SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Golden State forward Kayla Thornton knows every basket in the WNBA Finals will be tough to come by, given how much the Valkyries and the Atlanta Dream take pride in making stops.
The league's two best defensive teams are about to square off for a championship in a best-of-seven series that could be low-scoring. The Valkyries host Game 1 on Saturday with their raucous “Ballhalla” home crowd to back them on the biggest stage this second-year franchise has reached.
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Golden State Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase, middle, reacts toward players during the first half of Game 2 of the WNBA basketball semifinals against the Las Vegas Aces, Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
New York Liberty center Jonquel Jones, right, keeps the ball away from Atlanta Dream forward Angel Reese, left, during the second half of Game 3 of the WNBA basketball semifinals, Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)
Atlanta Dream forward Angel Reese (5) reacts after forcing a jump ball with New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart, bottom during the first half of Game 3 of the WNBA basketball semifinals, Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)
Valkyries fans celebrate Gabby Williams's (1) 2-point basket in the overtime period as the Golden State Valkyries defeated the Las Vegas Aces in Game 3 of the WNBA basketball semifinals Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, in Las Vegas. (Carlos Avila Gonzalez/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
“We’re the top two in the league,” Thornton said, “so I think it comes down to just the details and who wants it more.”
Dream star Angel Reese loves to get involved in every play and wreak havoc, whether by forcing jump balls or making steals. The Dream have four of the top seven players in steals this postseason, led by Jordan Canada and Rhyne Howard at 2.2 per game. Golden State's Gabby Williams is averaging 1.7 steals in the playoffs, while Reese has a 1.6 steals average.
“They like to get in the passing lanes,” Williams said. “It’s maybe going to be a game where good offense leads to good defense.”
Atlanta is chasing the first championship in franchise history after losing in the Finals three times in four years from 2010-13. Atlanta lost in the first round the past three seasons but enters this series on a 10-game winning streak dating to the final game before the break for the women's FIBA World Cup.
The Dream swept Washington and New York in the playoffs.
“Nobody thought that we would make it to the Finals and we’re doing that, we’re achieving that,” Howard said. “We set out goals long before this year and it’s finally coming into fruition.”
Dream forward Allisha Gray took part in a light practice on Friday and will be a game-time decision for Game 1 after missing the last two games of the semifinal series with an injured left ring finger.
“We’re just waiting to see how my finger reacts to just the pace and intensity of the practice, and then we’ll know,” Gray said.
Coach Karl Smesko said he's hopeful Gray will be able to play at some point in the series.
Gray led the team in scoring in the regular season at 19 points per game and is the best outside shooter for Atlanta with 3.1 3-pointers per game.
“It’s definitely hard because you want to be out there and compete with your teammates,” she said. “But I’ll say it just gave me time to rest my body and get healthy.”
The Valkyries are the fastest expansion team to reach the WNBA Finals by getting there in year two — one year faster than Atlanta did in 2010. They did it by eliminating the defending champion Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals.
Other expansion teams have had quick success like Golden State. The NHL's Vegas Golden Knights reached the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season in 2017-18 and the Chicago Fire won the Major League Soccer title in their first season in 1998.
But the Valkyries have a chance to set a record. The fastest expansion champion in the modern era for the WNBA, NFL, NHL, NBA and MLB was the Milwaukee Bucks, who won the NBA Finals in their third season in 1970-71.
The magnitude of the moment doesn't seem to faze Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase, who was on Becky Hammon's Las Vegas staff when the Aces won back-to-back titles in 2022 and ‘23. Nakase served as an assistant for the champion U.S. team in last month’s FIBA World Cup in Berlin.
“It’s not just me, I don’t feel alone in this at all,” she said. “I feel like this is going to be a collective effort about us putting all of our high IQs together.”
The Valkyries have plenty of championship-tested players who can offer some insight. Thornton won it all with the Liberty in 2024. Kiah Stokes earned rings with the Aces under Nakase in 2022 and '23 then another last year. Cecilia Zandalasini won a title with Minnesota in 2017.
Stokes is averaging 9.5 rebounds this postseason, ranking her third and top among players in the finals. Reese is next among players from these teams at 8.4 rebounds.
