Golden State Valkyries (23-18) vs. Dallas Wings (9-33) Postgame Notes
WNBA Golden State Valkyries

Golden State Valkyries (23-18) vs. Dallas Wings (9-33) Postgame Notes

Published on September 5, 2025 under Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Golden State Valkyries News Release


Golden State Valkyries (23-18) vs. Dallas Wings (9-33) Postgame Notes, Quotes and Links

Golden State 84, Dallas 80

By the Numbers

The Valkyries become the first-ever WNBA expansion team to clinch a postseason berth in their inaugural season.

Golden State sold out its 21st home game of the season, and has sold out every home game this year.

This victory seals the Valkyries' longest winning streak of the season at five straight wins, with four of them being in Ballhalla. Golden State is the third-ever expansion team to win five or more games in a row (1998 Detroit Shock - 6 games; 1999 Orlando Miracle - 5 games).

Janelle Salaün finished with a team-high of 19 points on 3-4 (75.0 percent) shooting from three along with six rebounds and one assist. Nine of Salaün's 19 points came in the fourth quarter.

Carla Leite came off of the bench tonight with a team-best plus-minus of +28, and had 15 points and shot 75 percent (6-8) shooting from the floor. Leite had 12 points in the second half on 5-6 (83.3 percent) shooting.

Iliana Rupert added 10 points and 4 assists, and Monique Billings scored 11 and added seven rebounds in 23 minutes off the bench.

Veronica Burton added 15 points, nine of which came in the fourth quarter, and five assists.

Golden State finished the game with five players in double figures for the 12th time this season.

The Valkyries shot 82.6 percent from the free throw line (19-23). Veronica Burton went 100% (5-5) from the free-throw line for the 19th time this season.

Quotes

HEAD COACH NATALIE NAKASE:

ON CLINCHING A PLAYOFF SPOT:

"I'm bittersweet in terms of, I'm supposed to do this. That's my mental, that's me kind of saying, it's a must win. I told the girls, we intentionally picked you guys for this reason. To do things for the first. That was what Tip (Tiffany Hayes) said when we celebrated in the locker room. She goes, 'we're the first.' And I said, well, I intentionally all chose you guys as well. To do first things. Credit to Ohemaa (Nyanin), obviously Joe (Lacob) too as well, just the leadership. It starts there. And it's the support. It's the motivation. Joe pushes me. He really does push me to not just settle and not just be mediocre. So I credit that. And then the players were intentionally chosen to do a lot of the first."

ON WHAT SPARKED THE SECOND HALF COMEBACK:

"Yeah, Carla (Leite). Carla came alive. It was just hard. I know we're a well-conditioned team. I think they take pride in it, and so I think it was great that our bench just really kind of came to life. I was sitting there trying to find a rotation that I liked and LA (Laeticia Amihere) came in, brought great energy in terms of rebounding, defense. Carla kind of just navigated herself in the pick and roll. She again, she made the calls. Kate (Martin) obviously came in with a ton of energy from the jump and then Ja (Janelle Salaün) finished the game really well, making clutch threes and then V (Veroncia Burton) shooting free throws. I think everyone just stepped up tonight, which is really nice."

ON RESPONDING DURING THIS HOMESTAND:

"They like challenges. I think, in all honesty, if you interview every single player on our team, they love challenges. They love to be pushed. They're not afraid of it, and I think that's what kind of cool is, we like to be uncomfortable, and not a lot of people like to be uncomfortable. They don't like to be pushed. They kind of sometimes like to be stagnant. But I don't have that. I have 13 players that love to be pushed, be uncomfortable; and at the same time, when someone's uncomfortable, they're also supportive. I can hear in our timeouts that people who were not in, they were encouraging, encouraging. 'Come on, guys. Keep fighting. I know we're a little exhausted, but keep fighting, keep pushing.' And that's what I was hearing, and that's great. That's when I think what V (Veronica Burton) was saying is, we're continuing to push each other, have each other's back at all times...Our bench stepped up tonight. So that was really key. Anyone, anytime can step up and be ready. I think that's what's kind of needed, the layer that we could go into the playoffs knowing anybody can play."

GOLDEN STATE GUARDS VERONICA BURTON, CARLA LEITE AND FORWARD JANELLE SALAÜN

ON HOW SPECIAL THIS VICTORY WAS:

Burton: "To do it in such a team-oriented way, honestly, these two especially (Janelle Salaün and Carla Leite), Kate (Martin), Mo (Monique Billings), and LA (Laeticia Amihere), everyone stepped up and everyone contributed in such a big way. We're not winning that game without literally our entire team. Dallas, record-wise, has struggled a little bit this year, but they're an incredible team. They're a team that fights, so we knew that. But I think it's even more rewarding to know we did it just fully as a team, and that's what we've done all year, but it was special."

ON BEING THE FIRST-EVER EXPANSION TEAM TO CLINCH A POSTSEASON BERTH:

Salaün: "It feels great, because, like you said, I think a lot of people didn't believe in us. But it fires us up, it's a good thing. It's better to start as an underdog and just prove to everyone. I feel like a lot of girls in this team have been in this position. I think about V (Veronica Burton), and other people, Carla (Leite) also, myself. So it's something that we're used to, and we just did it as a group."

ON CARLA LEITE'S PERFORMANCE TONIGHT:

Burton: "It's awesome, I think I've really seen it from the first day of training camp...unguardable. I fully believe that, I've tried to guard her. It's not easy, and when she gets going it's really difficult for any defense to stop because she's a threat at all three levels and a phenomenal passer. So for her to be ready in that moment, this is a big moment. Being a rookie in this league and to step up in the way that she did is a testament to her, to her mentality, her confidence, and obviously her skill set. We have full confidence in her, and I think both of them should be on the all-rookie team, without a doubt."

Up Next

Golden State hosts its regular season finale this Saturday, September 6 against the Minnesota Lynx at 5:30 p.m. on KPIX, KMAX, 95.7 The Game and the Audacy App.

Check out the Golden State Valkyries Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Women's National Basketball Association Stories from September 5, 2025


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central