‘A glimpse of what she’s capable of’: Inside Justė Jocytė’s Valkyries debut

SAN FRANCISCO — The anticipation was palpable.

While the Valkyries were handling their business on the court – building a lead as large as 34 against the lowly Connecticut Sun – the Ballhalla faithful was waiting.

Waiting for their 2025 first-round pick. Waiting for their young star. Waiting for the player that they’ve been watching dominate the competition overseas.

On Monday night, Justė Jocytė gave a small glimpse of what the Valkyries have been patiently anticipating since they drafted her 405 days ago.

Jocytė made her Valkyries debut in the Valkyries 97-70 win over the Sun. She only played five minutes, and scored five points and had two assists in garbage time minutes in the fourth quarter.

But with every play she made, the Valkyries bench and the sellout crowd of 18,064 could see the potential the young 20-year-old guard had.

“Just being able to watch her grow up, bragging about her, telling everybody how good she’s gonna be when she gets here,” Valkyries forward Gabby Williams said. “This is just like a glimpse of what she’s capable of, and I’m just excited that she’s here.”

Jocytė had her first practice with the Valkyries on Sunday, trying to still learn Golden State’s playbook.

Up until 35 minutes before game time, there was still no word on whether or not Jocytė would be active for Monday’s game. But that didn’t stop her from going through her normal game day routine.

Her morning started off with a team shoot around where she got her body loose and her shot ready. Then Jocytė took a nap, something she said is mandatory before any game she played. She went through pregame warm ups and stretches before the team officially made her active at 6:25 p.m.

Monday’s game presented a perfect opportunity for the Valkyries to get Jocytė acclimated to the Valkyries’ system. Even without fully knowing the playbook, Jocytė would ideally get to play in a low-stakes situation with Golden State expected to blow out a Connecticut team without star Brittney Griner.

Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase said Jocytė was going to be on a minutes restriction regardless but with the lead getting larger and the eyes of the crowd staring at Jocytė with every move she made on the bench, there was an overwhelming feeling that Jocytė was going to be on the floor at some point.

With the Valkyries’ lead continuing to balloon into the third quarter, Jocytė went to the front of the home side hallway. The medical staff brought out the stationary bike and told Jocytė to get her legs warm.

As the third quarter ended, instead of handing out daps and making small-talk with her teammates, Jocytė started her warmups. In the break between the third and fourth quarter, she did a set of high knees followed by some light jogging sideline to sideline. While Nakase broke down some fourth-quarter adjustments, Jocytė had her eyes on the clipboard but did a few squats to activate her legs even more.

“I was just like a little kid, I couldn’t wait,” Jocytė said.

Then it happened.

At the 4:48 mark, Nakase gave her nod. Williams pushed her toward the scorers table. And Veronica Burton and Kayla Thornton screamed words of encouragement to their rook.

As she took off her warmups, the crowd got on their feet. The Valkyries were up 29 at that point, but it felt like the fans were preparing for a fourth-quarter rally.

After checking in for Kaila Charles, Jocytė joined the Valkyries’ huddle.

Under the direction of point guard Kaitlyn Chen, Jocytė planted herself underneath the basket for Golden State’s out-of-bounds play. She ran to the top of the key to set a screen to free up Janelle Salaün, then received a cross screen from Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda.

The screen gave Jocytė a sliver of daylight and she curled for an open shot in the short corner.

Swish.

It took 37 seconds from the time she came off the bench to the time she recorded her first WNBA basket.

“I was like, ‘does she know the play?’ and the coaches were like, ‘she knows it, she knows it,’” Nakase said.

The next three minutes showed everyone all they needed to know about Jocytė.

For the few offensive possessions the Valkyries had remaining, Jocytė showed her skills. The young Lithuanian guard executed pick-and-roll after pick-and-roll with efficiency.

The Sun tried to trap the rookie to try and force a live ball turnover. But Jocytė has seen that coverage a million times before. She quickly swung the ball, relocated and got the ball back late in the shot clock when she drained an open 3-pointer.

On the next offensive possession, the Sun once again trapped her on a pick-and-roll but this time stayed home on shooters. Jocytė quickly scanned the floor and hit Ashten Prechtel for a wide open layup at the rim.

“I liked it. There was a lot of space for me to create,” Jocytė said of the pick-and-rolls the Valkyries ran. “There’s a lot of space for the things that I like to do.”

Jocytė showed some weakness on the defensive end where she picked up two fouls, but the fight was there. When fellow rookie Gianna Kneepkens hit a contested jumper with Jocytė draped all over her, the former UCLA standout gave her a tap on the back in a show of respect.

When the final buzzer went off and Rihanna’s hit song “This Is What You Came For” hit the Chase Center speakers, everyone in the arena saw Jocytė’s talent on full display, even if it was in five meaningless garbage time minutes.

No one had a bigger smile on their face than owner Joe Lacob and general manager Ohemaa Nyanin, who both gave Jocytė a high five and congratulated her on a great game as she came off the floor.

With the whole organization watching – Lacob sitting courtside, Nyanin inside the building and Nakase on the bench – Jocytė flashed the potential they’ve all been waiting for. And in five minutes, Jocytė gave all of them exactly what they’d been selling to anyone who would listen.

“I’ve been waiting for this for a long time, especially since I was drafted,” Jocytė said. “Even just getting in at the end, you got to stay ready because you just never know and I think I was ready. I don’t really feel pressure that much because it’s those kinds of games I’ve played in a bunch my whole life. But it was really fun to do it in this atmosphere.”