Valkyries flex depth and championship-level defense in Fever takedown

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Valkyries flex depth and championship-level defense in Fever takedown originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Golden State Valkyries are sizzling.

In just their second WNBA season, the Valkyries are a genuine title contender.

Golden State has the league's No.1 defense, and it hasn't lost a game in nearly a month.

MORE: Caitlin Clark’s tantrums cover up scary truth about her production


The Valkyries ran their winning streak to eight games on Thursday night with a crushing 88-75 win over the Indiana Fever.

Golden State held Indiana -- the league's top offense -- to 30 points in the first half, and the Fever barely cracked 40 percent shooting for the game.

Six Valkyries players scored in double-digits, led by All-Star forward Gabby Williams with 16.

But Golden State's strength all season has been its depth. The culture that head coach Natalie Nakase has instilled allows for a variety of different contributors, every night.


Kaitlyn Chen takeover!

12 PTS on 4-4 FG in the 3rd quarter.pic.twitter.com/VGyIEpJyAi

— Underdog WNBA (@UnderdogWNBA) July 16, 2026

On Thursday, it was Kailtyn Chen's turn. The former UConn guard scored 14 points in only 9:38 of game time, providing an enormous lift off the bench.

The Valkyries are the league's least-efficient shooting team; their 41.9 field goal percentage is the worst in the WNBA. Golden State makes up for it though with its 3-point shooting (first in attempts, fifth in success rate) as well as its lights-out team defense, which holds teams to the second-lowest field-goal percentage and the lowest two-point field-goal percentage in the WNBA.

At 18-7, Golden State is one game behind the Minnesota Lynx for the league's best record. With a little more offensive punch, it's not out of the question that the Valkyries could reach the Finals in their second season of existence.

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