The Valkyries Must Target This Remaining Free Agent to Replace Iliana Rupert
Golden State Valkyries fans had to endure a slew of bad news yesterday. The team waived Kate Martin, and Iliana Rupert will have to miss the season due to pregnancy. The Valkyries filed for a replacement contract for the latter, and they desperately need it. With Rupert out, their big rotation currently consists of Kiah Stokes and Laeticia Amihere. That’s not enough to survive injuries or even foul trouble, or to compete with the top teams in the W.
Even if the replacement contract is granted by the league, the Valkyries face another big problem: There aren’t many centers available right now, who promise to be as impactful as Rupert would have been.
Chloe Bibby and Nikolina Milic were waived by the Phoenix Mercury and Toronto Tempo, respectively. Both are solid backups, but neither is likely to recover the potential the Valkyries lost with Rupert. Kalani Brown and Teaira McCowan offer great size, but they don’t provide any of the versatility Rupert does. Mariam Coulibaly, Murjanatu Musa, and Kariata Diaby were some of the top scorers in the EuroLeague this season. However, all three are either completely or relatively unproven at the WNBA level. Tina Charles announced her retirement just a few days ago.
That leaves Emma Meesseman as the only free agent who could come in as a replacement and truly retain the Valkyries’ ceiling or even raise it.
Emma Meesseman may need some convincing to play in the WNBA this season
If Emma Meesseman wanted to play in the WNBA this season, she would already be on a roster. Teams would jump at the opportunity to sign one of the best European players and a former WNBA Finals MVP, even after a disappointing stint with the New York Liberty.
So, it seems fair to reason that Meesseman may just not have any interest in playing in the W before attempting to defend Belgium’s EuroBasket title at the World Cup in September. The Valkyries may be able to change her mind.
The fact that Rupert’s salary does not count towards the salary cap gives the Valkyries some financial flexibility to offer Meesseman a pretty lucrative contract. The question is just whether it would be enough to convince her to play. She and Gabby Williams just won a EuroLeague title together with Fenerbahce, so maybe that relationship can help the Valkyries convince her to help them out.
Losing Rupert is a tough blow
Iliana Rupert only played half the season for the Valkyries last season due to her commitments with the French national team. Nevertheless, she immediately emerged as an exciting young contributor. Most notably, she shot 44.2% on 5 3-point attempts per game.
She was primed to take on a full-time starting role for the Valkyries this season and could have put up the best numbers of her short WNBA career. Players who are 6’4” and space the floor as reliably as Rupert are a rare find and difficult to replace, especially a day before the start of the regular season.
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Elaine Blum covers women’s basketball for On SI from Europe. She has been writing about women's hoops since 2023 and holds a Bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism and a master’s degree in American Studies with a focus on women’s and gender studies. She started playing basketball when she was 10 years old and won several league and state championships at the youth and senior level.