Valkyries Make Final WNBA Trade Deadline Decision

The WNBA trade deadline has come and gone.

Golden State Valkyries logo at center court before the game against the Los Angeles Sparks at Chase Center. / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

The 2025 WNBA Trade Deadline has come and passed. As of 3 pm EST on Thursday, August 7, teams are officially locked from trading any players between each other until the offseason.

The deadline was relatively quiet overall. The biggest trade made in the days leading up to Thursday was undoubtedly the deal that sent guard Dijonai Carrington from the Dallas Wings to the Minnesota Lynx in exchange for Diamond Miller, Karlie Samuelson and the Lynx's 2027 second-round draft pick.

Beyond that, few transactions were made that made a major splash and many teams elected not to make any trades at all.

Dallas Wings guard DiJonai Carrington (21) celebrates after making a shot against the Indiana Fever during the first half at the American Airlines Center. / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Golden State Valkyries Have Quiet WNBA Trade Deadline

Among those quiet teams was the Golden State Valkyries. Golden State made no trades at the deadline, and haven't made a trade all season.

There's something to be said about the Valkyries' position as a first year expansion team. They had to build their team from scratch via the Expansion Draft where they were able to select players from teams across the league. Teams were also given the option to protect certain players from that draft to ensure that their own rosters' key pieces remained intact.

As a result of this, there have been claims across the basketball world that the Valkyries don't have one select superstar leading the team and that the deadline represented a chance to remedy that position, especially with the loss of All-Star forward Kayla Thornton to season-ending knee surgery. Instead, the Valkyries roster has remained unchanged.

The Valkyries doing nothing at the trade deadline is probably the correct course of action.

Nothing splashy out there to legitimately change their destiny this season. And on the otherside, it would go against everything they’ve said identity and culture-wise if they hard sold.

— Kenzo Fukuda (@kenzofuku) August 7, 2025

It could be argued that they didn't need to shake things up either. The Valkyries currently have a 14-15 record and if the season ended today, that would be good for the eighth and final spot to qualify for the postseason.

Golden State has already had an improbable run in 2025. There was little precedent or expectation for an expansion team to achieve the success the Valkyries have already had. They are on pace to smash win records for first-year franchises and are on pace for the most successful debut season in WNBA history, especially if they make the playoffs.

The roster the team already has works. The camaraderie present is crucial to their success and as their deadline inactivity indicates, the Valkyries are confident that they can win with what they have. They will be back in action on Saturday against the Los Angeles Sparks at home.