Game 14 wrap: Always Close Enough to Hurt™; GSV takes champs NYL to last shot; Kate Martin goes wild, but so do Johannes and Stewart

Random ending went the wrong way… on to the next one

Box Score

• https://www.wnba.com/game/1022500094/NYL-vs-GSV

Apricot In-Game Notes

DeWanna Bonner and Eurobasket

• In other news, DeWanna Bonner wants out of IND and IND is trying to trade her or, failing that, waive her. Bonner is good enough that GSV has to do due diligence on whether to try to get her.

  PROS

  - DB multitime All Star including last year

  - GSV has a subtle roster crunch. 2 spots for Talbot, Amihere, Bibby, Rupert. Maybe consolidation trade is efficient.

  CONS

  - 37

  - only under contract for this year

  - would break up chemistry adding someone who didn’t like IND moving her to bench?

  - she wants to go to ATL or PHX (w fiancée Alyssa Thomas)

  Thoughts?

  https://www.basketball-reference.com/wnba/players/b/bonnede01w.html

• Okay, WNBA moves fast.

  ‪@tonyreast.bsky.social‬:

  [[ The Fever make it official - they have waived forward DeWanna Bonner. They also signed Aari McDonald, who they had on a hardship contract earlier this season. ]]

  I read that GSV does not have the cap space to sign her directly as a free agent. I don’t know if this would change after waiving a lot of the EuroBasket subs.

  ‪Also ‪@mingemi.bsky.social‬

  [[

  Valkyries announce Temi Fagbenle has been reactivated and Aerial Powers was waived

  ]]

• From this morning:

  GAME STATUS REPORT UPDATE : Golden State Valkyries vs. New York Liberty – June 25, 2025

  Temi Fágbénlé - Out - Rest

  Carla Leite- Questionable - Back

• Also:

  Ionescu QUESTIONABLE

  Fiebich OUT TO EUROBASKET

  Jones OUT

• First, a team can pick her off waivers and assume her contract. I believe team priority is by reverse order of standings… I’d have to check the CBA to be sure.

  If she clears waivers, she is an unrestricted free agent, so yes any team can sign her. I kind of assume she ends up in PHX with the fiancée if she can swing that

• On IND w/o Bonner… DB hasn’t played much this year and IND is doing well, so I wouldn’t write them off

• BEL crushes GER to advance to EuroBasket Finals. Vanloo and Linskens tied for #2 EFF (behind the incomparable Meesseman).

  They will play Zandalasini and ITA in the semis.

  Salaun and Rupert on FRA play ESP in the other semis.

  https://www.fiba.basketball/en/events/fiba-womens-eurobasket-2025/games/123063-BEL-GER#boxscore

Q1

• the morning official report is that Temi is out.

• Leite and Temi out tonight. Starters: KT / Talbot / Mo / Tip / VB

• Q1.

  Vigorous cheers for a few Liberty, especially Sabrina.

  9.20. Very scraggly start. GSV runs a neat little stagger pin for the corner.

  8.30. NYL showing switch defense on screens.

  7.40. Talbot is cooking early with a desperation 3, then a great cut on VB’s baseline drive.

  7.32. VB sizes up Sabrina and isos her. Good strip by Sabrina.

  7.24. Tip gets Sabally I think on a switch from the stagger screen BLOB ATO (baseline out of bounds after timeout play)

  7.10. GSV guarding screens with show and recover.

  VB and Tip with back to back 3s on simple drive and quick kick to the wing.

  5.25. GSV has done a good job blowing up the initial action. But Mo Billings and someone mix up a switch.

  5.10. Talbot with another scrappy OREB.

  4.55. Stewart putting on a clinic of punishing every little defensive mistake.

  3.56. GSV beating up NYL inside with lots of cuts. Without Jones, NYL has to prove it can defend the rim.

  2.55. The most confident 3 Talbot has taken this year. Was running back on release.

  1.52. GSV shooting 5-9 from 3, surely an efficiency record for the franchise. NYL keeping pace with 4-10 from 3P%. I’m guessing GSV can’t keep it up and NYL can. So GSV has to keep getting those layups and start turning over NYL.

• Q1

  1.52.Kaitlyn Chen is in. Massive ovation.

  Chloe Bibby with her standard pick and pop and she continues where she left off. 3.

  1.00. Chen gets to guard Marine Johannes who tries to dot a 3 in her eye. Miss, whew.

  0.30. Tip with the drive and the weird non-rotation from I think marine. Easy layup.

  0.12.9. Tip guarding Sabrina 1-on-1. But Sabrina gets two sided screen, Bibby with the world's longest show and recover, Sabrina launches from space and misses.

  UP THREE.

Q2

• Q2

  10.00. Kate Martin in. Bibby misses the entry pass from Tip who does not look happy. Bibby has also missed DREBs on a couple of plays last quarter.

