INDIANAPOLIS — The Golden State Valkyries selected a member of the Indiana Fever during the WNBA Expansion Draft on Friday night.
In a post on X, the Valkyries confirmed they had selected center Temi Fagbenle in the draft. Including Fagbenle, Golden State picked 11 players.
The expansion draft was held to help the upstart Valkyries build their roster ahead of the 2025 season. The WNBA announced the Valkyries would become the league's 13th team in October 2023. The team is owned Joe Lacob, who is also the owner of the NBA's Golden State Warriors.
Under the rules of the draft, the WNBA's 12 other teams were only allowed to protect six players each. In other words, the WNBA's 12 teams hand-picked 72 players that they did not want to be eligible for the expansion draft.
With the pool of protected players in mind, the Valkyries were then allowed to select one rostered player from each WNBA team. Draft rules barred Golden State from taking multiple players from one team.
The Valkyries only took 11 players in the draft because they chose not to pick any players from the Seattle Storm's roster.
“We are excited to have officially started the journey of building the Golden State Valkyries 2025 team,” Golden State general manager Ohemaa Nyanin said via release. “Our goal was to construct a roster that embodies both versatility and depth, bringing in a strong mix of leadership, defense and scoring ability. These players were carefully chosen not only for their skills on the court, but also for their ability to fit into the culture we’re working to build here at Golden State.”
Below is a full list of the players Golden State selected in the draft:
- Iliana Rupert — Atlanta Dream
- Maria Conde — Chicago Sky
- Veronica Burton — Connecticut Sun
- Carla Leite — Dallas Wings
- Temi Fagbenle — Indiana Fever
- Kate Martin — Las Vegas Aces
- Stephanie Talbot — Los Angeles Sparks
- Cecilia Zandslisini — Minnesota Lynx
- Kayla Thornton — New York Libery
- Monique Billings — Phoenix Mercury
- Julie Vanloo — Washington Mystics
Fagbenle was a key member of the Fever's rotation last season. She averaged 18.9 minutes per game across the 22 contests she played. Fagbenle missed more than 15 games last season due to injury.
Fagbenle — a USC alum — averaged 6.4 points and 4.7 rebounds per game in 2024.
Fagbenle will play her first game with her new team on May 16, when the Valkyries host the Sparks. The Fever will get their first chance to play Fagbenle and Valkyries on June 19 in California.