Golden State Valkyries defeat Atlanta Dream to capture first WNBA crown
Gabby Williams, named Most Valuable Player, sets records for most points (137) and most steals (18) in the WNBA Finals.
In a near single-handed performance, Gabby Williams helped the Golden State Valkyries defeat the Atlanta Dream 68-63 in Game 7 of the WNBA Finals to give the West Coast franchise a championship title in the second year of its existence.
Williams scored 28 of her game-high 30 points in the second half to force a turnaround and bag the Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) award in San Francisco on Saturday.
Kiah Stokes converted a Williams miss into a key hoop with 53 seconds left to the deafening cheers of “Ballhalla”, as the Valkyries’ home crowd is known at the Chase Center.
In the end, Nakase recognised the enormity of piecing together a bunch of players left unprotected in the expansion draft, a handful of international imports and one key free-agent signing into the league’s second-best record in the regular season and the first-ever Game 7 winner in WNBA history.