The Golden State Valkyries have taken their first steps toward building a roster for their inaugural season in 2025, and Friday’s expansion draft suggests there will be significantly more turnover for them in the near future.

The Golden State Valkyries made their selections during the Expansion Draft to start forming their inaugural roster. What are the key takeaways?

Golden State Valkyries general manager Ohemaa Nyanin and vice president of basketball operations Vanja Černivec met in Nyanin’s office last week to begin a chapter in the franchise’s history. Although Golden State’s expansion draft picks were announced Friday,

The newest team in the WNBA — The Golden State Valkyries — announced their 2025 schedule and their first 11 draft picks last week. The Valkyries will play a total of 44 games during the regular season, which runs May through September. Half of those games will take place on their home court at San Francisco’s Chase Center.

The Golden State Valkyries have selected center Iliana Rupert of Atlanta, guard Veronica Burton of Connecticut, guard Carla Leite of Dallas and forward Maria Conde of Chicago with their initial picks of the WNBA expansion draft.

The WNBA approved the Bay Area franchise in October 2023, making it the league’s first expansion team since the Atlanta Dream in 2008. The Dream was the 14th WNBA franchise at the time, but the contraction of the Houston Comets and Sacramento Monarchs in subsequent years left the league with 12 clubs, a number that has held constant for 15 years.

Looking ahead, Golden State holds the fifth, 17th, and 30th picks in the 2025 WNBA Draft presented by State Farm. The team will make its official debut on May 16, hosting the Los Angeles Sparks at 10 p.m. ET. The Sparks feature stars like three-time All-Star Dearica Hamby and 2024 All-Rookie Team honoree Rickea Jackson.

We mentioned this was a possibility in our expansion draft predictions. While Seattle has formidable options that could have been added, like Sami Whitcomb, Victoria Vivians or Mercedes Russell, all three are unrestricted free agents, and the Valkyries can add any of those players later.

Golden State Valkyries took Veronica Burton from the Connecticut Sun in the WNBA's expansion draft. What to know about the WNBA's newest team.

The Valkyries selected 11 players during last week's Expansion Draft on ESPN. There were a few surprises (all good ones for the Bay Area team), including the drafting of the Fever's Temi Fagbenle and the fact that 7 of the 11 members of the team are overseas players.