WNBA Expansion Draft: What to Expect from the Golden State Valkyries

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Updated on December 6, 2024 3:03PM EST

2024 WNBA Expansion Draft Preview

When is the WNBA Expansion Draft?

The 2024 WNBA Expansion Draft will take place Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. The league's 13th team, the Golden State Valkyries, will have the ability to select one player from each of the 12 existing teams, before having the fifth overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft this spring.

How will the WNBA Expansion Draft work?

The WNBA's 12 existing teams previously submitted a list of six players per team, which includes impending unrestricted free agents, as protected players. The list of players from each team is kept from the public, but the Valkyries will be able to select from the remaining players from each team. The Valkyries will be able to select just one total impending unrestricted free agent, but the player can't have been designated as a core player, making it unlikely that some of the league's top talent will head to Golden State on Friday.

Who will the Valkyries pick in the Expansion Draft?

While the list of protected players won't be revealed to the public ahead of Friday's expansion draft, it's possible to infer who might be in the pool of players for the Valkyries to choose from.

Atlanta Dream

Projected Protected Players:

Rhyne Howard
Allisha Gray
Naz Hillmon
Nia Coffey
Isobel Borlase
Nyadiew Puoch
Tina Charles (previously two-time core player)

Valkyries Projected Pick: Haley Jones, Guard

If Jones isn't protected by the Dream and is picked by the Valkyries, her talent would be the top reason for her selection, as she averaged 13.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 29.7 minutes per game over four years at Stanford, and she helped bring home the national championship following the 2020-21 season. She was selected by the Dream with the sixth overall pick in the 2023 WNBA Draft but has struggled to find opportunities at the professional level, averaging 3.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 16.2 minutes per game over her two seasons in Atlanta, but she could benefit from a fresh start and could be a key young piece for a new franchise. In addition to her talent, Jones could help drive interest in Golden State's new franchise if she returns to the Bay Area following her productive collegiate career.

Chicago Sky

Projected Protected Players:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Dana Evans, Guard

The Sky's protected players are one of the tougher groups to predict, especially since head coach Teresa Weatherspoon was let go during the offseason in favor of Tyler Marsh. Evans began last season in a starting role but lost playing time later in the year. She's expressed her frustration with her role last year, and I think the Sky may be inclined to give her an opportunity to carve out a role elsewhere, even with her slated to become a restricted free agent during the offseason.

Connecticut Sun

Projected Protected Players:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Olivia Nelson-Ododa, Center

The Sun have had plenty of star power in recent seasons and advanced to the WNBA semifinals last year, but their decisions on which players to protect are made easier by Brionna Jones and DeWanna Bonner being ineligible for selection due to their previous status as core players in two seasons. Their decisions on role players will be a bit tougher, and the Valkyries' pick from Connecticut could come down to whether Nelson-Ododa or Veronica Burton are selected.

Dallas Wings

Projected Protected Players:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Awak Kuier, Forward

The Wings have a few no-brainers to protect ahead of the expansion draft, and the team can also look forward to this spring, when Dallas has the No. 1 pick in the rookie draft and will have the ability to select guard Paige Bueckers if she chooses to go pro. If the Wings were to protect this list of players, the Valkyries could choose from several former first-round picks, including Carla Leite (2024, ninth overall), Stephanie Soares (2023, fourth overall) and Lou Lopez Senechal (2023, fifth overall). However, Kuier has displayed slightly more potential at the WNBA level before sitting out the 2024 campaign for rest purposes. At just 23 years old, she's a player who could give Golden State a significant frontcourt boost.

Indiana Fever

Projected Protected Players:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Kristy Wallace, Guard

The Fever are probably one of the top protected player lists I'd like to see ahead of this year's draft, as they have a similar situation to the one in Chicago that saw Dana Evans fall out of favor with the previous coaching staff. NaLyssa Smith was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft but had an inconsistent role under head coach Christie Sides last year. I predict that new head coach Stephanie White will choose to protect Smith given the production she's displayed in the past, but the forward is a slight candidate to go unprotected, and I believe that the Valkyries would select her if that's the case. If the list stands as it is above, the Fever would leave several depth guards unprotected, and I predict that Golden State would go with Wallace, who is set to make just over $80,000 this season, as opposed to Katie Lou Samuelson, who is slated to make north of $180,000.

Las Vegas Aces

Projected Protected Players:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Megan Gustafson, Center

The Aces have a pretty cut-and-dry decision to make at the top of their roster, and it seems as though Martin is a strong candidate to be protected after she formed a strong rapport with the team as a rookie last year. Unless the Valkyries would want to use their lone pick for an impending unrestricted free agent on Alysha Clark, Golden State would likely be left to choose from Gustafson and Kierstan Bell. Although Gustafson's production declined during her first year in Las Vegas, she showcased solid scoring and rebounding abilities with the Wings, Mystics and Mercury earlier in her career and would provide a veteran presence for the new club with some previous experience in switching teams.

