A strong Golden State Warriors contingent was in attendance for the Golden State Valkyries’ clash with the Dallas Wings at Chase Center on Monday. Stephen Curry, Gary Payton II, Will Richard, and Moses Moody made their way to Ballhalla, and so did Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr.
The home crowd was informed of their presence during a second-quarter timeout, and the reaction to one of them was different from the others. While the fans cheered loudly for all the players, you could hear some boos when Dunleavy was shown on the jumbotron.
Steph Curry and Mike Dunleavy pulled up to Ballhalla! 💜🫡 pic.twitter.com/6y1k57wFXX
— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) August 18, 2026
Warriors fans have been pretty upset with how this offseason has gone. They are the only team in the NBA that hasn’t added a player via free agency or trade this summer.
The only notable addition has been Yaxel Lendeborg, whom the Warriors selected with the No. 11 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Lendeborg was named Championship game MVP at the Las Vegas Summer League, so Dunleavy at least appears to have done a good job there. He has actually shown to be a good talent evaluator.
The Warriors have selected Richard, Quinten Post, and Brandin Podziemski since Dunleavy took over as general manager in 2023. The first two were both second-rounders, while Podziemski was the No. 19 pick in 2023. The guard isn’t a very popular figure among the Warriors fanbase, but he has fared better than most players who get picked in that range.
Dunleavy deserves praise for that, but all of this has been overshadowed by what he hasn’t done. The Warriors missed out on every major target this offseason. They were linked to Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jaylen Brown, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis, but didn’t get any of them.
You do have to wonder how much of the blame goes to Dunleavy, though. There has been talk about Warriors owner Joe Lacob wanting to build the post-Stephen Curry team. Lacob reportedly wants to show what the organization can do without Curry, which would indicate he might not be very keen on making those all-in moves that could hurt them in the future.
Now, Lacob has said the Warriors made two very big trade offers in the last six months. He claimed they would move multiple draft picks if the right deal presented itself. Brown was reportedly available to the Warriors for four first-round picks, but they decided against making that move.
All of this has meant the Warriors are basically running it back with a roster that went 37-45 last season and missed the playoffs. They made it to the play-in tournament, where they lost to the Phoenix Suns in their second game to get knocked out.
Injuries did play a part in the Warriors’ struggles. Curry only played 43 games, while Jimmy Butler missed the second half of the campaign after tearing his ACL in January. If they were both healthy, the team might have made the playoffs.
The hope will now be that Curry stays injury-free in 2026-27 and Butler can contribute well after his long injury layoff. There is a very real chance, though, that these Warriors don’t even make the play-in in 2027.
While it’s all doom and gloom when it comes to the Warriors, that’s not the case with the Valkyries. They beat the Wings 78-70 to improve to 25-9 on the season. The Valkyries secured a playoff spot with that win and are currently the No. 2 seed. To say they are flying high would be an understatement.
