‘All in, all the time': How the Valkyries redefined what's elite in the WNBA

Thirty-one months ago, Jess Smith sat at Mission Rock over a plate of petrale sole and outlined an ambitious vision. She was employee No. 1 of Golden State's expansion WNBA franchise, a team without a name, a logo, a color scheme, without a general manager, a coach or a roster. But it was a team with very big plans and dreams.

"We are expecting to be elite," Smith said in March 2024.

The Golden State Valkyries - by now you know their name, their colors, their players, their leaders, their vibe - built a culture, seemingly overnight. Constructed a team that represents the Bay Area perhaps better than any other group. Created a vibe and experience that has become an immediate and indispensable part of the Bay Area sports scene.

Just two seasons into their existence, Smith now oversees a staff of 80. The team has made history in terms of valuation (now at $1 billion), single-season revenue ($100 million) and attendance (selling out every home game it has ever played). The color scheme and merchandise are ubiquitous.

And, in just Year Two, the team is in the WNBA Finals.

"I think the Valkyries are maybe the greatest expansion process that I've ever seen," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said this week. "Everything that they've done, it's been world-class. Like, from Day One. So to see the team in the Finals in the second year is just incredible."

Back when Smith was digging into her sole and mashed potatoes a block from Chase Center, the Bay Area sports world was crowded. The 49ers were weeks removed from a Super Bowl loss. The Warriors were riding the high of their fourth championship, not even two years in the past. The Giants were preparing a stranglehold on Bay Area baseball. A new NWSL team had entered the picture.

But Smith, more responsible than any other single individual for the Valkyries' eye-popping success, had a clear vision. A specific plan. And full confidence that the Valkyries would make something unique and special.

"We've been unapologetic about going big," Smith said this past week. "About being loud. Saying that we're going to be great and inviting people to be part of that with us."

The Valkyries never dreamed small. They never thought about tarping off the upper deck of Chase Center. They never allowed themselves to be dismissed as less-than.

"If you don't believe and go for it, why would anyone around you?" Smith said. "If you're playing it safe, what will the fans you're asking to join do? It does start with vision. It does start with confidence."

Before Smith was hired by Joe Lacob and Peter Guber as the first employee of the new team, she received assurances that this was not going to be a side project. It was not going to be the "little sister" of the "real" Golden State team. She had already built an amazing culture with Angel City, the NWSL team in Los Angeles. She was not interested in joining people who were not fully committed to excellence.

Back in 2024, Smith spoke of "building something that's uniquely our own. Where when someone sees you wearing the brand, you'll be like, 'I get you and you get me.' Where you feel welcome. Something that's inviting and doesn't feel like this is for some people and not for others."

All those aspirational ideas have become reality. The Valkyries have built the most diverse fan base in Bay Area sports; they draw new sports fans, seasoned sports fans, young and old, gay and straight, every ethnicity and race.

"It's exceptional and it's overwhelming," Smith said this past week. "We do have an advantage, and a lot of credit goes to the Bay Area. In this region we love being early adopters. We're not like, 'Prove it and then I'll decide if I want to be involved.' We built around that energy from the very beginning."

The Valkyries' culture came together almost instantly, from the moment Chase opened its doors.

"There is a playbook of a market that's been untapped," Smith said. "That's been waiting for a community like this to come together, to feel connected with humanity at a much deeper level. I think it represents the best of this region and people take a lot of civic pride in what this region is and who we are. Everyone is welcome. Everyone cares about one another. And it's really fun to win basketball games and let out all that energy."

This spectacular culture that the Valkyries have built has managed to keep the team largely immune from the culture wars, the toxic stew of racism, homophobia and misogyny that has bubbled up around the WNBA this season. That is, in part, again, thanks to location. It is also because the Valkyries' experience simply has no room for such nonsense.

"The topic is the beauty of what's happened," Smith said. "What people should be concerned with are these incredible athletes, the communities they represent on and off the court. I feel really proud of what's being talked about with this organization. The beauty of how all these things have come together and what the future looks like. I think that's the league's story, too, and I wish that story was told more conducively and more often.

"We are innately ourselves. I think we are the embodiment of what we think of Bay Area culture. We are concerned with winning but also concerned with one another. I think we (the Bay Area) have always been confusing to the globe in some ways because we can be both things."

Lacob empowered Smith to pursue her vision. He also made it clear he expected a championship within the first five years (which now doesn't seem like a big ask). While he can be a demanding boss, one who has worn out some past employees, Smith embraces his energy and interest, as do her partners in culture creation, general manager Ohemaa Nyanin and coach Natalie Nakase .

"Ohemaa, Natalie and I all have the same energy," Smith said. "Someone just asked me how often I talk to Ohemaa and I said, literally every hour.

"We are all all in, all the time. And Joe is engaged in the same way. It's really beautiful and he has a tremendous amount of pride in what is happening."

It has all happened so fast. But the people who have been building the Valkyries are not as surprised as the rest of the sports world.

"This has been a dream for 2½ years," Smith said. "But if you're around Natalie and Ohemaa and this organization, you realize how incredible these people are as human beings and also at their jobs.

"So a part of me is, 'Of course, I can believe it.'"