The Golden State Valkyries are gearing up for an exciting inaugural season in the WNBA. There are many things to get in order, but leadership will be most important, and they made a great pick. Natalie Nakase is the right choice to lead this new team—her experience with the Las Vegas Aces is the sort of edge an expansion team deserves to have a shot at building a strong culture right out of the gate.
Professional leagues need expansion teams to be successful. When you add another team to a league, you have a new organization to split revenue with, so that franchise needs to carry its fair share of responsibility.
To help it do that, you want to help with several things like marketing and ensuring that the team can be relatively competitive rather quickly. Unfortunately, the league has opted not to commit to the most obvious path to ensure the latter.
The Valkyries were not given a lottery selection
The last time the WNBA added an expansion team was in 2008. The Atlanta Dream joined the ranks, and they were also not given a lottery pick -- instead, selecting at the eighth spot. The Dream followed that up with a 4-30 record—the worst in the league. It led to the newly formed Atlanta team selecting first overall in the subsequent draft.
It feels like a waste of time. If the W had just given them a lottery chance in the first place, the Dream could have forgone a season of disappointment and gotten to greener pastures much quicker.
This isn't a plea to flat-out hand over the number one pick, but they should be included in the WNBA Draft Lottery and given a chance at an elite young player to go along with their shiny, new program.
You could make an argument that it's unfair to the teams that were just bad, but you don't have to remove anyone from the lottery to add Golden State. Just add Golden State. Besides, the fair is a place that sells cotton candy. Not everything is meant to be fair when business is involved, and it's smart business to ensure the Valkyries have a successful launch.
Imagine this new California-based team with the potential to draft UConn's star point guard, Paige Bueckers. The energy would be through the roof if they landed Golden State a talent that strong and popular.
Don't get me wrong. There are a lot of talented girls in this coming draft, and selecting at five gives you options. Notre Dame's Olivia Miles, LSU's Aneesah Morrow, and UCLA's Janiah Barker would all be great picks for Golden State, but if you want your newest programs to start with a bang, give them a chance at the best young players on the board.