  9.10. GSV posts up Bibby again. A little odd this commitment.

  8.44. Martin gets blocked. Generally having trouble finishing inside this year. And Bibby gets beat on ANOTHER DREB.

  Bibby outsubbed out.

  This time Martin gets covered by Marine, whom GSV clearly wants to exploit. Kate powers through for a layup.

  Breanna Stewart is just ridiculous.

  7.10. Mo with a sweet fake handoff to get to the front of the rim for a painful miss. Then score on the other end. OUCH.

  Chen throws a pass to what looked like a Martin backdoor cut, but Kate stopped. Then she hustled to get to it, but then got swarmed.

  NYL is so strong that even when they’re not playing super well they can keep pace with GSV. Then a couple of mistakes - missed layups, bad switches, overhelp, and wham NYL punishes with their offensive firepower. But honestly, GSV is right there with them, except Stewart is kind of unstoppable.

• Q2

  3.54. Kind of evil that NYL can run Stewart off a ghost screen and then have Sabrina popping out off a pindown.

  3.25. Tip knocked down on a missed layup, then hustles hard to catch up to the 5-on-4. Just as Cloud gets the ball for an open 3.

  Amihere in. GSV was trying to exploit the middle but those cuts from Q1 are covered better. So they posted up. But they didn’t get too far. Now trying Amihere to try her power.

  Ballhalla showed both the Stanford WBB head coach and the Cal WBB head coach on the screen. I think Cal won the audience cheer competition.

  2.42. NYL has been running quick screening action and forcing a switch (GSV wants to show and recover but NYL goes fast to not allow the recover), then attack the mismatch with the superior roster. But this time, Mo plays drop to contain Cloud, then fantastic Mo recovery to roller for the block.

  Amihere gets switch, attacks Cloud and doesn’t settle, good play.

  Mo with a crazy OREB from behind Sabally.

  Talbot looking more confident.

  1.06. NYL has gone cold enough (and GSV has turned them over enough) to let GSV creep back to DOWN ONE.

  Mo with ANOTHER OREB.

  0.10. Okay I don’t know what Amihere thought she was doing there on D on Stewart. Looked almost like ICE but no one was dropped to receive her. Frantic rotation, Tip and Talbot rotate to form a wall on Stewart. But juuuust a blocking foul. The independent review panel that is Ballhalla disagreed with the call and filed a formal complaint.

Q3

• Q3

  10.00. NYL screwed up its defense there. Kate with the nice layup.

  8.07. Okay, THAT was Stephanie Talbot’s most confident shot of the year. Open for a sec, guarded, says YOLO and 3.

  7.00. Kind of a frustration 3 from KT. She sealed Sabrina really nicely but no entry to the post.

  6.40. If Cloud ever starts hitting these open threes, NYL will storm back.

  6.20. GSV playing with more intensity. Taking more risks in the passing lane which have paid off.

  5.50. Almost perfect. Mo declines posting up Stewart, gets Kate to PNR with her to get Stewart out of the lane, then gets the ball back on a roll and has an angle for a layup, which she painfully misses..

• Q3

  5.35. Amihere back. But it’s Kate Martin who gets Sabrina isoed and she just powers through her fir an AND-1. UP FIVE.

  5.10. Amihere plays Stew 1-1 but then a triple team comes. That may have been overkill. Kick out to an open 3, swish.

  4.45. Amihere misses the layup off a great athletic drive, then somehow gets the OREB lying on the ground. Hustle. Amihere is the Deputy Goddess of Chaos while Vanloo is in Europe.

• Q3

  4.30. Tip got Stew on a switch and could not resist isoing. Stew wins.

  3.52. Very strategic. GSV starts with a Tip-Kate PNR to get Stew guarding Kate on the weak side perimeter. Tip drives other side, forces help off corner, kicks to KT 3. Miss. GSV 3P% coming down to earth (now at a more Valkyrieish 29.2%

  2.45. Amihere playing drop coverage on Marine Johannes. That cannot possibly be the plan. Chaotic evil.

  But then powers up a layup on the other side, chaotic good.

  1.50. Tip calls out the NYL play “elbow” signalling. But too late, Marine gets the elbow PNR for 3.

  1.10. Johannes going supernova from 3 with berserk running one leg sideways 3 that would make Steph Curry feel guilty.

  Massive play by Burton to draw a charge on a certain fast break 2. Keep in mind that Johannes is a bench player on NYL. Ridiculous depth.

  0.45. Intriguing play, small-small pick and pop Chen-Martin. Why not? Tip guarding Marine like she’s taking it personally.

  0.09. Kaitlyn Chen with the steal from Marine!! Sweet “dummy” BLOB ATO to the open Kate, who sails it about a yard too far.

