Valkyries clinch playoffs, land 2027 All-Star
Natalie Esquire and Terrika Foster-Brasby react to the Golden State Valkyries' dominance as the team clinched a second straight playoff berth and being selected to host 2027 WNBA All-Star Weekend.
Video Transcript
Welcome to the WNBA on NBC.
It's Natalie Esquire, and I'm joined by my fellow Leo queen, Char Rika Foster-Brasby.
Thank you so much for joining me, Char Rika.
Hey, girl.
We are here bringing all this Leo energy.
Absolutely.
And since we are talking about celebrations, though, some news has come down, Char Rika.
There is gonna be a celebration next year in the Bay because WNBA All-Star Weekend is headed there, baby.
Hey, tell me where to go.
Tell me where to go.
Tell me where to go.
I'm just getting, I'm just getting prepared.
I'm getting prepared now.
Oh, this is gonna be so amazing, and I cannot wait to see it.
You know, it's not that surprising that this is where the league landed.
The Valkyries have been so exciting.
They've been such an amazing story.
And the players themselves, I mean, Nneka Ogwumike was speaking at WNBA All-Star Weekend and said that the players have been talking, and, you know, a lot of them were saying that they thought Golden State would be a great place for All-Star to be.
And so ask, and you shall receive.
When I tell you I was literally just at Balhalla last week covering Golden State and Chicago, and the atmosphere in that building is like none other.
I was making a joke on social media, and I tweeted at Liberty fans and I said, "Listen, I know Brooklyn is great, but Golden State is coming for y'all neck," because everything about it from the way that the fans have really gravitated to the theme, the entrance, just the Chase Center, there's a lot of space.
There's a lot of things to do around the area.
You and I were just in San Fran last year for NBA All-Star, so- Oh, don't let the people in the Bay hear you call it San Fran, girl.
You better stop.
Oh, I'm sorry.
People in the Bay, and people, and people in Golden State.
Let me My, my bad.
You know what I'm saying?
I don't want, I don't want folks in Oakland to get mad at me.
My bad, my bad.
You know, my, I'm sor- I apologize, people in the Bay.
But the whole point is, it was a great time, and it was a great atmosphere.
So I have no doubt that the way WNBA shows up and the things that we do at All-Star Weekend is going to be just as fun and just as incredible in the Bay.
Absolutely, and you know what?
At this past All-Star Weekend in Chicago, me and Violet, if you guys don't know who Violet is, I'ma have to question your WNBA, credentials, but no, that is their mascot, who they do not refer to- Yes as a mascot, so I don't even like saying that.
But Violet was holding it down, and me and her was dancing.
Mm-hmm.
Yes.
So, you know, I know it's gonna be great.
And, you know, this can now further my agenda of that we need to have a three-point contest featuring Steph Curry versus- Steph Curry.
AZ Fudd.
And you know what?
Like, it would be really dope, too, if we get that whole, like, Sabrina, Steph, you know, and adding AZ to the mix because Sabrina is from the Bay, right?
So, it, it could be a fun party out there, but no, for real, I think it's dope- Yeah that it's going there.
NBA All-Star Weekend was just, in the Bay, what, two years ago was that?
You and I were both there.
Oh, last year.
Was that last year?
Last year.
Okay.
Last year February, and we had a time.
It was great.
We did.
It's a great area.
So I, I, I personally will really be looking forward to that, 'cause look, I'm already paying homage with the purple in the background of Violet.
See?
So yeah, shout out to the Valkyries and, and the Bay Area.
And look, there's a lot to be celebrating there because the Valkyries now in its second season as an expansion- Mm-hmm franchise.
They have clinched the playoffs the second year in a row, and they are, like, looking like they could get a top two spot, Char Rika.
Yeah, like, they have really shown up and shown out over the month of August, but really since, that All-Star break.
And it's because Gabby Williams has played phenomenally.
It's because Tiffany Hayes is still showing that her 14 years in the league doesn't mean she still can't hoop.
Veronica Burton, I mean, literally this defense is one of the best defenses I've seen from a long time.
They pride themselves on it.
They run the table with them.
They literally just held Dallas last night to their lowest scoring output of the season.
It is, it is hard to play Golden State when they are defensively locked in, so- Which is always.
