SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST:
If you're the kind of sports fan who waits for the playoffs to get really engaged, this next month is for you. And in women's basketball, one team to watch is the Golden State Valkyries. This new WNBA team was launched in the Bay Area just last year, and it's already valued at $1 billion. One of its star players is Gabby Williams. She's 30 years old. And on Sunday, she helped lead her teammates to a blowout victory over the Dallas Wings in their first game of the playoffs. Here's what Williams said later.
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GABBY WILLIAMS: I heard Too Short. I heard Too Short was in the building. And I couldn't lose in front of Too Short. So I want to do one thing. What's my favorite word?
PFEIFFER: Too Short, the legendary Bay Area rapper, performed at the Valkyries game that day. We invited Gabby Williams to the show to talk basketball, and she's with us now. Hi, Gabby.
WILLIAMS: Hi.
PFEIFFER: I was watching some clips of that game Sunday. And your team, from the outside looking in, seems to have a lot of fun together. And I'm wondering how you find the balance of both keeping some joy as a team amid this very competitive environment that could get very tense and serious at times.
WILLIAMS: Never lose the joy, even when it is competitive and intense. Yeah, I don't think there's, like, a reason to find a balance. Like, we want everybody bought in. We want everybody wanting to be here. So we find joy in everything.
PFEIFFER: And has part of that come down sort of top-down from the coach, and part of it is just making sure that people celebrate teammates' individual victories, and it's kind of a collective effort that makes it a team joy?
WILLIAMS: Of course, it starts with our coach, but I think it's even above that. I think it starts with, like, our president, our GM, our owner. They've really emphasized just having good people and instilling a culture here that's about winning. And, obviously, to win, you have to have, you know, people who celebrate each other.
PFEIFFER: This season, you have been - you have excelled both defensively and offensively. You were a finalist for defensive player of the year. And you also led your team in scoring. And that's a rare balance. How did you pull that off?
WILLIAMS: I don't see a difference between the two, honestly. I mean, I've been hearing it my whole career. Like, she's a defensive player, she's a this player. And for me, it's just about winning. Like, just doing whatever it takes to win. I don't really see, like, a defense. This isn't soccer. Like, you got to do everything in basketball.
PFEIFFER: Yeah. You're up and down the court the whole time.
WILLIAMS: Right.
PFEIFFER: The WNBA's recent collective bargaining agreement increased salaries, plus other benefits. There are now players making seven figures. How has that kind of money, that increased compensation changed your life, and as far as you know, the life of other players?
WILLIAMS: Yeah, obviously, I've been vocal about, like, making the decision to go overseas because it was better financially. But now I feel like this, with this new CBA, it's just elevated the game of women's basketball in general, not just in the States but all over the world. It's just continuing to push boundaries and set standards for just women's sports in general. So it's just helping women's sports to grow.
PFEIFFER: I assume it has to feel very satisfying to have been with the league for so long, watch it grow, get more recognition, watch players be compensated better. How's it felt to watch that evolution as a player for years?
WILLIAMS: Yeah, something I've definitely never taken for granted, still don't take for granted. Even just the way we travel, our accommodations, our facilities that we have now, especially from, like, where I came from, I feel like I started way, way at the bottom. And so I appreciate every day and want to just continue to get better for future generations.
PFEIFFER: One question about your upcoming Game 2 against the Wings, who you already defeated resoundingly last weekend. What is in your head as you head into that game?
WILLIAMS: We need to come out just as serious. They're going to be fighting for their lives, because for them, it's win or go home. So I think we have to be extra focused and not think that the game is already won. Like, it's actually going to be harder this time.
PFEIFFER: That is Gabby Williams with the Golden State Valkyries. Gabby, thank you very much for your time amid the playoffs.
WILLIAMS: Thanks for having me. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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