How Valkyries star Gabby Williams has enjoyed offensive breakout

SAN FRANCISCO – With every stop, strip and steal, Gabby Williams has become the rarest of basketball archetypes. In a sport obsessed with scoring from the perimeter, her highlight reel, Williams’ claim to notoriety, lies almost entirely on her prowess as an elite defender, an impassable obstacle.

And make no mistake, Williams’ resume as a stopper remains peerless for the red-hot Valkyries.

The Valkyries’ huge offseason addition has been arguably the league’s top defender and is a lock to make her third All-Defense team as the leader of the WNBA’s No. 1 unit in points allowed and defensive rating.

The 5-foot-11 forward’s 1.7 steals per game severely understate her impact in the passing lanes, but barrels of ink have been spilled about her role as the fulcrum of coach Natalie Nakase’s offense-stifling machine.

Less has been made of her remarkable improvement as a shooter. After years of being a defensive specialist who dabbled in being a playmaker, rebounder and opportunistic scorer, the 29-year-old has emerged as a bonafide bucket-getter for a team with title aspirations in just its second season of existence.

She is averaging career highs in points (14.9) and 3-point percentage (34.7%). When queried about the reasons for her breakout, Williams kept it simple.

“Just confidence getting the ball out, and having the ball in my hands more, and our spacing has also helped a lot,” Williams said on Wednesday morning.

Her usage is 29.3% in the 25 minutes per game she plays – that somewhat limited playing time suppresses her raw stats – the kind of responsibility reserved for only the superstars. In most cases, if a jack-of-all-trades standout was asked to take on a heavier scoring load, efficiency would drop as defenses begin to tilt her way.

Williams has done the opposite.

She has taken a career-high 31% of her shots between 3-10 feet, and yet has also connected on 50.4% of those attempts, compared to 37.7% in her previous four seasons in Seattle. Ditto for the short midrange of 10-16 feet: 39.2% accuracy rate this season compared to 35.4% in the Pacific Northwest.

After spending last season deferring to stars such as Nneka Ogwumike, Skylar Diggins and Jewell Loyd, it is now Williams who has the ball in her hands facing a set defense with the clock running down.

It is a role Nakase is confident Williams is built for.

“She’s developing into our closer and she wants to close,” Nakase said after Williams scored 13 fourth quarter points against Atlanta in June. “I’m very proud. I’m proud of Gabby because she’s building a different level of confidence that I’ve never seen before.”

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Red Sox-Diamondbacks lineups, preview for August 19, 2026

The pitching matchup for the finale is an intriguing one. Lefthander Payton Tolle will get the start for the Sox. In his last start at Fenway, he struck out a career-high 14 against the Athletics on Aug. 7.

Arizona will counter with Brandon Pfaadt. The righthander is 7-0 with a 1.15 ERA in his last nine starts.

Here is a preview.

DIAMONDBACKS (66-61): Vargas 2B, Carroll RF, Moreno C, Perdomo SS, Arenado DH, Tawa 1B, Lawlar CF, Fernandez 3B, Waldschmidt LF.

Pitching: RHP Brandon Pfaadt (7-1, 3.11 ERA)

RED SOX (68-58): Sogard 2B, Rafaela CF, Abreu RF, Contreras 1B, Durbin 3B, Gasper DH, Monasterio SS, Duran LF, Wong C.

Pitching: LHP Payton Tolle (8-6, 2.97 ERA)

Time: 4:10 p.m.

TV, radio: NESN, WEEI-FM 93.7

Diamondbacks vs. Tolle: Jorge Barrosa 0-1, Corbin Carroll 1-2, Jordan Lawlar 1-2, Gabriel Moreno 0-1, Geraldo Perdomo 2-2, Ildemaro Vargas 1-2

Red Sox vs. Pfaadt: Willson Contreras 2-8, Jarren Duran 1-3, Andruw Monasterio 0-3, Ceddanne Rafaela 0-2, Adley Rutschman 2-5, Anthony Seigler 1-2, Eli White 1-4, Connor Wong 1-2

Stat of the day: The Red Sox have at least 10 hits in each of their last two games. They are 35-7 this season when doing so.

Notes: Tolle faced the Diamondbacks last season when he was tagged for five runs over three innings in his second career start. … Rutschman’s home run Tuesday snapped a 27-game, 101-at-bat homerless stretch. …The Red Sox are looking for their first series sweep since they took three straight against the the White Sox from Aug. 4-6. … They have scored in 11 of their 16 innings in which they came to bat so far in the series. … Pfaadt is 1-1 with a 5.59 ERA in two career starts against the Red Sox. … After today’s game, the Sox will be off on Thursday before opening a three game series with the Giants on Friday.

Follow Andrew Mahoney @GlobeMahoney.

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Madelyn Cline Does Two-tone Sensuality in Siedrés

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Madelyn Cline put her own spin on contemporary sultry style in Siedrés for Saturday’s “Outer Banks” Season Five “Pogues For Life: A Fan Farewell” event at The Ford in Los Angeles.

Madelyn Cline wears Siedes at "Outer Banks" Season 5 presents "Pogues For Life: A Fan Farewell" event on Aug. 15, 2026 in Los Angeles.

The actress wore the Dalia dress from the women’s ready-to-wear luxury brand. The two-tone draped chiffon gown was an exercise in summery style, echoing the Mediterranean inspiration behind Siedrés, which was founded in 2020.