  NYL lost another sure basket with Tip drawing a pass-and-crash charge that you could see unfolding for maybe 5 seconds before.

Q4

• Q4

  9.47. It was an inverted PNR for Stew but GSV jams Cloud on the ghost screen pop. Great rotation from Martin to stone Stew.

  8.57 Chen and Martin bring the triple team on Stew in the post. Kick to Sabrina (not fair) and defense rotates back but Sabrina sabrinas.

  Amihere with the loong recover off the show on Sabrina’s PNR. Chaotic good.

  Sabally is the only player NYL has on court that won’t shoot the 3. Cloud not too willing either… misses again.

  6.35. MASSIVE 3 for KT. Burton settles the team, calles HORNS n (I forget the number n, I think n=5) but she gets a PNR on one elbow then swings back to KT. I think it usually develops into a dribble handoff for the other corner, but KT has space and says, in the words of the sages, YOLO.

• Q4

  6.20. Burke has been silently killing GSV. GSV forms a wall (two players behind initial D) to stop Stew, ball kicks out, Burke punishes. UP FOUR.

  Burke with another 2 FTs. UP SIX.

  Burton back in. Immediately with the clever if uncertain selection pass to a cutting KT, lost out of bound.

  4.48. NYL with the rare unforced mistake,kick out to the corner, no one there.

  4.33. BIG THREE FOR KATE. She’s getting all the corner threes she can eat when they help off her on the drive.

  KATE WITH ANOTHER THREE. Crowd is a little excited.

  3.47. TIE GAME. KT posts up Sabrina, double team comes and KT can’t find the open player. VB swoops in from nowhere to save the ball and almost get a reverse layup. Almost.

  We’re in RANDOM ENDING TERRITORY. ALWAYS CLOSE ENOUGH TO HURT.

  3.20. Was that a surprise 2-3 zone? Stew gets in the middle and scores.

  2.57. Painful travel from KT.

• Q4

  2.05. GSV runs 325, the high stagger screen play. Guarded well. Tip has to manufacture something, gets fouled.

  2.00. Burton with the drive and kick to Kate Martin WHO HITS HER THIRD THREE. UP ONE. Nakase really believes in the hot hand!

  But Sabrina gets fouled for 3 FTs. And now being reviewed for an upgrade to flagrant. Oooof what a turnaround.

  Rival fan cheers between I think a Liberty cheer (can’t quite hear it) and GSV.

  1.48. Sabrina with 3 FTs to go up 2. Should be automatic for her.

  1.40. Same play, Burton on handoff, drives, kick to corner. NYL is ready and steals.

  1.10. Kick out to Money Martin for an open three, but she’s temporarily out of cash..

  0.49.5. GSV aggressively challenging simple handoffs. KT looks like she may have knocked if off Stew. Called NYL ball, but Nakase challenges. If GSV can get this, they can go two for one. Unsuccessful. Worth a try.

• Q4

  0.30. GSV tries another HORNS play, Tip gets cleanly stripped by Sabrina, that’s a gamewinning play, leading to…

  0.21. Big foul on VB. It’s shooting for Sabrina. OUCH. DOWN 4 with 0.21.3 Not looking good for the side of the angels.

  0.16.5. Uh, MONEY MARTIN AGAIN. A real hoist but it counts. I think the crowd is excited but I can’t hear anything anymore

  0.11.4. DOWN 1. Instant foul, should have the ball down three with about 10 seconds to go.

• Q4

  0.08.4. Sabrina two shots. NO TIMEOUTS. It’s going to be wild.

  0.06. KT misses a contested 3. GSV gets it back.

  Kate misses a contested 3.

  GSV played hard down to the last millisecond. Big ovation of respect from the crowd.

  GSV huddles midcourt after the hard fought painful loss, players only.

  NYL missing Jones is a big loss, but GSV missing four of its best players and taking them down to the last shot? They win the moral victory but it doesn’t feel great this time. Last time it was proving they belonged and wouldn’t be intimidated. This time it was a battle of peers that GSV knew they could have, should have won.

• Always Close Enough To Hurt™ Corporate motto on the Golden State Co stationary.

• Kate Martin in postgame echoing the Nakase mantra “control what you can control”. Good sign that Nakase teachings are getting adopted.

• NN: Positioning was much better at halftime.

  Started Kate in H2 because Tip was in the bathroom.

  Tip is fearless to play so hard and sacrifice her body with a broken face. A+.

• Guarding Stew and Sabrina. NN slyly avoids any technical game plan talk by saying they were “more physical”. No talk about the trapping or the triple teams or the walling off. But that’s okay. I think most readers won’t want to hear that either.

• NN: guarding Sabrina, force them in direction they don’t want, be physical. Communicating to defend screens.

  Janie: Podz support?

  NN. Shadowed Steve in off season. BP introduced himself and it’s great.