The Golden State Valkyries started the 2025 season off on a high note, winning two of their first three games. Since then, the Valkyries have lost four games against some of the best teams in the league.
After a blowout loss to the New York Liberty, the Valkyries have managed to keep scores close and gave the Liberty, Lynx, and Mercury some serious trouble. However, the Valkyries simply haven’t been able to execute down the stretch since beating Washington in the clutch. That issue cost them the rematch against New York and a win in Phoenix.
Golden State couldn’t execute in crunch time against the Mercury
The Valkyries kept the game against the short-handed Phoenix Mercury close until the very end. Despite 19 points from Satou Sabally and 24 points from Lexie Held, Phoenix could never quite pull away—until the Valkyries blew two out-of-bounce plays, that is.
The game was tied after the third quarter, but with only 1:30 left in the fourth, the Valkyries were up by two. An and-one by Satou Sabally changed the momentum and gave the Mercury an 80-77 lead with roughly 33.3 seconds left. Veronica Burton had a chance to answer but missed an almost open layup. After that, nothing went right for the Valkyries.
With roughly 17 seconds left, the Valkyries sent Sabally to the free-throw line and saw Phoenix’s lead expand to 82-77. Overcoming a five-point deficit is not impossible, even with only 17 seconds left in a game. The Valkyries never got a chance to catch up to the Mercury, however, because they turned the ball over twice, trying to work it in from the sideline.
Golden State was in a similar situation against the Liberty. Now that it has happened twice, it is safe to say that the Valkyries must work on their late-game execution. The Valkyries have shown the ability to keep games close and hang with teams that should beat them handily, but they will never win those games if they cannot make the right plays in crunch time.
While this is something the Valkyries desperately need to work on, it is not a totally unexpected issue. The Valkyries are a completely new team, and most players are still rather unfamiliar with each other. On top of that, Natalie Nakase is a first-time head coach, and with Tiffany Haynes out, the Valkyries have no clear go-to scorer who can get a basket in any situation. With some key players representing their national teams in EuroBasket, the Valkyries will miss out on important time to continue to build chemistry and cohesion.