Yeah, I, I, I think that Did I go away?
No, I said which is always, right?
Oh, I know, right?
Which is always.
Like, it's hard to, it's hard to beat this team when they're defensively locked in.
And I mean, I gotta give a shout-out to Natalie Nakase, Nat, because honestly I am not too old to, to have forgotten that at the beginning of this season, specifically around the draft, some of the personnel moves that were made, some of the people that were picked up and not picked up, let's not forget Flag was supposed to be on this team, if I'm not remembering.
Mm-hmm.
And then somehow got switched to C- Like, we all were like, "What is happening in Golden State?"
And we did the same thing last year when we looked at the expansion draft, when we looked at the pieces.
We were like, "What in the world?
I don't know if I understand it, but we gonna see what happens."
And sure enough, what's meant to be is meant to be.
What, what happens is a coach understood what she wanted, a GM understood what they wanted, the team understood what their identity was going to be.
They play like it, and now look at them, currently sitting in the second seed, but could very well finish this season with a one or a two seed.
Yeah, I'm glad that you said that.
Shout-out to Ohemaa as well, the GM, because, you know, Natalie was definitely questioned, especially around, like, even shout-out to Caitlin Chen for, for the- Yes for Kate Martin, for her being cut and, and keeping Caitlin Chen, who w- honestly some have put in the conversation for MIP, right?
Like, she is balling out this season.
And, you know, Ohemaa caught a lot of flack.
For the Flau'jae, trade and just the way it was handled and went down and, you know- Mm-hmm but look here they are, like, firmly in the number two spot, and this is just their second year as a team.
I mean, it's- Mm-hmm it's incredible.
And when you look at this, you know, they, like I said, they have a very good chance of, of securing two.
They could get to one, you know?
They have, they do have to face the Lynx, the team above them, and they haven't- Yeah had success against them yet this season.
They have two games against them, so that would be a good litmus test for them.
But outside of those two games, the, the Valkyries have a much more favorable schedule to close the season than the Lynx.
Yeah.
So we shall see how that all plays out, and if they can move up any further.
But, you know, you just can't say enough about the Valkyries.
They are currently on a six-game winning streak right now.
And, you know, this is their second, like, kinda big winning streak of the season, Charica.
So six games- Mm-hmm right now.
That's an active streak, right?
Mm-hmm.
And when you look at, like, the teams they're playing, 'cause y- you can't just say, like, "Oh, they're just beating, like, up on teams that are, like, inferior and not good," you know?
And they're doing it, like you said, defensively, because their offense, you know, sometimes is not, like, doesn't leave a lot to be desired, you know?
And so, but that's why we can say defense wins championships, you know?
But, like- Yeah look at how they've handled, you know, Dallas.
And Dallas was, like, a team, before the All-Star break, we were like, "Hmm, Dallas could be, like, real."
And now, you know- Yeah they've handed Dallas these losses.
We know, even though Chicago may be a non-playoff team, Chicago is not an easy team to play.
They recently beat the Aces.
You have, Sydney over there doing her thing.
You know, like, they, Dijonai Carrington came back into the mix, has added a lot to that team, you know?
And even the Sparks, like, I know they're, like, on the outside of the playoffs looking in, but that's not an easy team to play.
Like, Toronto, unfortunately, they're really depleted, you know, right now.
We did hear that, Slim is coming back, so good for them.
But, like, honestly, these are not, I do not want people to look at this and think, like, this is just easy for them to do.
And then they earlier- Totally had a nine-game winning streak earlier in the season, which included a road trip where they went 5 and 0.
Yeah.
Like- Golden State is not playing.
Like- This team is impressive.
They are not playing.
And again, we talked earlier about how important home court advantage is.
Well, nearly 80% of their games that they play in the Chase Center, in Valhalla, they win.
Like, that is incredibly important, and you mentioned it.
They have seven games on their schedule left outside of the Minnesota Lynx of, of, against teams that are sub-500.
And you and I have said this before, record doesn't always indicate the competition that you're going to face.
But that's a really good favorable schedule for you to have if you're trying to secure not only the two seed, but pot- potentially put yourself in the, in the right space to take the one seed if necessary.
