Kayla Thornton just hit her career-high, dropping 22 points on the heads of the Aces on a lovely Saturday afternoon. She was 8/16 (50%) from the field, 4/8 from three, and her performance sparked a shocking 95-68 blowout victory over Las Vegas. Her aggression was present from the jump, and Coach Natalie Nakase was sure to mention her in the postgame presser.
"V [Veronica Burton] found KT [Kayla Thornton] early. I thought KT started us off amazing. She just was super confident. She walked right into her threes. She's aggressive attacking players. And so just a great start with just a ton of confidence" - Coach Nakase
The former Liberty forward has been struggling with her three-ball, but that all changed with A'ja Wilson and Chelsea Gray on the other side. Thornton is a champion, though. She didn't back down in the face of one of the best players the WNBA has ever seen. Quite the opposite. She stepped up and led a team that shouldn't have had a chance. Or so you thought.
The Valkyries are a tough and unpredictable team
Coach Nakase says it all the time: Golden State's goal is to be the best defense in the league. They looked like it today. The players were flying all over the court, getting in passing lanes, playing with physicality, and not backing down from a team that just came off of back-to-back championships prior to last season.
They're taking steps toward that goal, currently sitting at sixth in defensive rating. The women are listening to the coaching points they're getting from the staff, and it was never more apparent than it was while watching a two-time MVP in A'ja Wilson struggle to impose her will on the basketball game.
It was almost as if we were watching the Oklahoma City Thunder (before Tyrese Haliburton snatched their soul, of course). The Valks suffocated the Aces and dominated the game from start to finish.
Their offense is where the unpredictability comes in. They scored 98 today, but that's way above their previous season high of 82 points, and that was on May 23. This team hasn't reached 80 points since that game, despite being first in the league in three-point attempts. They were lights out today, and if they're offense comes around, they're a much more dangerous team.
Coach Nakase has established an identity of defense and toughness first. You never know what you'll get on the offensive end, but today, they got more than enough. The Valkyries are 3-5 on the season right now. That's good for the eighth spot in the standings. They'll make the playoffs at this rate, and that would make this the most successful inaugural season for an expansion team in WNBA/NBA history.