The Valkyries selected 11 players during last week's Expansion Draft on ESPN. There were a few surprises (all good ones for the Bay Area team), including the drafting of the Fever's Temi Fagbenle and the fact that 7 of the 11 members of the team are overseas players.
Golden State also selected only three players who are under contract next year, which means they might be planning to make serious moves ahead of the 2025 season. With $1.2 million left in their salary cap, there's no reason why the Valkyries couldn't continue to shake up the league.
Here's a look at the team's roster so far — and how the players compare to one another.
Veronica Burton
Burton was drafted as the 7th overall pick of the 2022 draft by the Dallas Wings, but waived the following year after she played 13 games. She was picked up by the Connecticut Sun and began improving her 3-point game, something that will benefit the Bay Area team.
María Conde
Conde was drafted in the third round of the 2019 WNBA draft but has not yet played in the United States. That doesn't mean she hasn't been hooping — she's averaged 14.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 6.1 assists per game for USK Praha, a Czech basketball club.
Iliana Rupert
Rupert was drafted by the Aces in 2021 out of France and has most recently played at CBK Mersin in Turkey. She also played on the French national team from 2019-2024 and has hit the court for the Atlanta Dream. She chose to stay in France for the final season of her rookie contract to play for the country in the Olympics, which gives her the ability to negotiate with the Valkyries.
Cecilia Zandalasini
At 28, it's a little surprising that Zandalasini, who joined the Lynx in 2017, has only played a handful of WNBA games. She departed the team for Europe in 2019 and only returned last season and was an important player during the playoffs.
Julie Vanloo
Vanloo started most of her games with the Mystics in 2024 and is the most experienced guard the Valkyries drafted. She was a surprise draftee to most, but brings a lot of experience in Europe and a season in the WNBA to the table.
Stephanie Talbot
Talbot is known for her shooting when she's on fire, and there's plenty of reason to expect that the Valkyries will be able to pull her best work out of her. Having said that, 2024 was not a great year for her and there's also plenty of room for growth.
Carla Leite
Leite might not be well known in the United States but she's a strong player in France and is still young — she turns 20 in April. After being drafted by the Dallas Wings as the 9th overall pick in 2024 she went back home to continue to develop her game at Villeneuve d'Ascq, where she averaged 14.5 points and 3.8 assists.
Kate Martin
Martin is well-known to fans of the WNBA after finishing her rookie season with the Aces. She managed to best higher draft picks to remain on the team after earning a second-round draft spot and still has two remaining non-protected seasons before the Valkyries will need to negotiate with her for a new contract. Martin played 32 games for the Aces and never quite got enough time to dominate, averaging 2.6 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 0.9 assists in 11.5 minutes per game.
Monique Billings
Though some were surprised the Valkyries drafted Billings in the unrestricted free agent spot, she brings a lot of veteran experience to a team that will definitely need it. Billings was waived by the Sparks during training camp last season, moved to the Wings for 12 games, and then wrapped up her season in Phoenix. She ultimately averaged averaged 7.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game last season between the two teams.
Kayla Thornton
Thornton is a major scoop for the Valkyries. The former Liberty forward has the most experience as a starter in the league and most recently started 11 games for New York. If the team doesn't add any more big names in free agency, Thornton is bound to be a starter when the 2025 season begins.
Temi Fagbenle
One of the biggest mysteries of the Expansion Draft is that the Indiana Fever didn't protect Fagbenle, but their loss will undoubtedly be the Valkyries' gain. She spent five years playing overseas prior to joining the Fever in 2024 and ended up playing 35 minutes of the team's final game in the playoffs. At 32 she averaged 6.4 points and 4.7 rebounds at 18.9 minutes per game.