Flau'jae Johnson trade explained: Valkyries GM, pre-draft trade deadline shed light on stunning WNBA Draft deal
It turns out that the Johnson trade wasn't actually a draft-night deal. But questions remain as to why the Valkyries made the deal to begin with.
Monday’s draft-night trade of Flau'jae Johnson from the Golden State Valkyries to the Seattle Storm stunned the WNBA and left unanswered questions . Since then, some light has been shed on exactly what went down. It turns out that it wasn’t exactly a draft-night deal.
Draft room stunned by trade The trade prompted audible murmurs in the draft room when it was announced. The Valkyries appeared to get a steal when Johnson — a dynamic scorer and strong defender who was a two-time All-American at LSU — dropped to them at No. 8.
Then, as the second round commenced, commissioner Cathy Englebert took to the podium and announced that Golden State was actually trading Johnson away to Seattle for the equivalent of two second-round draft picks — one of them two years down the road. In return, the Valkyries would get Seattle’s second-round selection Monday night — TCU forward Marta Suárez — and the Storm’s second-round pick in 2028. Valkyries’ explanation created more questions The trade didn’t make much sense at the time.
And Valkyries general manager Ohemaa Nyanin repeatedly declined to shed light on the reasoning behind the deal in her post-draft news conference. “I don't have a lot of detail to share,“ Nyanin said when first asked about the trade. “One, because I'm exhausted.