Los Angeles Sparks

Projected Protected Players:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Julie Allemand, Guard

The Sparks will likely have several intriguing players to select from Friday, and the Valkyries' pick will likely depend on who is the sixth player protected. Aari McDonald is an intriguing name to watch if she isn't protected, but Allemand also displayed a well-rounded skill set earlier in her career before missing the 2024 season due to injury. Li Yueru is also a player who could be selected, but since several center options were projected to be picked earlier in the draft, I predict that the Valkyries would opt for Allemand's veteran presence in the backcourt.

Minnesota Lynx

Projected Protected Players:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Diamond Miller, Guard

The Lynx came within seconds of winning the championship in 2024 and are now faced with a tough situation to begin the offseason, as they have plenty of talent that will likely remain unprotected. Because teams can facilitate trades with the Valkyries in exchange for draft picks and agreements not to select certain players, the Lynx are a position where this would make sense. However, if no trade comes to fruition, the final protected player slot will likely come down to Miller, Dorka Juhasz and Alissa Pili. If Miller is protected by Minnesota, Juhasz and Pili would make sense for Golden State. However, Miller's role in 2024 declined significantly, as she averaged 2.9 points and 1.8 rebounds in 10.1 minutes per game over 21 appearances (four starts). Part of her decreased production can be attributed to a few injuries she dealt with, but it's also possible that she simply isn't a major part of head coach Cheryl Reeve's plans heading into 2025, which would make her a stellar selection for the Valkyries.

New York Liberty

Projected Protected Picks:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Marine Johannes, Guard

In addition to Minnesota, the other team that seems most likely to make a trade ahead of Friday's expansion draft is the Liberty, who came away with the title in 2024. The top four projected protected players are clear choices, and Fiebich also seems likely to be protected given her increased role in 2024. That leaves Johannes, Nyara Sabally, Kayla Thornton and Courtney Vandersloot as the likely options for the final slot. Sabally was integral in the Liberty's title run, so I see her as the favorite to be protected, but I also think that a trade makes plenty of sense in order to protect some of the others. If any of them are left unprotected, they'd all bring unique value to the Valkyries, but I think Johannes has the most upside as long as Golden State is close to certain that she'll return to the WNBA in 2025 after sitting out last season due to overseas commitments.

Phoenix Mercury

Projected Protected Players:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Monique Billings, Forward

Billings is slated to become an unrestricted free agent during the offseason, so whether Golden State selects her will depend on whether a more appealing UFA is available and whether the Valkyries believe that they have a reasonable chance to sign her on the open market. However, Billings does make some sense for the new franchise after she averaged 6.9 points and 5.4 rebounds in 21.8 minutes per game over 37 appearances (14 starts) between the Wings and Mercury last year, and given the makeup of the projected roster above, acquiring a forward of her caliber would make sense.

Seattle Storm

Projected Protected Players:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Mackenzie Holmes, Forward

There's potential for some intrigue with this pick after Jewell Loyd requested a trade out of Seattle this week, but I don't think that anything will materialize ahead of the draft, and she'll presumably be protected by the Storm anyway. Nika Muhl sustained a torn ACL while playing overseas in October, and her status for 2025 is unclear, so whether the Storm choose to protect her remains to be seen, as Holmes is also a viable option despite missing her rookie season in 2024 due to a knee injury of her own. Despite their injuries, I believe that the Valkyries will pick Holmes or Muhl based on who's available, barring a trade.

Washington Mystics

Projected Protected Picks:

Valkyries Projected Pick: Jade Melbourne, Guard

The Mystics have another one of the more intriguing situations in the league, highlighted by Elena Delle Donne's status. The 35-year-old stepped away from basketball for the 2024 campaign, but the Mystics still hold her rights. It's not yet clear whether she intends to return to basketball in 2025 or whether she'd want to play for the Mystics, especially now that head coach Eric Thibault and general manager Mike Thibault were let go during the offseason. If she's unprotected and plans to return, Delle Donne would certainly be a top option for Golden State, but if she's unavailable, Melbourne is a young player at just 22 years old and took a step forward at the WNBA level in 2024, averaging 5.4 points, 1.6 assists and 1.5 rebounds in 14.1 minutes per game over 37 appearances last year. While the layout of the Valkyries' projected roster includes plenty of backcourt talent, Melbourne is a player who could develop for the team's future plans.

Golden State Valkyries Projected Roster

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