Valkyries mailbag: Readers ask about roster size, hardship contracts and who will stick around

San Francisco Chronicle​

3 days ago

The WNBA and Golden State Valkyries are a new dimension for Bay Area sports fans, so we wanted to offer an open mailbag to give readers the chance to ask anything they wanted after the first few Valkyries games.
There were a lot of fun questions, but some stood out as the best opportunities to explain the WNBA's complexities.
It's hard to define one style since WNBA teams vary. The WNBA uses a smaller ball and shorter quarters, and player size is one of the most valuable assets a team can have. Unlike the NBA's 3-point focus, the WNBA rewards dominant big players like Jonquel Jones and A'ja Wilson. NBA play relies more on athleticism and a star ballhandler, while the WNBA emphasizes team depth.
As Mystics rookie Kiki Iriafen told the Chronicle when Washington played the Valkyries, you can't out-athlete anyone in the WNBA, but 'basketball IQ is how you win games.'
The Valkyries are using NBA-style tactics to get bigs shooting 3s, a unique approach that might be due to head coach Natalie Nakase 's past as an NBA coach with the Clippers.
After this season, the Valkyries have the rights to only five players from their current roster: Kate Martin (through 2027), Carla Leite (through 2028) and reserved free agents Janelle Salaün, Kyara Linskens and Julie Vanloo, who can't sign elsewhere unless the Valkyries do not sign them to a minimum contract.
They also have this year's fifth overall draft pick, Juste Jocyte, who plans to join the team in 2026. The Valkyries own the rights to forward Maria Conde, who intended to enter this season but was sidelined by an Achilles injury in Europe during the offseason. French center Iliana Rupert, set to join this summer, still has two years left on her contract.
That potentially puts eight players on the roster for next season. With a strong free-agent class this offseason, the team could look very different by this time next year. Leite and Salaün are two players the Valkyries will likely build around. Jocyte and Conde, given their potential, are seen as critical long-term assets for the team's future.
Amandhania.bsky.social: Are the Valkyries still under the salary floor? Any targets from over-the-cap teams that they should be targeting to fix that? More generally, is the WNBA like the NBA, where cap space is its own kind of asset that can yield picks or players?
The Valkyries are $106,322 below the $1,261,440 salary floor, meaning they're not meeting the league's minimum spending. Rupert's full-season cap hit of $74,398 will be prorated once she joins the team.
If anything, the Valkyries will likely trade veteran players at the trade deadline if they're not in playoff contention. Kayla Thornton or Tiffany Hayes would be great additions for teams missing just a couple of pieces to make a postseason run.
The Valkyries might trade veterans like Thornton or Hayes at the deadline if playoffs seem out of reach, as they could help teams close to a postseason. About 80% of the league's players hit free agency this offseason, so few teams over the cap will shed salary.
Dallas, Connecticut, New York, Phoenix, Seattle and Washington hold rights to more than five players with cap hits beyond this season, mostly young ones. Contenders may trade expiring 'bad contracts' on guaranteed deals to free cap space; on that front possible players on the move include Las Vegas forward Kierstan Bell ($84,543) and Chicago guard Moriah Jefferson ($145,500).
The Chronicle asked Valkyries general manager Ohemaa Nyanin about the cap floor before the season. She said, 'I have an understanding of all the deadlines and all the things that need to happen, and we're mindful of how we want to use our cap space.'
Early roster cuts are among the most significant controversies in the WNBA annually. The Valkyries experienced one this spring when second-round draft pick Shyanne Sellers was an early training camp cut, to the surprise of many fans.
The addition of the Valkyries added 12 roster spots to the league; Portland and Toronto will combine for 24 more next season. Many players believe the 12 spots per team aren't enough. Former Stanford All-American and current Los Angeles Sparks center Cameron Brink said so on her podcast this week.
The players' association might fight for roster expansion in next year's collective bargaining agreement negotiations. NBA teams have 15 spots and a developmental league system. The WNBA likely won't create a minor league soon. However, adding more roster spots and allowing practice players would help teams manage injuries better than the current system.
Which leads nicely into the next question …
WNBA teams can sign a free agent to a 10-day contract if they have 10 or fewer players available for two games in a row, as long as the same players miss both games.
For example, forward Cecilia Zandalasini missed the first four games this season, and guard Tiffany Hayes missed two games in a row, one in Los Angeles and one in New York. The Valkyries could have signed someone to a hardship contract if those two players were also out for Thursday's game against the Liberty.
These contracts do not count against the salary cap. Players can sign a hardship contract three times before they stay on the roster and begin to affect the cap.
When the Valkyries lose Salaün, Zandalasini and potentially Vanloo to EuroBasket in June — which could mean their missing up to seven games — they will likely use this rule. Since they will be without two forwards and a point guard, they will probably sign a forward or wing for that period.