The lesson of the Valkyries: defense first, defense always

And also the lesson of the Pistons and Rockets.

Good morning. It's Friday. Let's basketball.

The Golden State Valkyries have done something truly remarkable in the WNBA: they went from expansion to a championship in two seasons. There are certain aspects of the WNBA paradigm that make a quick build more viable than in the NBA. For one, the artificially small size of the league – an issue now being fixed as more franchises come online – has meant that plenty of good players were on the fringes of the league, and there were a limited number of major roles available. These factors greatly helped the Valkyries pick up their two most important players (Gabby Williams and Veronica Burton) in the 2025 offseason.

But there's another string here that matters a lot and has direct crossover relevance to the NBA, not just for expansion clubs but for any team starting over from near-scratch: it's easier to build an elite defense and add enough offense than vice versa.

In the expansion 2025 season, the Valks had the No. 9 of 13 offense and No. 4 of 13 defense. They made the playoffs. This season, they had the No. 7 of 15 offense and No. 1 of 15 defense. They won the title.

This story is replicated among some recent top risers in the NBA, too.

The Pistons averaged the equivalent of 20-62 records for five years leading into 2024-25. In that season, in which they made the playoffs and went 44-38, their defense jumped from No.26 to No. 11. The following season, when they won 60 games, it had jumped to No. 2. The offense improved in both season as well, but it trailed the defense. Detroit figured out how to stop opponents by adding defensive talent to the roster, and their fortunes turned.

The Rockets are a similar story: three awful seasons in the post-Harden paradigm, and a turnaround in 2023-24. The story? Their defense went from No. 29 to No. 9. Their offense improved too, from No. 27 to No. 20. But defense is what took them up the standings. The following year, 2024-25, the defense was No. 4 and Rockets were the second seed in the West.

The other two major modern success stories of blitzkrieg improvements – the Thunder and Spurs – improved quickly and dramatically on both sides of the floor. But there are others. The Process Sixers: 10 to 52 wins in two seasons. How'd they do it? Defense. No. 26 in 2015-16, No. 17 in 2026-17 and No. 4 in 2017-18. The offense lagged behind. On a smaller scale, last season's surprisingly competent Suns were a story of a focus on defense: their defense went from No. 28 to No. 10, and they went from the lottery to the playoffs.

Most of these examples have very high-level defenders, and it's not always easy to land those. The Rockets and Pistons, for example, each added a Thompson twin amid their defensive renaissances, each with a high draft pick. The Process Sixers used a No. 1 pick on a brilliant wing defender in Ben Simmons and a No. 3 pick on a massive rim-protecting center in Joel Embiid. The other best defenders in the NBA like Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren were high draft picks.

But there are defenders out there, available. Recent All-Defense teams are littered with lower draft picks and journeymen. NBA teams may not have the luxury of being able to pick up a Veronica Burton or Tiffany Hayes off the wire, or sign a Kiah Stokes in free agency. But Herb Jones seems occasionally attainable. Toumani Camara was a footnote on a trade. Josh Hart got traded a few times before landing in NYC. Matisse Thybulle has bounced around. Alex Caruso has been available occasionally. You could get Jalen Suggs, albeit at a high salary cost, right now.

The point is that the Valkyries built a defense-first identity, hired a coach in Natalie Nakase devoted to that identity, picked up players who fit it and locked everyone up. There are bad NBA teams who have been trying for years to build teams around scorers and creators and fit in enough defense to hold it up. Why? Why not try to create the league's best defense first and then add enough offense around it? Why shouldn't the Clippers or Kings or Nets or Bucks do that?

Perhaps the more interesting question is whether there are any Gabby Williamses lurking in the NBA. Gabby has been in the WNBA since 2018, and had a relatively quiet start to her career as a defense-first wing in Chicago before heading to Seattle, where she built upon her defensive reputation and added more offense, eventually making an All-Star team and finishing third in Defensive Player of the Year voting last season. But she wanted an even bigger role, so she signed with the Valks last summer. And now she's the reigning Finals MVP.

Cason Wallace feels like a decent comparison, though obviously he's embedded in a title squad already and now injured. Dyson Daniels is another option, and really, despite that contract, Jalen Suggs has the profile as an elite defender who could theoretically still be a No. 1 or No. 1b option on a team middle-of-the-pack in offense and elite on defense. If things get weird in San Antonio, Stephon Castle would be another option.

Scores

Magic 104, Suns 117 – Orlando is struggling without a legitimate starting point guard (no offense to Jase Richardson); Franz Wagner is running the offense, and had 15 assists but also six turnovers. The team had 25 turnovers altogether, and that both doomed their own offense and fueled the Suns' fast break.

It didn't help that the Suns were hot from deep, too.

Heat 100, Warriors 120 – Something happened to the Warriors after their awful first week. They look like a totally different team! Miami was shooting sideways again, and Stephen Curry popped, and that's how you get a 20-point Golden State win, I guess.

Schedule

All times Eastern.

NBA CUP FRIDAY
East A
Raptors (0-1) at Bucks (0-0), 8

East B
Sixers (1-0) at Cavaliers (0-0), 7:30, Prime Video

East C
Wizards (1-0) at Hawks (0-0), 7
Celtics (1-0) at Hornets (0-1), 7

West A
Jazz (0-0) at Mavericks (1-0), 8

West B
Thunder (0-0) at Grizzlies (0-0), 8
Timberwolves (1-0) at Pelicans (0-0), 8

West C
Blazers (0-0) at Lakers (0-1), 10, Prime Video
Spurs (0-0) at Kings (0-0)

SATURDAY
Nuggets vs. Pacers in Mexico City, 5, NBA TV
Nets at Hawks, 7:30
Knicks at Cavaliers, 8, NBA TV
Wizards at Thunder, 8
Magic at Warriors, 8:30
Rockets at Suns, 9
Spurs at Blazers, 10

SUNDAY
Sixers at Bulls, 3:30
Lakers at Pistons, 6, NBA TV
Jazz at Timberwolves, 7
Nets at Mavericks, 7:30
Celtics at Bucks, 8
Pelicans at Clippers, 9
Heat at Kings, 9

Be excellent to each other.