SAN FRANCISCO -- Still sporting his lavender "Ballhalla" shirt, Joe Lacob stood in the tunnel behind the Chase Center court late on Saturday afternoon, rehashing an extremely physical and competitive Game 1 of the 2026 WNBA Finals.
"We didn't play well," the Golden State Valkyries owner was overheard saying.
But he wasn't lamenting a loss. He was celebrating his team's 68-64 comeback win over the Atlanta Dream.
The Valkyries fell behind on the opening possession, trailed by nine early and again by seven in the fourth quarter. They led for just six minutes and four seconds all day, and shot 32.1%, which was the third-worst field goal percentage in a Finals win in league history. By any objective measure, they did not play well – certainly not on the offensive end.
But one of the Valkyries' many mystical qualities is that they don't have to play well in order to win. "Whatever happens, this team is gonna find a way," Gabby Williams said. The Valkyries found a way Saturday in quintessential fashion by leaning on their depth, defense and deafening home-court advantage.
The pre-game experience at Ballhalla is unique. Not just because of the noise or the light show or the hype video depicting Norse warriors doing battle. When it's time for player introductions, the voice echoing around the arena makes no mention of starters. Rather, "it's time to meet the first five."
The Valkyries have "strength in numbers," coach Natalie Nakase said, echoing the mantra that Steve Kerr made famous during the Golden State Warriors' run to the 2015 NBA championship. (Kerr was in attendance Saturday, along with a number of Warriors players.) The Valkyries' "first five" is just that. Whenever they check out, a new wave enters. Nakase went with a 10-player rotation in Game 1; many teams don't go that deep in the regular season.
Only two Valkyries players reached 30 minutes, and one of them was Kaila Charles, who came off the bench to put up seven points, a team-high 10 rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block. She had a huge 3-pointer late in the third quarter, and an even bigger steal and layup in the middle of the fourth to end a two-minute scoring drought. It was only right that she grabbed the game-sealing rebound and had the ball as time expired.
"Her engine was on full throttle tonight," Nakase said. "She emptied the tank the minute she stepped on the floor. You could feel her and you could feel when I took her out … Her fight was unmatched tonight. She's exactly what we needed."
Charles' big night was unexpected, but she had at least been in the playoff rotation. Laeticia Amihere, on the other hand, had only played six minutes in the postseason before she checked in with 4:36 in the second quarter with a remit to slow down Angel Reese. To that point, Reese had 14 points and was having her way when Kiah Stokes was out of the game. After Amihere entered the game, Reese didn't score again. In fact, Reese only took three more shots; Amihere blocked one of them and strongly contested another. To go with that rejection, she added five points, five rebounds and a steal.
"That's what we are all year. Be ready, be ready when your name is called. I thought LA was phenomenal," Veronica Burton said. "This matchup for her is really good. She knows what she brings to the table and I'm just really proud of her."
Amihere's effort against Reese was just part of the Valkyries' smothering defensive performance. Allisha Gray, who was playing through a hand injury that had kept her out of the majority of the semifinals, went 5 of 19, Rhyne Howard was 3 of 14 and the Dream shot 32.8% as a team, including 4 of 25 from 3-point range. The Dream, normally so secure with the ball, turned it over 12 times, which led to 17 Valkyries points.
In the fourth quarter, with the pressure mounting and the Ballhalla crowd surging, the Valkyries turned things up to another level. They held the Dream to eight points on 2 of 17 from the field. Atlanta's only make over the final 7:16 was an absurd double-clutch leaner off the glass from Jordin Canada to beat the shot clock.
As the Dream tried and failed to find any semblance of offense down the stretch, their seven-point lead slowly melted away until Gabby Williams hit two free throws to put the Valkyries in front for good with 1:18 left.
"Even though we were down with a few minutes left, we had the game right where we wanted it because it just came down to getting stops," Williams said. "That's been our bread and butter all season. That's why we harp on it so much because we've built great defensive habits for these moments."
After the Valkyries' final stop in the closing seconds, Lacob and a sea of lavender 18,000 strong erupted. The Valkyries hadn't played well, but they had won. Nakase, who called for "hostility" from the crowd earlier in the week, said she felt a "different roar" on Saturday, but made it clear that even the fans have to "level up" on Monday if the Valkyries want to take a commanding 2-0 lead.
"Game 2 it has to be better," Nakase said. "We're gonna ask more from our players, so check for Game 1, let's get a better Game 2. Rest and recover, Ballhalla. Careful what you drink tonight."
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