(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect) Grant Afseth · Roundtable Sports Fri, November 6, 2026 at 4:39 PM UTC · 4 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Stephen Curry went to his first Golden State Valkyries game during the franchise's debut season in 2025. Two seasons in, the Valkyries are WNBA champions after beating the Atlanta Dream 68-63 in Game 7 of the Finals on Oct. 31 at Chase Center.
In an interview with NBA TV, the Golden State Warriors guard pointed to the players Golden State pulled off other teams' unprotected lists in the expansion draft, and to Gabby Williams.
"An incredible journey from last year when I went to my first game, understanding the identity of the fan base and the in-game experience," Curry said. "And just, it was very fresh and interesting to watch."
"And then fast forward a year and they're competing and winning a WNBA championship," Curry continued. "And then just the individual stories of all the ladies that were unprotected in the expansion draft. Gabby leading the charge, has been around on a journey throughout the WNBA. So, incredible story."
The Valkyries built their first roster in the expansion draft on Dec. 6, 2024, taking one unprotected player from 11 of the league's 12 teams and passing on Seattle. Veronica Burton came from Connecticut, Kate Martin from Las Vegas, Iliana Rupert from Atlanta, and Cecilia Zandalasini from Minnesota, and all four were on the 2026 roster. Burton had 10 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists in Game 7.
That 2025 roster, under Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase, went 23-21 and got Golden State into the playoffs, something no WNBA expansion team had done in year one. Minnesota won the opener of that first-round series 101-72.
Golden State signed Williams in April, after four years in Seattle and an All-Star season there in 2025.
"For a player of Gabby's caliber to choose us in just our second year ... means everything," Valkyries general manager Ohemaa Nyanin said in a statement.
Curry was unable to attend Game 7 at Chase Center.
"And the fact that they got it done in two short years, and the community that they've built, they're going to be around for a long time, hopefully a lot more," Curry explained. "But it was special for the whole day for them to get it done."
Atlanta took a 30-24 lead into halftime of Game 7, and Williams had all of 2 points. She scored 28 after the break, a WNBA postseason record for a half, and her three 3-pointers in a row late in the third quarter gave Golden State its first lead of the half.
"All I keep thinking is, 'I can't lose,'" Williams said. "I can't lose. I'm on the drive and I'm like, this is the moment. This is my time to give my everything for this community."
On the USA Network broadcast, Williams went back to what she kept hearing about the Valkyries a year earlier.
"All we heard last year, 'We don't have no stars, we don't have no talent.' Yeah, right," Williams explained. "We've got good people. We've got winners. We have people who are ready to put their bodies on the floor to win a game. We just build a beautiful culture here."
Nakase called Williams the team's closer when the two sat down with reporters.
"To me, the MVP is the Finals MVP," Nakase said. "That means you have to play through the playoffs, you have to grind. You've got to go through a seven-game series. She's the most valuable player in the world, hands down."
The series swung back and forth before that. Golden State took Game 1 68-64 on a 17-6 closing run, Atlanta won the next two by 14 and 26, and the Valkyries won Games 4 and 5 by scores of 67-62 and 64-55 before the Dream evened things up at home in Game 6. Kiah Stokes, the Golden State center, finished off a record-breaking Finals with 13 more rebounds in Game 7.
Williams also finished second to Angel Reese in Defensive Player of the Year voting with 20 votes, and Candace Parker has since called out her All-WNBA snub . The Dream have lost all four of their Finals trips, in 2010, 2011, 2013, and now 2026.
Game 2 had Curry courtside with his daughter Ryan. Back in August, he was there for the 78-70 win over Dallas that clinched a playoff spot, the night Tiffany Hayes made a buzzer-beater from the Valkyries logo. After Game 7, he posted congratulations to the team and to Williams on Instagram.
Caitlin Clark has reacted to the Valkyries' two-year rise , and Nyanin has described how the front office tried to 'add light together' going into year two.
Golden State's championship parade was Wednesday. On Nov. 1, the day after Game 7, the Warriors used a timeout in their game against the Los Angeles Clippers to honor the Valkyries.
Source: Sports
0 Comments