Tiffany

Hayes

Hayes has not appeared in a game since August 22 and will also sit out a game that could be the Valkyries’ last of the season. Kaila Charles has served as the replacement in the starting lineup and will continue to do so. Hayes’ absence also puts more pressure offensively on Veronica Burton, who was named the WNBA’s Most Improved Player on Monday. Between the regular season and Sunday’s Game 1, the Valkyries have gone 0-5 against the Lynx this season.

Hayes’ playoff debut with the Valyries will have to wait a bit longer after being ruled out for the franchise’s first-ever playoff game. A knee injury kept the reigning Sixth Woman of the Year sidelined for the Valkyries’ final eight regular-season games, but she did practice with the team on Saturday and remains “day-to-day.” Without Hayes, the Valkyries will have a tall task of heading into Minnesota to take on the first-seeded Lynx on their home court. Golden State had a 0-4 record against Minnesota during the regular season.

The Valkyries will continue to play without Hayes and Zandalasini, as the former will miss her eighth straight game while the latter will miss her sixth consecutive. Golden State has played well in the two players’ absences, having won five straight games and clinched a playoff spot in its most recent victory. The Valkyries will look to make it six wins in a row on Saturday as they try to better position themselves in the standings.

Hayes suffered a knee injury during Golden State’s August 22 game against the Mercury and has not played since. According to the team, the veteran guard will be re-evaluated in one week. Given the timeline, Hayes may be done for the remainder of the regular season, with her status for the playoffs undecided should the Valkyries qualify. Kaila Charles has been Hayes’ replacement in the starting lineup and should continue to hold onto that role.

Hayes will miss a third consecutive game on Sunday due to a knee injury. The Valkyries guard was not with the team at all for Saturday’s win over the Mystics due to illness, but the knee was why she initially appeared on the injury report for that game. Kaila Charles has performed well as Hayes’ replacement in the starting lineup.

Hayes, who was initially questionable for Saturday’s game due to a knee injury, is not with the Valkyries due to an illness. Saturday’s game will be the second straight she’s missed, likely meaning Kaila Charles will remain in the starting lineup. Charles played 34 minutes in Golden State’s win over Dallas on August 24 and will likely take on a similar workload.

Leite left the Valkyries’ Friday game against the Mercury at the beginning of the fourth quarter. While Leite was previously ruled questionable, she has been downgraded to out. Without Leite and Tiffany Hayes available for Sunday afternoon’s game against the Wings, the Valkyries will have to rely upon Kaila Charles, who gets the start, in addition to Kate Martin and Kaitlyn Chen.

After previously being questionable for the Valkyries game on Sunday against the Wings, Hayes has been since downgraded to out. She left her team’s game on Friday night with 7:17 left in the third quarter when she collided into Mercury wing Kahleah Copper. Kaila Charles will take Hayes’ place in the starting lineup on Sunday, getting her first start since joining the Valkyries. Head coach Natalie Nakase will be calling on more minutes from other guards Kate Martin and Kaitlyn Chen while Golden State will also be without Carla Leite in addition to Hayes.

Burton was only the Valkyries second player in double digit scoring in addition to Janelle Salaün on Friday night. Burton scored at all three levels, mainly by shooting an open three-pointer, getting downhill and hitting shots in the mid-range over Mercury defender Sami Whitcomb. In addition to her 11 points, Burton led her team in assists and found four different teammates for scores on Friday night. She assisted on 9 of Salaün’s total points in addition to finding Kaila Charles for two scores and Tiffany Hayes and Iliana Rupert for one score each.

With 7:17 left in the third quarter, Hayes collided into Phoenix Mercury wing Kahleah Copper while Hayes was defending her and trying to intercept a pass intended for Copper. Hayes was down on the floor for a while before going back to the locker room. On the play she injured her left knee and she will not return to the game. Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase will have to defer more to her bench guards in Kaila Charles, Kate Martin and rookie Kaitlyn Chen to play during the rest of Friday night’s game.