You get a, you get some wins over Minnesota that you're gonna face twice and handle the teams that you're supposed to handle, you've put yourself in a great position to be an expansion team with the number one seed, and that's something that we've not seen done.
Yeah, for sure.
Listen, they were celebrating last night.
They knew what the moment entailed.
Tip Hayes was showing out as she likes to do.
She was shooting from damn near the logo with Steph Curry in the building.
Yeah, yeah.
He was so hyped to see it last night.
But, like, they understood, you know, the moment, you know?
Yeah.
Um- Yeah.
And so- It's, it's- Yeah, it was just Like, look, it was, it was incredible to watch and see, you know, that they just, they meet the moment.
They meet the moment.
They understand the moment.
Natalie Nakase was like, "There's no playing around."
And, like, look, honestly, if the Valkyries would've lost that game last night, they were gonna still clinch the playoffs.
Like, this is not a team that's in danger- Yeah of not clinching the playoffs.
But, like- Yeah they treated it like this was a game seven do or die situation.
And, like, that builds championship practices, right?
Yes.
And, and, you know, it's so funny because, Steph was there with, like, Gary Payton, and he was, like, saying that Gary Payton was saying, like, "Oh, look, she too calm.
She too calm.
She about to pull up."
And then she just pulled up.
I mean, the building erupted, you know?
In Valhalla- Yeah that's, that's how it gets down there.
So, you know, they have the flair.
They have Gabby.
She was sensational last night.
She's locking down.
Her name is in the conversation.
Actually, she's the front runner for DPOY, you know, so that acquisition really paid off for them.
Natalie Nakase's in the conversation again- Mm-hmm a second year in a row for coach of the year.
For coach of the year.
I mean, you know, Joe Lacob put some lofty expectations on this team.
He put some lofty expectations on this team when they came, saying, like, they needed to win a championship in the first five years.
And people were like, "Why would he do that?"
It didn't surprise me, as someone who covers the Warriors.
Like, I know how Joe Lacob gets down.
But look, he put his money behind this team and where his mouth is, and Natalie Nakase, Ohemaa, Jess Smith over there for marketing, the players- Everyone is executing on his vision.
And while they have not won that championship yet- Yeah they're putting themselves in good position.
Nat, I am so glad that you brought that up because I might have been one of the few people that was like, "I love Joe Lacob saying this."
Because what you have to do is set the tone and set the foundation from the beginning.
You cannot come in with this soft mentality and say, "Well, we know we're gonna give ourselves about five or six years to try to get it together," and then you're already starting off at a terrible foundation if you think that way.
The fact that he's like, "Listen, we're ready to win now.
We're gonna try.
This is the expectation that we wanna set about winning now."
And I think that right there puts some form of trust, not only in your leadership, but it also makes the players feel confident.
Because you look at this roster, and this isn't a roster that jumps off the, off the page at you where you instantly say, "That's definitely a championship team."
You've got players like a Kayla Thornton who was undrafted, has been in this league 11 years, and yet still plays high around the rim.
You've got players like, again, a Tip Hayes who retired and came back.
You've got a Gabby Williams, who I know everybody knows Gabby because of how phenomenal she's been, but she's spent a majority of her career playing in EuroLeague.
EuroLeague isn't something that everybody is all down to watch.
Right.
So we know her because she's been amazing at UConn.
We know her because of how she plays with the French national team.
We know her because we know what she could bring.
But this is our first time really seeing full season, end to end, Gabby Williams, and this is why folks were excited about it.
I think everyone thought that Veronica Burton could be great, just needed the opportunity.
Now she's got it.
So again, when you got leadership that really comes out and say, "This is the expectation we're gonna set, and we don't really care about what other people on the outside think about it," your team starts to feed off that confidence, and this is what you get.
And so I'm really happy for this Golden State team.
I think they are truly gonna make some noise.
If you are a betting person, literally at the beginning of the season, the odds were, like, non-existent for this team to be a playoff team.
Now the odds have them at third after Minnesota and Las Vegas for a championship this year.
So again, eh, the, the signs are pointing in the right direction.
You got a four-game gap that you gotta close if you're trying to take number one.
You can do it by winning those two games against Minnesota later after the FIBA break.
But even still, they're, they're, I mean, they are locked in to me.
Absolutely.
