Why WNBA expansion teams continue to break the mold
Last season, the Valkyries immediately set the tone. They broke numerous records, including the all-time league attendance record with 397,408 total fans. After only one season, the Valkyries became the first WNBA team to be valued at $1 billion. But, more importantly, they broke the single-season win record by a first-year WNBA team and became the first expansion franchise to make the playoffs in its inaugural season.
Golden State's inaugural roster was rich with players who had been waiting for their breakout WNBA moment, specifically Veronica Burton. She was waived by the Dallas Wings in 2022, then bounced around the league for a couple of years. Over her first three seasons, Burton averaged only 2.7 points and 2.0 assists in 13.9 minutes per game. It's not an exaggeration to say her move to Golden State breathed new life into her career. In 2025, she averaged 11.9 points and 6.0 assists in 29.4 minutes per game, ultimately winning last year's Most Improved Player award. She's quickly become the face of the new franchise, already averaging 14.3 points and 6.3 assists per game in 2026.
We're seeing similar patterns take shape with the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire right now. In Toronto, they decided to pick up a couple of veterans during the draft and free agency. So while Marina Mabrey and Brittney Sykes are the leaders of their squad, we've gotten to see new glimpses of players like Nyara Sabally, who have spent a lot of their career in the shadows. Temi Fagbenle and Isabelle Harrison have spent some time on the bench due to injuries, but expect them to make their mark when they return. Even with being short-staffed in the frontcourt department, the Tempo are sitting at 3-4 to start the season and have proven to be fighters in close games.
When it comes to Portland, they're far more similar to Golden State than I think anyone expected before the season. Their strategy seemed to be 'build now, win later,' but these players don't want to wait to win. The Fire selected Bridget Carleton with the first pick in the expansion draft. Through her seven-year WNBA career, she averaged 5.2 points per game. With seven games under her belt in Portland, she's already averaging 15.6 points per game. Carla Leite is another great example. She was picked up by the Golden State Valkyries for her rookie season. So she's experienced a team's inaugural year before; perhaps that's helped her succeed this season. She's averaging 15.6 points per game with Portland, quickly becoming the city's star.
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