Here’s a brief overview of the leadership tasked with launching the WNBA’s first expansion franchise since 2008.
Owners: Joe Lacob and Peter Gruber
The co-owners of the NBA’s Golden State Warriors have been instrumental in launching the WNBA’s first Bay Area franchise and will oversee the team. That makes the Valkyries the latest of several WNBA teams to be run by the same ownership that runs their NBA counterparts in their home market. Lacob has a long history of involvement with women’s professional basketball, as he was a co-founder of the American Basketball League, a short-lived WNBA predecessor, in the 1990s.
General manager: Ohemaa Nyanin
This is Nyanin’s first general manager job, but she arrives with a sterling resume. Nyanin was previously an assistant GM and director of basketball operations for the Liberty, and is considered one of the chief architects of the loaded New York roster that just won the franchise’s first WNBA title. Specifically, Nyanin was reportedly heavily involved in the recruitment of Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and Courtney Vandersloot to New York in free agency before the 2023 season. Before her time with the Liberty, Nyanin was an assistant director of women’s basketball at USA Basketball.
Coach: Natalie Nakase
Nakese, a California Native, makes her head coaching debut after several years in the NBA ranks as an assistant with the Los Angeles Clippers and their G-League affiliate, followed by three years — and two WNBA championships — as one of Becky Hammon’s top assistants with the Las Vegas Aces. It’s no surprise, then, that the Valkyries are taking Aces guard Kate Martin after a solid rookie season from Martin with Las Vegas in 2024, sources have told The Athletic.
