Game 14 preview: Golden State Valkyries vs New York Liberty, 7:00 PM PDT

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Table of Contents

• News

  • Life without the Three Eurobasketeers

  • The fate of the Eurobasket substitutes: Laeticia Amihere, Chloe Bibby, Bree Hall, Kaitlyn Chen, Aerial Powers

    • Into the weeds

  • How to watch

  • GSV injury / absence report

• What to expect

  • Jonquel Jones is out

  • Comparative team power rankings

    • 5. Golden State Valkyries (6-6)

    • 3. New York Liberty (10-2)

  • Apricot’s season game summaries

    • Apricot’s Valkyries & Basketball Basics videos

  • Oversimplified guide to the Valkyries roster

News

Life without the Three Eurobasketeers

Here are the games in June where GSV will have 1/3 of the team leaving for Eurobasket.

• June 9 at #11 Los Angeles Sparks (W, OT thriller victory)

• June 14 vs #5 Seattle Storm (W, big lead, close victory)

• June 17 at #13 Dallas Wings (L, out-hustled, faded at end)

• June 19 vs #7 Indiana Fever (W, held Caitlin Clark to zero 3s for only the second time in her career)

• June 22 vs #11 Connecticut Sun (W, blowout win)

• June 25 vs #1 New York Liberty ← YOU ARE HERE

  • perhaps Fagbenle’s return?

  • Jonquel Jones out with ankle injury for 4-6 weeks, this is week 1.

• June 27 vs #12 Chicago Sky

• June 29 vs #5 Seattle Storm

• July 5 at #2 Minnesota Lynx

Expect ferocious fight and heart against the odds, and if we ever get a Full Squad, then they should be able to beat all but the top WNBA teams.

• Valkyrie Nation Eurobasket Viewing / Cheering Guide

  • how to watch, when are they playing, when are they likely to return

• All about June Eurobasket and the huge changes it brings for the Valkyries

• Group Stage ended Jun 21, 22 (return Jun 23, 24)

• Knockout Stage ends Jun 29 (return Jul 1)

The fate of the Eurobasket substitutes: Laeticia Amihere, Chloe Bibby, Bree Hall, Kaitlyn Chen, Aerial Powers

DubsNerd asked:

Any thoughts who will be dropped when Temi returns? I was thinking Bibby, but with Linskens gone they still need size, and she is able to hit a 3. So, maybe Ariel or Bree? In any case, I'm not about to second guess Ohemaa at this point, she's done a great job finding players that can fit what Nakase wants to do.

A good question. The short answer is Aerial Powers or Bree Hall are last on the depth chart and I expect them to go first. It’s possible Chen will go before Powers, but she looked pretty competent vs CON.

The long answer is, here is a list of Valkyries on the bubble, ordered by raw number of minutes played.

1. Amihere

2. Bibby

3. Chen

4. Powers

5. Hall

They are taking the roster spots of the 4 Eurobasketeers and Linskens.

That leaves exactly one spot for 5 of them. You could squeeze out another spot by waiving Talbot, who has been improving with the more regular playing time, or someone else.

Also complicating things is the rumor that Iliana Rupert, who has been crushing it with France alongside Salaun, will join GSV after EuroBasket. She would take that one spot and leave all 5 out in the cold.

If I were forced to make the difficult cold-hearted decision, I would tell Rupert to come next year and keep Amihere. No reason for Rupert to burn a year of team control for a half season.

I would also keep Bibby and waive Talbot. They both bring a lot, but Talbot’s shot is missing and she’s also an unrestricted free agent next year. Bibby would be Reserved (which is basically restricted free agency for the first 3 years).

Into the weeds

The team hasn’t announced the exact type of contract of any of the players. The WNBA has listed every one as a “rest of season” contract, but we’ve noted that WNBA.com has been wrong before. Thus, no one knows if these are hardship or just normal rest-of-season contracts like WNBA.com says. I suspect they are rest-of-season contracts, because that gives max flexibility about what to pay the players.

As I understand it, to waive the rest-of-season contract, you just do it whenever you want and the salary cap impact is only the amount already paid because the contracts are usually not guaranteed. Because GSV has so much salary cap, this is not a concern.

Thus, effectively there is no zero difference in difficulty of waiving between any of the hardship, replacement or rest-of-season contracts. The players will all be waived or not depending on their performance, team needs and most importantly, roster spots.

The main constraint is roster numbers. The pre-EuroB roster was full at 12. Linskens was waived, which puts the roster at 11. So there’s space to keep one more player.

How to watch

• As usual: KPIX+ (Bay Area), KMAX (Sacramento)

  • In the Bay Area, KPIX is channel 5, and KPIX+, the home of Valkyries basketball, is channel 44 (cable 12). In Sacramento, KMAX is channel 31, and KOVR is channel 13.

• WNBA League Pass if you are out of the blackout region. Even if blacked out, in theory the game is available right after the conclusion.

• (Friday games are streamed on ION, available on Fubo and YouTube TV and elsewhere.)

GSV injury / absence report

• Fagbenle, Salaun, Vanloo and Zandalasini are officially gone for Eurobasket.

