The Golden State Valkyries Make Final Moves to Set Opening Day Roster

The Golden State Valkyries waived five players on Wednesday to set their roster for opening day. Kaitlyn Chen, Migna Toure, Chloe Bibby, Laeticia Amihere, and Elissa Cunane were let go, leaving the roster consisting of Carla Leite, Kayla Thornton, Steph Talbot, Janelle Salaun, Temi Fagbenle, Tiffany Hayes, Kate Martin, Veronica Burton, Cecilia Zandalasini, Monique Billings, Kyara Linskens, and Julie Vanloo. While the moves were not all that surprising, there were still difficult decisions to make based on training camp and preseason performances.

The Final Spots

Positional depth made it more difficult for three of the rookies to fight their way onto the roster. Kaitlyn Chen faced significant competition even though she had ability to fit alongside multiple kinds of guards. Migna Toure was able to get minutes in the second preseason game due to injuries on the win, but it was harder to see her path to playing time if everyone was healthy. Chloe Bibby is a forward who might just be a little undersized to play at the 4 in this league, where her shooting ability is often an advantage in other competitions.

There was likely only one roster spot that was truly up for grabs by the time final decisions needed to be made with the biggest need in the rotation being the backup center position. Elissa Cunane had the fewest opportunities in the preseason among the candidates for the spot so her release was expected. That left a battle between Kyara Linskens and Laeticia Amihere, who would each bring different attributes to the position. Linskens won out as the player who is most equipped to battle the other taller centers in the league. Amihere seemed to be more ready to play a role in the team’s offense and offered additional athleticism in the frontcourt, but did not have that experience playing at center.

Janelle Salaun Reporting

There was a reasonable possibility that the team could have started the season with thirteen players on the roster, but Janelle Salaun will be in town on opening day even if she might not be ready to play in the game. She just finished her season in Italy on Tuesday and started travel to the Bay Area. A WNBA player has managed to check into a game less than 24 hours after a game in Europe before, but it seems more likely that she will be given time to acclimate. The team could have timed her arrival in a way that allowed them to temporarily keep an extra post player like Laeticia Amihere for at least the opener, but did not do so.

EuroBasket Absences

Some of the waived players or even other free agents could sign with the Valkyries in June. The team has the salary cap room to replace any players missing due to the upcoming EuroBasket tournament. It still remains to be seen how many players will depart for their national teams. Carla Leite withdrew from consideration for France this week, which made sense given that she would likely need to attend the entirety of their training camp starting next week to even have some chance of making their roster. The plans of Janelle Salaun, who would have a good chance of making their roster without attending all of their practices have not been revealed.

Julie Vanloo and Kyara Linskens are critical to Belgium and should be expected to miss some time to join them in their quest to defend their title. Cecilia Zandalasini and Temi Fagbenle are under the restriction of the WNBA’s prioritization rules, which only allows them to leave the Valkyries two weeks before the EuroBasket openers. There have been occasions where absences from training camp for Italy have caused friction for tournaments. Great Britain is not one of the better resourced federations in Europe and does not always get their WNBA players for these events. One roster move to watch for in the future is Iliana Rupert signing with Golden State after her tournament finishes with France.