SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie was joined by Golden State Valkyries forward Kayla Thorton, President Jess Smith, and team mascot Violet at City Hall on Friday for a flag-raising ceremony ahead of the team’s first-round playoff series on the road this Sunday against the Minnesota Lynx.
Tip-off for Game 1 is at 10 a.m. at Target Center in Minneapolis.
When speaking to reporters, Mayor Lurie said it has been an amazing run for the team in its inaugural season and reechoed that the ripple effect on San Francisco has been one of a kind.
“Thrilling,” said Lurie. “It’s electric at Ballhalla. I was there a couple weeks ago and the energy is contagious and they have brought that energy to our city. We’re all going to be watching 10 a.m. Sunday morning. Let’s go Valks.”
(Ballhalla is the beloved nickname for the team’s home court at Chase Center.)
“Not only did they hit the playoffs, they sold out every single game!” said Lurie. “They brought just a renewed sense of energy to our city at a time when we needed it. And so it’s not just about a basketball team, it’s about a community coming together and we saw it every night.”
Lurie said San Francisco is taking the national spotlight as a serious sports event contender through the next year.
“The Laver Cup. The Valks. The Giants are making a run. The Niners are off to a—well, 1-0; we got some injuries there. We got Super Bowl 60. We got World Cup. We are ‘the sports mecca of the country.’ It is a great time to be in San Francisco,” said Lurie.
When asked to give a score prediction for Sunday’s highly anticipated matchup against the Lynx, Lurie said, “It’s gonna be a tough one. Minnesota, number 1 seed. 81-80, we win at the buzzer.”
Tip-off for Game 2 is 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 17, when the series heads to the SAP Center in San Jose.
“We’re just excited to bring Ballhalla everywhere, and we know that our fans are gonna show up and it’s gonna be pretty epic,” said Valkyries team president Jess Smith.
The NBA announced Thursday that February’s All-Star Game weekend in San Francisco generated $429.3 million in total event value for the entire San Francisco Bay Area economy.
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