Valkyries beat Storm 91-80 behind Janelle Salaün's 5 threes

Year 2 for the Valkyries started the way Year 1 ended — with the building shaking and the threes falling. Golden State drilled 15 of 37 from deep (seven different shooters made one) and beat the Seattle Storm 91-80 in their 2026 opener at Chase Center.

Janelle Salaün tied her career-high with 20 points on 5-of-9 from three. Veronica Burton ran the show with 16 points and 6 assists. Kayla Thornton added 13 and Kaitlyn Chen poured in all 14 of her points after halftime. The Valkyries led 49-41 at the break and 69-53 after three; Seattle never got within striking distance.

For the Storm — who lost their top five scorers in free agency — Dominique Malonga went for 21 and Zia Cooke had 15 off the bench. Ezi Magbegor is still 6-8 weeks out with a foot injury. It's a long season, but Seattle's rebuild looks like it's actually a rebuild. The Valkyries, meanwhile, look like they kept the magic.