• Carla Leite was listed as available last game, but Kaitlyn Chen got her minutes vs CON, which means either Leite’s back is still hurting or this was a showcase game for Chen who will be cut soon.

What to expect

From the Valkyries:

• High energy

• Fast pace, fast breaks

• Aggressive defense trying for on-ball steals and deflected passes

• Three-point shooting (not necessarily three-point making)

• Five-out formations, pick and roll, and HORNS formations

• Shifting defensive schemes, occasional 2-3 zone

Jonquel Jones is out

This is probably the most important news affecting the game.

The Liberty announced on Saturday that Jonquel Jones, who left Thursday's loss against Phoenix with a right ankle injury, will return to game action in four-to-six weeks but "avoided long-term injury." …

Jones, the reigning WNBA Finals MVP previously left June 5's win over Washington with the same injury. She has averaged 12.1 points and 9.6 rebounds in nine appearances this season, two of which have been cut short by earlier departures. Jones had just gotten back from the prior injury on Tuesday, which saw her put up a 10-point double-double with a comeback win over Atlanta.

With Jones out, the Liberty (10-2) will likely continue to turn to Kennedy Burke and Nyara Sabally for extended opportunities, each of whom has spent time in the startling lineup while she has been ailing.

Poor New York, only having two outstanding subs to cover for Jones.

On the other hand, NYL has literally won all its games with Jones (including a shock-and-awe romp over GSV) and struggled without her (including a last minute win over GSV). So, JJ does leave a hole in the otherwise unstoppable team.

Comparative team power rankings

Power rankings are all made up, but they are useful to see the conventional wisdom about teams. Here’s one from Newsweek:

5. Golden State Valkyries (6-6)

Last Week: 6 | Upcoming: CON (6/22), NYL (6/25), CHI (6/27)

The Golden State Valkyries are one of the biggest surprises of the league. Despite being an expansion team, they've shown resilience by knocking off high-powered squads like Seattle and Indiana.

Veronica Burton has excelled in the lead point guard role, sealing the game against the Indiana Fever. WNBA champion Kayla Thornton has been showcasing her skill set as the de facto leader of the squad, nailing a number of important buckets during the team's surge.

3. New York Liberty (10-2)

Last Week: 1 | Upcoming: SEA (6/22), GSV (6/25), PHX (6/27)

The reigning WNBA champions have had an up-and-down week.

The Liberty were overpowered by a refreshed Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever squad while playing shorthanded without Jonquel Jones. They then bounced back in a duel of Eastern Conference powerhouses and took down the Atlanta Dream but lost the following game to the Mercury due, at least in part, to another injury to the highly important Jones.

Apricot’s season game summaries

• Game 13 wrap: GSV fast breaks + 2-3 zone = blowout of CONN

• Game 12 wrap: Shorthanded Valkyries storm back from down 13 to beat Caitlin Clark's Fever going away

• Game 11 wrap: Wings outrebound Valks, pull away late; Amihere and Hayes show promise and pain in return

• Game 10 wrap. Valks blowout Storm, then un-blowout Storm, still win. Always Close Enough To Hurt™

• Game 9 wrap. Leite out of the doghouse, closes out the game with Thornton in OT to beat LA; Salaun pours in 21

• Game 8 wrap. Valkyries blow out #3 Aces and contain MVP A’ja Wilson

• Game 7 wrap: Buddhism teaches us that suffering comes from attachment to material things

• Game 6 wrap: Valkyries even with WNBA Finalists Lynx at half, get blown out in Q4, storm back at end too late

• Game 5 wrap: So close to the upset of the year... Always Close Enough To Hurt™

• Game 4 wrap: Liberty blast Valks early by 25; GSV storms back to within 11, but fade in the fourth

• Game 1 wrap: GSV thrills and fights but can't overcome Plum's record-setting 37

Apricot’s Valkyries & Basketball Basics videos

Oversimplified guide to the Valkyries roster

Four players left through the month of June to participate in Eurobasket (thoroughly explained earlier): Fagbenle, Salaun, Vanloo, Zandalasini. Don’t worry, just four of the most important players. A shooting-starved team is losing their #1, #2, and #4 in threes per game, and Fagbenle is their starting center. This is a huge disruption to a team that has only been together about 1 month. It’s also a big opportunity for everyone staying.

• Starters, slightly scoring challenged but feisty defenders

  • #22 Veronica Burton. Solid point guard, organizes and calls all the plays; outstanding defender and ball-stealer; decent at running pick-and-roll, not quite explosive enough to blow by but can muscle in layups and running hooks.

  • #5 Kayla Thornton. Vet all-around forward. Likes to spot up for corner 3s and get dirty fighting for rebounds everywhere. With Burton is a team leader and organizer. Was WNBA Player of the Week last week! Key bench player for the champion Liberty,

  • #7 Stephanie Talbot.

    • Vet wing who can shoot the 3 (in theory; 15.4% 3P in reality so far).

    • Starting since the Eurobasket exodus.

    • Had been penciled in as starter in preseason, but injuries delayed her debut until Game 3 and she has looked rusty every since.

    • Had been a Did Not Play - Coach Decision until Eurobasket.

