Former Storm players, Gabby Williams and Jordin Canada, set to face off in WNBA Finals

It’s not the matchup of former Storm players most would have expected at the start of the WNBA playoffs.

Breanna Stewart’s New York Liberty and Jewell Loyd’s Las Vegas Aces were both swept in the semifinals. The Atlanta Dream and Golden State Valkyries will face off in Game 1 of the Finals on Saturday, with both teams seeking their first title.

It came together quickly in “Ballhalla.” In October 2023, Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob paid a $50 million fee to make the Valkyries the WNBA’s first expansion team since the Dream joined up in 2008. First-time WNBA head coach Natalie Nakase won Coach of the Year as the Valkyries became the first expansion team to reach the playoffs in its inaugural season.

Golden State reportedly wanted Gabby Williams, who played her youth basketball in San Francisco, ahead of that inaugural season. But Williams had received a core designation from the Storm, guaranteeing exclusive negotiating rights.

She returned to the Storm on a one-year deal in 2025. Williams reached career highs in points (11.6), assists (4.2), steals (2.3) and free-throw percentage (85.3), and her 99 steals led the league.

Free agency began in March after a well-publicized battle between the WNBA Players’ Association and the WNBA. The Valkyries ramped up their pursuit of Williams. The sides landed on a three-year contract worth more than $1 million annually in April.

So Williams became part of the Seattle exodus, following Nneka Ogwumike and Brittney Sykes, while Skylar Diggins had a foot out the door. Her departure signaled – or rather, confirmed – a full rebuild for the Storm, who made the playoffs the previous season.

Williams said she was looking for a spot where she could win. The Storm helped her get back on track, but her career surged further forward with Golden State. The runner-up in Defensive Player of the Year voting and 2026 All-Star Game starter is key to the Valkyries’ offense. After 14.4 points per game in the regular season, she is averaging 22.7 points in the playoffs and surrounded by well-deserved buzz.

“Gabby doesn’t need to prove herself. Even when she was in Seattle she was doing great things,” teammate Kayla Thornton said recently. “Her coming to this team, she unlocked a lot of different things, and that’s coming from the coaches and us just giving her the confidence. … We back her up every day, and she’s unbelievable.”

It’s easy to question why it didn’t happen in Seattle, and, as always, there were several factors. Williams’ run with the Storm was inconsistent. Her 2023 and 2024 WNBA seasons were shortened to 10 and 12 games, respectively, due to injuries and international commitments, including playing for the French national team.

A team’s needs don’t always align with a player looking to raise her ceiling. Williams said this season that her role in Seattle had her “sacrificing” herself.

“The trust to have the ball in my hands in the big moments was something I think I compromised a lot in Seattle,” Williams said, according to The San Francisco Standard. “I was creating more for others, but now they’re giving me the keys to make the decision myself in those crucial moments.”

The Valkyries certainly saw the potential, and their pursuit was more than justified. Owner Lacob told ESPN after Game 1 of the semifinals: “Print this: Gabby Williams is the best player in the world.”

Williams scored eight of her 16 points in overtime of an 87-77 road victory Oct. 9, which completed the sweep of ex-teammate Loyd’s Aces.

“It feels special because this is a special group,” Williams said after her Valkyries made it to the championship series quicker than any expansion team in WNBA history.

“Honestly, we’re about to have some bandwagoners because we didn’t get no love all season.”

On the other side is veteran Jordin Canada, drafted fifth overall by Seattle in 2018. In the Pacific Northwest, she was famously Sue Bird’s back-up and heir apparent at point guard.

She broke out while Bird sat out the 2019 season with a knee injury, leading the league with 2.3 steals a game while making the WNBA All-Defensive first team. The following two seasons, with Bird back in the fold, Canada’s production declined. Still, she won two titles with the Storm in her first three years in the league.

She signed with the Los Angeles Sparks in 2022. Like Williams, her role played a part in her departure, and there was a homecoming element. Canada was born and raised in L.A. and competed for UCLA.

“Much love to Sue,” Canada told The Seattle Times at the time. “It had nothing to do with waiting for Sue to retire. I just felt like it was time for me to showcase what I can do.”

Canada was traded to Atlanta in 2024.

The Dream swept Stewart’s Liberty on the way to the finals, and Canada was a huge reason why. In three games, Canada averaged 22.3 points, 7.6 assists, three rebounds and two steals. She polished off her semifinals run with a 19-point, 11-assist effort.

She became just the third player in WNBA history to record at least 11 assists with no turnovers in a playoff series-clinching game, joining Cynthia Cooper and Diana Taurasi.

“She’s always been known for her defense, but she’s taking it up a notch, using (coach Karl Smesko’s) technique methods and putting it all together,” Dream forward Naz Hillmon told USA Today.