Five storylines to watch as Valkyries begin training camp

OAKLAND - The energy was there.

In the tempo. In the talk. In the way the Valkyries opened camp without dragging last season onto the floor with them.

Kayla Thornton looked like part of that shift, working with a clear target of opening night in her injury return. Others - All-Star free agent Gabby Williams and 2025 top pick Justė Jocytė - will arrive later from international play, but the group didn't feel paused. It felt in motion.

Because last season’s success doesn’t translate to training camp.

"We're just moving on," Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase said. "I'm always where my feet are. It’s a brand new year. It’s a brand new league. If you look around, all the rosters have changed. I think we’re one of the teams who have built a continuity and maintained that, which I do think is really special. We did that intentionally, so we’re just excited to build off of that."

Continuity is the bet. Internal growth is the expectation. And with a compressed preseason window and key contributors still overseas, the margin for figuring things out isn't wide.

But the tone was clear from the start: This group believes it's in better position than last year.

"I think we’re doing a good job of welcoming new faces, with the intensity, but we want to ramp it up another level," third-year guard Kate Martin said. It’s our second year now. So having a little bit more experience, we want to take things to the next level."

Here are five storylines as the Valkyries opened training camp on Sunday:

Thornton targeting Game 1 return

The Valkyries' lone All-Star missed the final 22 games last year after suffering a knee injury.

Golden State hasn't made her diagnosis public, leading many to think Thornton might have to miss games in 2026.

She shut all that down on Sunday.

"Oh, I'm back," Thornton said when asked if there was a target date when she would return to action.

When asked if she'll be ready for the Valkyries' season opener, she answered, "Yeah. I'm back."

Thornton gives the Valkyries a much-needed scoring punch should she return to last year's form. She averaged a career-high 14 points and seven rebounds per game as Golden State's top option.

"It was a journey to be back with my team and to finally go against other people," Thornton said, relishing the first day of training camp. "I'm thankful to the medical staff."

But Thornton might not be the one making the decision on the date of her return.

While happy to see Thornton return to the floor, Nakase said the team is easing Thornton back to the court.

"We'll see. Obviously, we're taking it day by day," Nakase said. "I love that type of fire and sense of urgency that we have because that’s how we play. But health is always going to be a priority."

Valkyries still waiting on potential starters

Notably not at Sunday's practice were Williams, Jocytė, Kaila Charles, Iliana Rupert and Cecilia Zandalasini, who are still fulfilling international commitments.

Charles, Rupert and Zandalasini all played heavy minutes during last year's playoff run. Williams is expected to start while Jocytė is slated to be a rotation player when she comes over after staying in Europe last season.

Nakase said she isn't worried about getting them up to speed as she had to deal with similar circumstances at last year's training camp.

"It's just about touching points and keeping them engaged, whether that's film or how we do our learning styles for our players to come in," Nakase said. "They’re taking care of their leagues and where they are right now. I want them to be where their feet are. Play really, really well there, and when they get here, just adjust. We have a long season."

A roster crunch

The Valkyries might be the hardest roster to make in the league.

Golden State presumably has 11 players set to make the team: Williams, Jocytė, Thornton, Martin, Charles, Rupert, Zandalasini, Veronica Burton, Tiffany Hayes, Janelle Salaün and Kiah Stokes.

Everyone else invited to training camp will be fighting for one roster spot and two development player contracts.

Point guard Kaitlyn Chen and forward Laeticia Amihere know Nakase's system from being on the team last year, but will be fighting to make the roster as they were brought back on training camp deals.

The Valkyries brought in Australian point guard Miela Sowah and Greek center Mariella Fasoula, who were highly productive overseas and could push for a roster spot. Rookies Marta Suárez and Ashlon Jackson will also be in the mix.

Who will be Golden State's backup point guard?

The most obvious position battle going into camp will be at backup point guard.

Burton is theclear starter, but Golden State has brought in a ton of different types of point guards to compete in training camp.

Hayes – who was not present on Sunday but arrived in the Bay Area on Saturday night – will be the favorite to land the job. A near-lock to make the team, injuries stopped the 36-year-old from playing a full season last year. But her experience with the team gives her an edge.

A score-first guard, Hayes gave Golden State offensive punch but struggled to stay on the floor and averaged nearly two turnovers in 26.9 minutes per game.

Chen, another holdover from last season, took a huge step playing overseas. A more traditional, pass-first point guard, Chen profiles as a solid option to run a second unit. Her ceiling as a scorer isn't high, but Nakase raved about her poise last season.

Sowah, 25, could be a wild card in this position battle. She recently won an NWBL title in Australia, where she averaged 17.8 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting 43.6% from the floor and 40.9% from beyond the arc.

While only a rookie, Jackson was a high-profile player at Duke who the Valkyries took in the second round. A true floor general in college, Jackson's competitiveness and IQ drew compliments from general manager Ohemaa Nyanin on draft night.

Valkyries betting on chemistry, continuity

It's no secret the direction Golden State went in free agency.

To put it simply, the Valkyries are running it back.

Outside of Williams and Jocytė, last year's core has largely remained the same. The Valkyries are betting on young players like Burton, Salaün and Rupert to take another step from last year while hoping veterans like Thornton and Zandalasini maintain their production from last year.

“I think everyone can see how much fun we had last year and how much we enjoyed each other," Burton said. "So to come back with some familiar faces, it’s exciting for us again. We’re also welcoming in some new people. And so I think that balance of familiarity, that chemistry, that will carry over."

In an offseason where the Valkyries could have gone big fish hunting, Nakase said the moves they made were deliberate.

"We were successful last year," Nakase said. "Continuity was our priority in building this roster. … I think that was super intentional for us."

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This story was originally published April 19, 2026 at 3:44 PM.