Valkyries Preparing to Add New Player After Historic First WNBA Season

The Valkyries look forward to welcoming a new player.

Golden State Valkyries president Jess Smith, guard Juste Jocyte, and general manager Ohemaa Nyanin at Chase Center. / David Gonzales-Imagn Images

Almost daily, the Golden State Valkyries break new ground as an expansion franchise in the WNBA.

In their debut season, the Valkyries have already broken the wins record for a first year team and are well on their way to securing a postseason spot by season's end, another unprecedented feat for a team in their position.

They have achieved all this success with a first year head coach in Natalie Nakase at the helm and a team comprised of standard draftees and veteran players acquired in the Expansion Draft, but there is one notable piece that has been missing from the roster in 2025: their first round pick.

Golden State Valkyries president Jess Smith, guard Juste Jocyte, and general manager Ohemaa Nyanin at Chase Center. / David Gonzales-Imagn Images

19-year-old Lithuanian forward Justė Jocytė was selected fifth overall by the Valkyries in the 2025 draft, but opted to abstain from the 2025 WNBA season in favor of preparing for EuroBasket with team Lithuania and now Jocyté plans to spend the winter playing for Uni Girona CB in Spain to train for the WNBA, planning to grow stronger to match up against the professionals playing in the U.S.

Juste Jocyte Opens Up on WNBA Opportunity With Valkyries

Spending time at Chase Center this week, Jocyté opened up about this opportunity.

“I know I have to adapt, it’s a very different style of play,” Jocyté said (via Marisa Ingemi of the San Francisco Chronicle). “It’s just more physical, really, and it’s more individual, and there’s more 1-on-1s. But now you see more Europeans coming into the U.S., and the States are adapting a little bit more to the Europeans, too.”

Our first-ever WNBA draft selection in @valkyries history, @jocytee, sounding the drum for tonight’s game 🥁 pic.twitter.com/6zl4TNVf0v

— Chase Center (@ChaseCenter) August 18, 2025

Jocyté made a preview of a debut with the Valkyries ahead of their August 17 game against the Atlanta Dream, where she was presented with her own Valkyries jersey and got to engage in some pregame festivities as she introduced herself to the Ballhalla faithful. She is looking forward to making her official debut in the Bay and get in close to the ground floor of a Valkyries team with the odds still stacked against them despite their success.

“It’s exciting, knowing that that team is an underdog, not gonna lie, I think it’s not like easier, but I prefer to play that way, when people look down on you,” she added. “So, really, it’s been fun to watch them, to see them securing that playoff spot almost.”

Jocyte's Basketball Journey Before Golden State

Jocyté has been a fierce competitor from a very young age. At just 14 years old, she became the youngest player to play in EuroLeague Women. Even before then, she played with the Lithuania national team in the EuroBasket tournament at just 13.

#MemoryMonday: 13-year-old Juste Jocyte gets buckets in her debut for the 🇱🇹 senior National Team!#EuroBasketWomen pic.twitter.com/oNSA41CEjX

— FIBA Women's EuroBasket (@EuroBasketWomen) May 11, 2020

“Being competitive at such a young age and playing against other athletes within the WNBA ecosystem is amazing,” Golden State general manager Ohemaa Nyanin said. “Regardless of where an athlete is from, we’re looking at their competitiveness, how they can fit in Coach Natalie’s system and the level of talent they’re going against.”

Jocyté has impressed in international play. While playing with French club LDLC ASVEL féminin she has averaged 12.7 points, 2.7 assists and 1.8 steals a game, doing all of this while being younger than the majority of her competition. When 2026 comes around and Jocyté is united with her fellow Valkyries, the sky appears to to be the limit for the budding WNBA star.