golden State, Temi Fagbenle added 15 and Julie Vanloo scored 14.

Rankings, predictions and more for 2025 season

Outside of a pair of preseason games, the Golden State Valkyries are preparing to tip off their inaugural season as the WNBA's first expansion team since 2008. The team hired Ohemaa Nyanin as general manager last May, and Natalie Nakase was brought on five months later as head coach. The roster began to take shape in a December expansion draft, where Golden State selected seven international players. During free agency, the Valkyries added Tiffany Hayes; in April's WNBA draft, they selectedJuste Jocyte(who will not play in the 2025 season), Shyanne Sellers (who was waived during camp) and Kaitlyn Chen(who also didn't make the final roster).

BPI's overall ranking: 12
Chances to make playoffs: 11.8%
Projected wins: 15.7

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Biggest strength: Nakase wants to play with pace, and there were stretches during the preseason when the Valkyries delivered, such as pushing aggressively against Phoenix. But some of the brightest moments came against a second-unit defense. So it's hard to know at this point if it's going to be a pure strength. Golden State needs more reps to figure out its calling card.

Biggest concern: A lack of star power. The Valkyries' roster consists of players who have been role players and strong second or third options, but none had been tasked with carrying the majority of the load on their previous teams. Someone needs to step up as the Valkyries' clear No. 1 option on offense whom others can feed off of, and whom they will be able to rely on in big, clutch moments. In their two preseason games, the Valkyries started extremely cold, trailing by double digits to the Sparks and Mercury. They ended up losing by one point against the Sparks, and they beat the Mercury. But it's hard to imagine second-half comebacks against other teams' reserves once the regular season begins.

The thing we'll be talking about most this season: Their existence. This is the WNBA's first new team in 17 years. On top of that, there is going to be a lot of discussion on how the Bay Area has embraced the Valkyries, from the team's violet popping up all over San Francisco to a record-breaking 15,000 season-ticket deposits. Over 17,000 fans showed up to the first preseason game, third-largest attendance at a preseason game in league history.

Number to watch: Golden State's defensive efficiency and rating. The Valkyries are emphasizing a defense-first mindset -- so much so that the first several days of camp were exclusively dedicated to defense drills. They didn't start folding in the offense until Days 3 and 4.

Nakase calls Kayla Thornton her "defensive specialist," and the forward's grit on that side of the court helped New York win the title last season. Veronica Burton gives the team a two-way guard and Temi Fagbenle is a known shot blocker. So Golden State has the players to be as elite defensively as it hopes to be, and much of its success and identity will stem from this.

One (realistic) bold prediction: The Valkyries won't have the worst record in the league. While Golden State will have to build chemistry and continue to learn to play with each other, other teams around the WNBA are in the middle of rebuilds and, like the Valkyries, have to figure out who they are. The difference between the Valkyries and these teams, such as Connecticut and Washington, is that Golden State is starting from scratch.

What does a successful season look like? Nakase said her team's motto this season is "progress over results." WNBA expansion teams have historically struggled in their first year, so a successful season won't be how many wins the Valkyries get but whether they can build a solid foundation and culture, which could ultimately make the team a more desirable landing spot for free agents.

The franchise is also eyeing getting a high draft pick for 2026. How does landing Lauren Betts sound? Hannah Hidalgo? Pretty good. With a strong upcoming draft class, the Valkyries could be best off finishing with a bad record and then getting the No. 1 or No. 2 pick, following in the Atlanta Dream's footsteps from when they joined the league: Lose in the first year, get the top pick and then become a contender. -- Andrews

Biggest fantasy question: Which Valkyries player will be the most fantasy relevant? Hayes (53.6 ADP), the 2024 Sixth Player of the Year, is a dynamic scorer who can shift momentum and is projected to lead the Valkyries in fantasy points and play the second-most minutes behind Thornton. Hayes has averaged 13.2 PPG, 3.2 RPG and 2.4 APG over her career and is a steady veteran presence the Valkyries will lean heavily on in their inaugural season. -- Moody