Natalie Nakase got many worried when the cameras caught the Valkyries head coach collapse to the ground during the final matchup against the Wings. Nakase was talking to an official when she fell and had to be taken out of the game for a brief period.
Nakase did not show up to the post-game presser, but seemed totally fine during the next game against the Aces. The 2025 WNBA Coach of the Year later admitted that she has been both physical and emotionally exhausted and that she simply needs to take better care of herself.
While the Valkyries are killing it in their second year of existence in the W, it looks like the team’s head coach has been killing herself with her strenuous work ethic. In fact, Nakase even admitted that she is strongly considering wearing a heart monitor to help her run her life better.
“It definitely was like a wake-up call for me, but I got checked through the doctors. Obviously everything looks good… Information for me is really important. I just want to be proactive, be smart. I understand this job for me I love it, sometimes I love it too much to a point I overwork. I just want to make sure I’m being smart…” Natalie Nakase said.
Okay, a couple of things hit me here! Firstly, the mental health of sports coaches is not spoken about enough, especially when compared to that of players. Secondly, I admire Natalie Nakase for understanding herself enough to take the right steps which are more in line with her and her work-schedule.
For someone else, I might have suggested taking a break from work and relaxing in a hot-tub just to get their stress levels down. But, this clearly will not work for a head coach and that too, right in the middle of the playoffs.
Instead of just sitting on her hands in terms of her health during perhaps, the most strenuous part of the tournament, Nakase is actually being proactive here. She likes numbers, which means biometrics from a gadget like a heart monitor will work quite well. She also hopes to stick to her timings, again bringing numbers into the picture. Nakase’s technique is something that Monica Geller might use if she ever is down in her mental health, but hopefully it works for her.
Natalie Nakase’s Work-Ethic Essentially Led Valkyries This Far
Natalie Nakase’s girls have been a menace on the court this season, especially in their defense. The team gave A’ja Wilson and the Aces a major scare during Game 1, leading the Valkyries to a juicy win.
In this case, Nakase will be thanking her poor mental health, since her strenuous work-ethic is essentially the reason why Golden State has done so well this time. But, this also raises a ton of red-flags for the Valkyries franchise and makes me question, how long will Nakase be able to keep this up?
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