The Golden State Valkyries made a flurry of moves before the draft on Monday further preparing their roster for the start of training camp this weekend. There was one returnee, one played signed from another team, and one player getting her first chance in the league. Two signings that the team had previously announced were finally officially completed, being confirmed on Tuesday.
Kayla Thornton
Kayla Thornton was having a fantastic season as the team’s first All-Star before a season-ending injury, so her return was certainly highly anticipated. There were some worries from fans when she was not part of the large batch of Sunday announcements, but the team confirmed that she would stay on Monday. Richard Cohen of Her Hoop Stats was able to quickly source the contract details, and she will have a one-year contract of $750,000 that is fully guaranteed. The injury kept her out of offseason playing opportunities so it made sense that the amount ended up being a bit lower than what she might have been able to earn if she had a healthy finish to the season and the team was able to add depth that will give her less pressure to be back at her best immediately.
Kiah Stokes
The Monday announcements also included bringing in a ten-year veteran as Kiah Stokes joined the team. She most recently played with Las Vegas, including during the time that Natalie Nakase was an assistant coach there so there will be existing familiarity even though she is a newcomer. A defensive specialist, she provides championship experience and is expected to be a backup center at the tail end of her career. Richard Cohen of Her Hoop Stats confirmed that her contract is for two years and is fully guaranteed at $375,000 and $386,250. It is a solid enough deal for the first year, but her role this year will determine whether the second year could become a tougher to swallow use of salary cap and roster space. She spent her offseason playing in the Athleted Unlimited league.
Cate Reese
One more move was announced Monday and it was a first chance for a player in the league three years after the end of her college career. Cate Reese played for five seasons at Arizona, but went undrafted and did not get a training camp spot. Rather than dwell on not getting an opportunity, she immediately departed for Australia and impressed there. Once that season concluded, she started her European career in Belgium, returning to Australia in the offseason. She played with Zaglebie Sosnowiec in the most recent European season and impressed in both Poland and EuroCup. While it will be tough for her to make the final roster, her hard-working attitude at power forward makes her a good addition for setting the tone in training camp. With no prior contracts with the league, she has signed the minimum deal with a completely unguaranteed salary for the year.
Janelle Salaun and Iliana Rupert
The Valkyries had announced the return of Janelle Salaun and Iliana Rupert on Saturday, but the moves were not officially completed until Monday and then added to the league’s transactions page until Tuesday. Richard Cohen of Her Hoop Stats confirmed the details of the two-year contracts, which have no guarantees attached to them. Salaun’s contract is for $500,000 and $520,000 and Rupert’s contract is for $450,000 and $472,500. Golden State had exclusive negotiating rights with both of them, but it made sense to offer slightly above the minimum and also to lock in an amount for next season as both figure to have big roles this year.
Departures
The latest confirmed departure came on Tuesday when Temi Fagbenle signed with the expansion Toronto Tempo. She was an unrestricted free agent who was able to negotiate with any team. When available, she was the starting center and her production will have to be replaced. Her agent publicized her million-dollar contract and it was reasonable that Golden State would prioritize using that salary cap space on other players. Monique Billings had already decided to join the Indiana Fever, but the move just recently became official with her two-year contract being for $600,000 each year fully guaranteed.
Current Roster
Taking into account the expectation that two draft picks will sign contracts and moves that have not been finalized yet, the team should be considered as having 17 players right now with 12 full roster spots and a pair of development spots being the final allowable roster. Five of the players have fully guaranteed contracts for the season, but realistically nine of the spots are completely set with three additional players already having experience with the team. That means that there will be another battle for spots this season even if the Valkyries do not sign additional players. Depending on how her team does in the Spanish league playoffs, Juste Jocyte could miss a number of regular season games so Golden State could carry an extra player until her return if they make no further big signings that deplete remaining salary cap space. The team is also likely to sign as many other players to training camp contracts as possible, especially with late arrivals, to continue to scout players for the development spots or other opportunities.
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