During Friday’s expansion draft, televised live on ESPN, the Valkyries selected 11 players to begin filling out their inaugural roster for the 2025 season, and there were some surprises. Perhaps foremost among them: Golden State made no trades (around the last WNBA expansion draft in 2008, the Atlanta Dream made three).
There’s an international feel to the Valkyries’ picks. Seven of their 11 choices hail from outside the United States, including a pair of former draft picks (Maria Conde and Carla Leite) who have yet to play in the WNBA.
Additionally, Golden State seems to be setting up for a splash in next year’s free agency. The Valkyries selected just three players currently under contract for 2025, giving them ample cap space to pursue bigger stars who weren’t available in the expansion draft. At the same time, Golden State didn’t come out of the expansion draft with any extra draft picks to build a core of young talent.
Overall, I’d give the Valkyries a B-. I thought they focused a bit too much on building the best possible 2025 roster, rather than a longer-term outlook that might have prioritized younger talent and trades for picks.
Let’s run through all 11 choices and what they mean for Golden State, sorting them from my favorite choices to my least favorite based on which…
