Valkyries general manager talks first foray into free agency

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With head coach Natalie Nakase onboarded earlier in the fall, the team’s expansion draft in December finally put 11 faces and names on the team that will take the floor in May. Whether those 11 players constitute this team’s identity remains to be seen as Golden State takes the next huge step toward the franchise’s 2025 debut with free agency, and a chance for the Valkyries to make their case to some of the league’s veteran players that the Bay Area is a compelling place to call home.

Nyanin, Nakase and vice president of basketball operations Vanya Černivec have been preparing for months for what comes next.

Nyanin spoke with The Next about the team’s approach to its first free agency period.

Q. I imagine this is probably a little bit of a chicken and the egg question. Do you, philosophically, have a number of players you’re targeting in free agency? Are you going to find free agents that fit the roster that you’re already starting to create, or are you going to mold the roster based on free agents and the expansion draft? How do you imagine that fits together?

A. We’re casting a super wide net. In terms of a number, there isn’t a specific number [of free agents]. We’ve engaged all the agents ahead of time, just to say that we’re super excited to get our story told from us to each of your athletes. And when the time comes, please let them know that we will be super excited to have that conversation in terms of the roster construction.

Q. Are you going to find free agents that fit the roster that you’re already starting to create, or are you going to mold the roster based on free agency? How do you imagine that fits together?

A. I think everybody has highlighted the flexibility that we have after the expansion draft, and that was such that we don’t have to make those decisions just yet. We still have the collegiate draft after this period. I’ve been getting a lot of questions, are we going old? Are we going young? Are we going veteran? Are we doing a mix? Are we doing starters, vets and then a young core? What does that all look like?

It’s organically being put together. We’re excited to have the opportunity to talk to athletes, and if they feel so inclined to have a conversation with us, we are ready. We’ve done a lot of research. I’ve been in the ‘W’ for a little bit, and Coach Natalie [Nakase] has been in the ‘W’ for a little bit. Vanya [Černivec] has been connected internationally for a little bit. So each of our different lenses will come to play in a really big way to make it make sense for whatever athlete wants to join the journey.

Q. Understanding that you all probably anticipated the CBA factor, and this reality that everybody in the league is essentially on a one-year contract (until a new CBA is signed)…when you’re working to sign free agents, what are you selling them on this year, given everyone’s status with the CBA? How does this impede or enhance what you guys want to do in terms of convincing players to come to Golden State?

A. We’re selling the opportunity to make history. If you would like to be an entrepreneur, to build with us, then come along for the journey. We’re not allowing ourselves to put too much pressure on the athletes, because the fans will already do that for them, right? It’s very specifically like, ‘Do you have a mindset to build?’

There are a lot of people when they hear that, there’s always a negative connotation, like, “building” means we’re not going to be good. To build is to build and there is no positive or negative around it. How can we do it collaboratively, both on and off the court? We’re a new franchise. We don’t even have our practice jerseys yet. We don’t have a lot, but we have a lot. We have a community who is hungry for this team. We have an ownership group that has invested wholeheartedly into the growth of this team being a championship-winning franchise for years to come. We have the Golden State Warriors who are 100% down to see us live into what will be our own legacy. We have individuals in our organization that are entrepreneurs on their own, people on the business side who are killing our brand and putting it out there. So it’s about being open to embracing the unknown.

Q. Is there an appetite from you all to acknowledge the history of Bay Area women’s basketball by trying to find free agents with ties to this market?

A. Not specifically. I think this market has embraced me and Natalie and Vanya so wholeheartedly and I think that it’s kind of like an added bonus if there is a tie to the community. We are all transplants. And we all continue to dig deeper into the community. We get to explore together what that all looks like and what that means.

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