The Dream have three players who have won WNBA titles with DeWanna Bonner doing it in 2009 and ‘14 with Phoenix, Jordin Canada in 2018 and ’20 with Seattle, and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough in 2019 with Washington.
Many of Golden State's stars — including Williams — have been cast off by other teams, giving them more reason to want to show what they can do.
“A lot of people on our team have just felt undervalued or unappreciated or if you're not the main star on your team you kind of get overlooked,” Stokes said. “A lot of players have that mindset so coming to a team where it's kind of like a clean slate, Natalie, she's not going to BS you, if you don't do your job you're not going to play.”
AP Sports Writer Josh Dubow contributed to this report.
See AP’s full WNBA coverage here
Golden State Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase, middle, reacts toward players during the first half of Game 2 of the WNBA basketball semifinals against the Las Vegas Aces, Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
New York Liberty center Jonquel Jones, right, keeps the ball away from Atlanta Dream forward Angel Reese, left, during the second half of Game 3 of the WNBA basketball semifinals, Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)
Atlanta Dream forward Angel Reese (5) reacts after forcing a jump ball with New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart, bottom during the first half of Game 3 of the WNBA basketball semifinals, Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)
Valkyries fans celebrate Gabby Williams's (1) 2-point basket in the overtime period as the Golden State Valkyries defeated the Las Vegas Aces in Game 3 of the WNBA basketball semifinals Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, in Las Vegas. (Carlos Avila Gonzalez/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
A teacher threw her phone at the teenage gunman who killed four people at an Oregon elementary school Thursday, then tackled and fought with him — likely saving lives before he was shot by a man who followed him into the building, police said Friday. Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz called her actions “heroic” during a news conference and said she was not injured.
In a statement read to reporters on Friday, Kenda Freeman said her son, Kaylub Giamanco, shot the gunman in Thursday’s attack at Silver Rail Elementary School. She said he is the father of two girls at the school.
The three children killed were aged 5, 8 and 11. Another child, 7, and a teacher, 54, were injured and taken to the hospital in critical condition, authorities say.
Krantz identified the attacker as 16-year-old Griffin J. John II, a former student at the school.
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The mother of the teen identified by authorities as the Oregon school shooter says her son was a ‘good boy’ as she tearfully apologized to victims and their families.
Shauntai Nickerson, the mother of Griffin John II, told reporters outside her apartment near the school that if she could have done something to prevent the shooting, she would have.
“I miss my boy,” Nickerson said, sobbing and crying, according to The New York Times and CNN. “I’m so sorry, I wish I could have done something. I’m sorry for their loss.”
She declined to say how the 16-year-old obtained the pump-action shotgun, and didn’t comment further when The Associated Press and other outlets knocked on her apartment door later.
“Everyone wants to know why, including us,” Krantz said. “We may never get that full answer, but we want it.”
The police chief added that police are also still trying to determine how the shooter obtained the gun.
The family of Meghan Lambert, in a statement read by officials, said she grew up in Bend, graduated from Boise State University and had a passion for sports, especially volleyball, and was a local coach.
They said she was funny, opinionated, “fought for the underdog” and “those with special needs”
“Meg loved those children,” the family said.
The gunman fired as many as 15 shots from a 12-gauge shotgun and had about 44 rounds remaining when he was killed, the police chief said.
Authorities said he was a former student.
“This has been a terrifying and traumatic experience that will affect us profoundly for years to come,” said Bend-La Pine School Superintendent Steven Cook.
Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz says a teacher threw a cellphone and tackled and fought with the teenage gunman to try to stop him.
The teacher’s actions likely helped save lives, the chief said, calling her actions “heroic.”
Linda Sanchez’s 6-year-old son was getting escorted to the bathroom by a teacher when the two heard gunfire. They hid under a table in a nearby office until the gunfire stopped.
Soon after, Sanchez got a robocall notifying her about the lockdown at her son’s school, and then heard ambulances and police cars heading to the school where her son attends the first grade.
“My heart was just like pounding because he was in there,” Sanchez said.
Sanchez’s son was in a special education class at the time where some students went for individualized attention. Sanchez was told by school staff that the classroom was closest to the door where the gunman entered the school.
Five-year-old Rhoam Summer liked for all of his sea creature stuffed animals to be in his favorite color: rainbow, his aunt said.
