Want more ways to catch up on the latest in Bay Area sports? Sign up for the Section 415 email newsletter here and subscribe to the Section 415 podcast wherever you listen.
Natalie Nakase was so loyal to the Las Vegas Aces that she wasn’t even sure she should be interviewing with the Golden State Valkyries when the expansion franchise went searching for its first head coach.
Aces coach Becky Hammon needed to convince her assistant that she had earned the right to lead her own team.
“[Hammon] said she understands where my loyalty stands and how much I love being with the Las Vegas Aces, but no, she was pushing me,” Nakase said on Section 415.
It didn’t hurt that Nakase had already developed a friendship with Valkyries GM Ohemaa Nyanin.
Section 415: How Natalie Nakase turned the Valkyries into an immediate force
Section 415: Tim Kawakami analyzes the 49ers, Giants, and Warriors
Section 415: Min Woo Lee, Steph Curry, and the story of The Bay Golf Club
“When when we sat down, she made me laugh a ton,” Nakase said. “And so I knew too to trust my gut.
“I like to work with good people. I think I’m at a stage in my life where I deserve to work with good people.”
From the earliest conversations between Nyanin and Nakase, a powerful partnership was born. The duo helped build the Valkyries from the ground up before guiding the expansion team through a record-setting inaugural season.
On Section 415, Nakase shares details about her interview process, the life-changing calls she made during the WNBA expansion draft, and how she navigated the ups and downs of an unforgettable debut season that earned her Coach of the Year honors.