The first gear has shifted into place. As the Golden State Valkyries get ready for their inaugural WNBA season in 2025, the management is slowly adding pieces to the game. The official draft is tentatively set for Dec. 6, until which date WNBA teams can protect 6 of 12 players and the Valkyries will be free to choose from the rest. As the league’s thirteenth team adds a head coach, Becky Hammon has a heartfelt message for Natalie Nakase, now former assistant coach of the Aces.

Having joined the team in 2022 along with Hammon, Nakase was part of the Las Vegas team winning two back-to-back championships. In a post captioned, “From one Head Coach to another 🤝🫶” by the Aces’ X account, Hammon says to Nakase, “Natalie has played a huge role in our Aces success over the last three years. Her bright mind, relentless work ethic, and ability to build relationships with our players has had a lasting impact on not just our organization but also throughout the Las Vegas community! We wish her the best in her next great opportunity as the 1st Head Coach of the Golden State Valkyries!”

It will be a bit of a blow to the Aces, who just ended their season in a brutal semifinal loss to the Liberty. The locker room will lose a vital presence, but one team’s loss is another’s gain. In fact, she already has experience as a head coach, just in a different country! Hammon also said, “The best thing about getting an opportunity when you’re qualified is that you can go and crush it, and that’s what I told her, ‘You’re going to be great. You’re going to go crush it.'”

Nakase joins Golden State after having a vast coaching experience, from Germany to Japan. She also used to play in the National Women’s Basketball League with the San Jose Spiders (2005) and San Diego Siege (2006). Beginning her coaching journey with the Women’s Professional Basketball German League in 2008 with the Wolfenbuttel Wildcats for two seasons, Nakase then went to Japan’s men’s basketball.

After serving as an assistant coach for the Tokyo Apache for one season, Nakase was the head coach for the Saitama Broncos from 2011-12. There, she was the first woman to serve as head coach in the Men’s Professional Basketball Japan League. She had also worked with the Clippers before stepping into the W.

Nakase said in a statement, “My message to the Bay Area fans is: thank you for your passion. Thank you for your loyalty. It’s my job to bring a very intense, high energy style of play. When you experience your first Valkyries game, you’re going to leave wanting more.” 

Now Natalie Nakase continues her impressive basketball journey in San Francisco and wishes to pour in from the team.

Tyler Marsh and more sends good wishes to “sister for life” Natalie Nakase

As the Aces team keeps showering praise on Natalie Nakase, Assistant Coach & Head of Player Development Tyler Marsh has also joined the melee. He wrote on X, “3 yrs of laughs, tears, memories & a whole lot of winning. Even though you’re the opp now 🙃, you’re my sister for life. So proud of you & GS couldn’t have chosen a better coach or person to lead their franchise. Keep breaking barriers. I always got your back! @NatalieNakase 🖤🤞🏾”

Aces player Alysha Clark also wrote on X, “Couldn’t be happier for you @NatalieNakase ! Love you!! Can’t wait to see you do amazing things in GS 💜🕊️🙏🏽🥹”

Call it divine timing, but the call for Nakase came just days after the Aces lost the semifinals. While she is excited for this new role, how did the new head coach feel informing her last team? “It was a bunch of hugs, tears, you know, and it couldn’t have been better for me,” she said. “Just because having that support, it meant a lot. You know, it’s completely different than not having a lot of support.”

Joining general manager Ohemaa Nyanin and president Jess Smith on the Golden State team, Nakase’s experience will fit right into a team learning to build itself up and fight against W powerhouses. When The Athletic put out a poll last year, general managers across the league had voted Nakase as “one to watch.” She will certainly be one to keep an eye on as the Golden State Valkyries get ready for an explosive debut next summer!