“He never met a stuffie that he didn’t think needed to be rescued and cared for,” said Swan Sheridan, whose sister is Rhoam’s mother.
“He had a great fondness for sharks and dinosaurs and creatures that were in his words, ‘misunderstood,’” she said.
He was also a fast runner and a fearless climber, his aunt said.
Sheridan said her nephew would climb and jump off anything and was an “incredibly fast” runner, even from a young age. “He was a little ball of energy from the moment he was born,” she said.
“He was a very, very happy child,” she said.
A wounded teacher was identified by family as Becky Drury. Her mother-in-law, Yvonne Drury, said on Facebook that she underwent surgery and had injuries to her left arm and right hand.
Some 911 calls came from inside the school, and officers arrived within minutes, police spokesperson Sheila Miller said.
The attacker was shot and went down inside the school shortly after officers arrived, she said.
The school has students in kindergarten through fifth grade, with about 450 enrolled last year, according to the Oregon Department of Education.
Children were taken by bus to a nearby church serving as a reunification center for families. Parents hugged, kissed and held their childrens’ hands as they walked to their cars, with some bringing along favorite stuffed animals or other comfort items from home.
The man who shot the school shooter in Bend, Oregon has been identified by his mother.
Kenda Freeman said Kaylub Giamanco is a lifelong Bend resident and a father with two young daughters at Silver Rail Elementary School.
“He is not seeking recognition, but instead wishes to express his gratitude to the first responders, school personnel and community for the outpouring of love and support,” she said, reading from a prepared statement to reporters outside her son’s residence near the school.
Freeman said the family is asking for privacy “during this difficult time” and is not giving interviews.
President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House he had been briefed on the shooting and praised the actions of a “great hero” who he said “took care of business.”
“It’s a terrible thing, but thank goodness for a man that had a gun and knew how to use it,” Trump said, saying the tragedy otherwise likely would have been much worse.
The 16-year-old suspect, identified only as a Bend resident, was found dead inside the school minutes after the first calls for help, Police Chief Mike Krantz said. Police said he got into the school by shooting through locked doors.
The attacker used a pump-action shotgun that was purchased by his mother, according to a law enforcement official briefed on the shooting. The official spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the investigation.
Under Oregon law, a minor may possess a shotgun if provided by a parent or by someone else with the parent’s consent.
Police said they didn’t know if the shooter knew anyone at the school or if he had attended it.
—- By Haven Daley, Alanna Durkin Richer and Eric Tucker
Brooke Olsen’s daughter is a kindergartener at Silver Rail.
“I think it’s miraculous that someone was there before law enforcement even arrived to stop further tragedy from happening,” Olsen said Friday, weeping at times. “I’m feeling very grateful.”
Officials plan to hold a news conference at 2 p.m. PDT Friday at the Bend Municipal Court about the shooting at Silver Rail Elementary. They say they will provide the latest information and share resources that are available for community members.
That’s according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University. See the database.
The attacker used a pump-action shotgun that was purchased by his mother, according to a law enforcement official briefed on the shooting. The official spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the investigation.
A 16-year-old opened fire at an elementary school in Bend, Oregon, on Thursday, killing three children and a teacher. He was then shot by a person at the scene who followed him inside, authorities said.
The suspect was found dead inside the school minutes after the shooting was first reported, Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz said.
The three children killed were aged 5, 8 and 11. Another child, 7, and a teacher, 54, were injured and taken to the hospital in critical condition, he said.
The first 911 call came just before 1 p.m. from a person in a vehicle outside Silver Rail Elementary who reported being shot at by someone with a long gun, Krantz told reporters. Further 911 calls came from inside the school, and officers arrived on scene within minutes, police spokesperson Sheila Miller said.
The attacker, who police identified as a Bend resident, was shot and went down inside the school shortly after officers arrived, she said.
Police tape is placed outside Silver Rail Elementary school, where a shooting took place, on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026 in Bend, Ore. (AP Photo/Joe Kline)
People leave a family meeting area following a shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026, in Bend, Ore. (AP Photo/Joe Kline)
Police tape is placed outside Silver Rail Elementary school, where a shooting took place, on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026 in Bend, Ore. (AP Photo/Joe Kline)