    • As a starter, has not been scoring, but did make some sweet passes, spirited steals, and awful turnovers.

  • #0 Carla Leite

    • Youngest at 21 y.o., was 2024-25 EuroCup Finals MVP.

    • Excellent bounce back games after being in Coach Nakase’s doghouse, barely playing in a 4 game stretch before Eurobasket.

    • Some dazzling speed on drives and horrible turnovers. Rookie life.

    • Promised NOT to leave for Eurobasket, a commitment that has won my heart.

  • #25 Monique Billings. Sturdy scorer and rebounding vet, starting to really hit her stride as the screener in pick and roll. Can pop out for 3 or finish through contact. Presumably will start at center during Eurobasket.

• Entertaining Bench, slightly chaotic

  • #15 Tiffany Hayes.

    • Lightning bug driver, unstoppable in the open court. But this team leader (she spoke at opening day) had a bad nose RE-INJURY and is still wearing a big mask.

    • IND was the first game where she looked comfortable (all year!) and could display both her speedy footwork guarding Caitlin Clark 1-on-1 and also running effective pick and rolls emphasizing her speeding to the rim for layups.

  • #20 Kate Martin. The most popular player, Iowa teammate of Caitlin Clark.

    • Has hit a couple of threes but her finishing at the rim has been difficult

    • Starting to settle in a bit as a shooter and even as a screener for pick-and-pop.

    • Chaotic on defense: some very heads-up rotations, some bad switches.

• Joined as Eurobasket replacements

  • #3 Laeticia Amihere.

    • Indirectly won this spot over Linskens since GSV is going further into smallball, 5-out, run-and-gun style, which needs a more dynamic athlete to run the court. It didn’t hurt that Amihere hit a couple of threes in preseason.

    • She got some minutes vs SEA and GSV featured her in several keeper-actions where she fakes a dribble handoff to a guard and drives. They were a mixed bag of baskets and offensive fouls.

    • In the DAL and IND games, she has been a bright spot, pouring in points and being very assertive on offense. Amihere adds a different dimension to the team, i.e. get me the ball in the paint or downhill on fake handoff and no one can stop me 1-on-1.

    • On defense, she’s finding her place with some highlight blocks and steals. She’s been getting into the flow of rotating as weak side help from the elbow to cover when there is a small defender stuck in the low weak side.

  • #55 Chloe Bibby.

    • A decent forward, whose playing time is hard to predict during Eurobasket. Ahead of her for the 3 big/wing positions are Thornton/Billings/Talbot as starters and then Amihere off the bench. That should in theory leave some minutes to be absorbed by Bibby.

    • In theory, Bibby is a good 3P shooter, shooting 35.5% 3P in 5 years of college. At 6-2, 194 lbs, she guarded bigs credibly if not dominantly.

    • In her debut vs IND, she took up the Talbot minutes and added important points off of pick-and-pop plays on the wing, shooting with a Salaun-like lack of conscience. Hit some more shots vs CON.

  • #2 Kaitlyn Chen. A decent, smart point guard. Chen was, by applause, *the* most popular player in the preseason games, even surpassing Kate Martin. However, she would be behind in the guard depth chart: Hayes, Burton, Vanloo, Leite for sure; and Kate Martin is there to absorb all remaining guard minutes. So there isn’t normally a place in the rotation. With Hayes and Vanloo out, we still have Burton/Leite and Powers/Martin ahead of Chen in the rotation. But if there’s foul trouble (or garbage time), we could see Chen.

    • Update: Leite was held out of the CON game (for I suspect back injury rest). Chen got 21 minutes in a blowout. But a lot of those were real minutes, as she debuted at the start of the 2nd quarter.

  • #21 Bree Hall. Guard signed presumably for the duration of the Eurobasket absences. Bree was a champ with South Carolina and was a 2025 2nd rd pick by IND, who promptly cut her after 1 game.

  • #23 Aerial Powers.

    • The fifth overall pick in the 2016 WNBA Draft, Powers averages 10.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and a 39.7 field goal percentage across her nine-year WNBA playing career. The 5’11” guard was named to the WNBA All-Rookie team in 2016 with Dallas, and guided Washington to the 2019 WNBA Championship title. Powers spent the 2024 season with Atlanta where she averaged 8.6 points per game.

    • Hasn’t gotten a lot of run with the increased minutes for Tip Hayes.

• Away for Eurobasket

  • #24 Cecilia Zandalasini. Another vet wing who can shoot the 3. Has been out all training camp with right foot issue but came into the Liberty game and hit big shots. She was given the last shot to tie the Liberty game, so Nakase believes in her.

  • #35 Julie Vanloo. Goddess of Chaos, inventive and ambitious playmaker guard. Wild with the ball (5+ TOV per 36 minutes) but also makes wild positive plays. A little shaky on defense so far.

  • #14 Temi Fágbénlé. Decent scoring, all-around, solid solid vet center. Can run pick and roll and punish mismatches by posting up.

  • #13 Janelle Salaün, Fresh off an Italian League Finals MVP, she joined GSV in Game 2 and hasn’t stopped shooting since. She’s reportedly headed for Eurobasket for June so enjoy her while you can.