Valkyries GM: Agreed to Storm trade before Flau’jae Johnson selection

After the draft-night trade that sent the former LSU All-American and 2023 national champion flaujay johnson till seattle storm less than an hour later Golden State Valkyries He was selected with the No. 8 pick, with Golden State general manager Ohema Nyanin telling ESPN that the teams had agreed to the trade before the draft picks were submitted.

“Seattle and I had an agreement to trade picks before any athletes were selected,” Nyanin told ESPN in a phone call after Monday night’s draft. “I want to be absolutely clear about the draft: It has nothing to do with Flauza or any specific athlete selection.”

Storm general manager Talisa Rhea stated that the team was looking for an opportunity to move up in the draft and acquire another impact player.

“We didn’t think so [Johnson] Will be available at that time,” Rea said in the post-draft news conference. “We’ve been having conversations, and so, as we got closer to that selection, once it became a reality, we were really excited.”

In exchange for Johnson, the Valkyries acquired the draft rights. marta suarezWhich Seattle selected with the first pick of the second round (No. 16) and a 2028 second-round selection.

The trade, which was announced just before the No. 17 pick, stunned many in the room, with loud gasps as Commissioner Cathy Engelbert broke the news.

In his post-draft news conference, Ninainen declined to elaborate on his decision to be traded and said, “I’m going to take a little time to be able to respond eloquently. I don’t have a lot of details to share. One, because I’m tired. Two, because I want to be very thoughtful when I’m talking about other human beings and their basketball abilities and how they will or won’t show up for our squad.”

She also declined to comment on whether the salary cap implications would have affected business, saying, “I don’t talk or comment on the salary cap, so I wouldn’t be able to answer that question one way or the other.”

Suarez, a 6 feet 3 inches tall post player, played tennessee, period and most recently TCUWhere he averaged 17.1 points and 7.4 rebounds while shooting 37% from the 3-point arc this season.

“Marta is fierce. She’s fearless,” Nyanin said at her news conference. “We’ve watched her for a very long time. … Her basketball IQ is very high. Her high character is off the charts. … We thought she would be a great fit.”

Meanwhile, the Storm selected Awa Pham Thiam with the No. 3 pick. They also have other young stars like Dominic MalongaThe No. 2 pick from the 2025 draft, and Ezi MagbegorJoe is 26 years old and entering his seventh season.

“We’re really excited about how [Johnson] This year it aligns and helps us, but it’s going to be a really important part for us as we build for the future,” Rhea said.

Johnson finished his college career with the second-most wins and sixth-most points in LSU history. He averaged 14.2 points, 2.5 assists and 1.3 steals during his senior season, which ended with a Sweet 16 upset for the Tigers.