New Valkyries forward Gabby Williams excited to be with Bay Area WNBA team
The Bay Area was made for the WNBA.
At least Gabby Williams always thought so. The Golden State Valkyries' biggest acquisition knew that this area was prime for a franchise as soon as the league discussed expansion.
"It has to go to the Bay" Williams said. "It's just the perfect place."
Williams knows all about the Bay Area, despite being a Nevada resident. She would travel from Reno to the Bay every spring and summer to play AAU basketball.
"I loved it," she said. "My mom would always say that I would always come back in a bad mood because I had to leave my friends. I was living with my best friend and her family and playing basketball every day, it was cool."
Williams started played for the Bay Area Bulldogs and the Mission Rec Rebels. Coaches Oscar Jimenez and Alfonso Joo were instrumental in teaching her the fundamentals of the game.
"She always had to have her game on," Joo told KPIX during one of his coaching sessions. "Whether it was on the home court, whether it was on the road, whether it was on the plastic courts, wood courts, she played here in South City."
Joo watched Williams blossom. He once saw her dad pull her aside and tell her, "You're the best ******* player on this court." At that point, he knew he had something special on his hands.
Williams credits Joo with finding a love for the game. The Bulldogs would host tournaments where Williams would not only play, but run score, clean floors, run concessions.
"When you play for Coach Joo, you're running the tournament too."
Williams was drawn in by Joo's energy and positivity. He might not be the biggest man in the gym, but he's larger than life in the Bay Area basketball community.
"Everybody knows Phons if you've touched a basketball in the Bay Area," she said.
When Williams was offered a scholarship from the University of Connecticut to play for legendary coach Geno Auriemma, Joo was upset that she was moving so far away. But he felt like there was always a chance she would come back to the West Coast.
She was drafted by the Chicago Sky and then spent three seasons with the Seattle Storm. When Joo learned that San Francisco was getting an expansion team, he thought it was too good to be true.
"You know when you hope something, but in the back of your mind you go, I'm not going to say nothing because I don't want to jinx it?" Joo said.
This offseason, Williams was a premier free agent. Joo made her promise that if she was coming to the Valkyries, he needed to be one of the first to know.
Williams was sought after, and it took a call from Joe Lacob to convince her that Golden State was the team for her.
About 20 minutes before the decision became official and plastered on phones and televisions, Joo received a FaceTime from Williams. He was in the middle of coaching a game. Parents of players were bombarding Joo with questions over where Williams would sign, but he truly didn't know until he saw the FaceTime call.
"When I got the FaceTime, I had that feeling, and I go to the lobby. I hit answer and there she is smiling," Joo said.
He said his yells and excitement gave the surprise away. "Gabby's coming to the Valkyries," a few parents exclaimed. He tried to downplay it, but the reports started to trickle out and he could finally confirm what he'd been hoping for since she left for college.
Joo attended the season opener and said he will go to as many games as he can, as long as it doesn't interrupt his coaching schedule. He hopes that Williams will come to one of his clinics for youth players.