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The dress’ construction featured a sleeveless silhouette with a gathered neckline and loose-fitting bodice in a peachy tone, with a self-tie bow on one shoulder of the dress. The soft and airy bodice was contrasted by the sheer, flowing muted green skirt with a speckled motif throughout.

The draped skirt featured a layered floral chiffon and a side-knot detail with gathered fabric at the hips, adding volume. An extended bow cascaded down the side from the hips as well, mimicking the bow at the one shoulder of the bodice.

As for finishing touches, Cline opted to go minimalist and kept the focus on the summer-inspired frock. The actress wore a delicate bracelet and capped off her look with a set of sandal mules by Paris Texas.

Season Five of Netflix’s “Outer Banks” marks the finale for the series, which premiered in April 2020. Cline told WWD in June 2026 how hectic the schedule was for filming.

“When it came to my ‘Outer Banks’ schedule, sleep was the name of the game,” Cline said. “We were shooting during the summer, so it was hot, and the heat takes it out of you. So, at the end of the day I’d come home, take an everything shower, do my fake tan, go to bed and hydrate.”

“Outer Banks” follows John B, played by Chase Stokes, and his friends as they search for a rumored buried treasure that could be linked to his father’s disappearance. Season Five of the series arrives Thursday on Netflix.

WWD Honors 2023 Red Carpet Arrivals: Jennifer Lawrence, Madelyn Cline, Kathryn Newton and More

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 24: (L-R) Jennifer Lawrence, James Fallon, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Amanda Smith attend the 2023 WWD Honors at Casa Cipriani on October 24, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/WWD via Getty Images) — NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 24: (L-R) Jennifer Lawrence, James Fallon, Maria Grazia Chiuri and Amanda Smith attend the 2023 WWD Honors at Casa Cipriani on October 24, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/WWD via Getty Images)

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 24: Jennifer Lawrence attends the 2023 WWD Honors at Casa Cipriani on October 24, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/WWD via Getty Images) — NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 24: Jennifer Lawrence attends the 2023 WWD Honors at Casa Cipriani on October 24, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/WWD via Getty Images)

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 24: Britt Olsen attends the 2023 WWD Honors at Casa Cipriani on October 24, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/WWD via Getty Images) — NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 24: Britt Olsen attends the 2023 WWD Honors at Casa Cipriani on October 24, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/WWD via Getty Images)

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Launch Gallery: WWD Honors 2023 Red Carpet Arrivals: Jennifer Lawrence, Madelyn Cline, Kathryn Newton and More

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Cal Raleigh already handed Mariners manager Dan Wilson his pink slip

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Rumor has it that barring a miraculous turnaround in the AL West or AL Wild Card race — both of which are still winnable for the Mariners as of this writing — Seattle will fire manager Dan Wilson, opting to go in a different direction. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Wilson’s Mariners made the ALCS just a season ago and came within one game of the World Series. Seattle entered the 2026 regular season as one of the AL favorites. Instead, they’ve been a tremendous disappointment.

There’s plenty of blame to go around, and Wilson is by no means exonerated. Whether it be poor lineup construction or bullpen decisions, he has been far from perfect. But Wilson’s eventual exodus can be pinned primarily on Cal Raleigh, whose regression from 60-home run catcher to lineup cancer has been an unpredictable side-effect of this season. No Wilson lineup tinkering can make up for that.

Cal Raleigh won’t go to bat for Mariners manager Dan Wilson

Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) Mandatory Credit: Richard Dizon-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Raleigh’s precipitous drop has cost the Mariners in the standings. Were he even his usual self — I’m talking prior to the 2025 season — Seattle would be in a much better spot in the AL Wild Card race. Instead, they’re five games back of the Astros in the AL West and three games back of the Rangers for the final Wild Card spot. Here’s how Raleigh plays into that.

Season	bWAR
2022	3.9
2023	3.4
2024	4.6
2025	7.2
2026	-0.5

Even if Mariners fans consider Raleigh’s 2025 season to be an anomaly, he’s a full four wins off his pace from the three years prior. If Raleigh were playing to his usual standard, the Mariners would be atop the Wild Card race and pushing the Astros for first in the AL West. The difference is striking.

It also doesn’t help that Raleigh’s deflected blame for his struggles. Whether it be a spring training blowup with Mariners teammate Randy Arozarena, fatigue from playing in the World Baseball Classic, or even the lineup construction of Wilson himself…Raleigh hasn’t ruled anything out.

“Ultimately, the players decide the outcome of these games. Obviously, Dan has the say on who comes in and writes the lineup, and we understand that,” Raleigh told the media.

How the Mariners can save Dan Wilson’s job

Seattle Mariners manager Dan Wilson (6) Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Mariners are lucky in that the American League is historically thin this season. The third AL Wild Card team could very well finish the year with a record under .500. Those against the expanded playoff format, wherever you may be, have waited for this day.

Seattle traded Luis Castillo to the Chicago White Sox at the trade deadline, but still possess one of the best starting rotations in baseball. Bryan Woo is pitching on Sunday against the Astros, and he is an AL Cy Young contender.

Unfortunately for the Mariners, they ranked 29th in all of baseball in runs scored per game at just 3.92. If Seattle is going to make the playoffs and do literally anything once they get there, that statistic must improve, and fast. In 2025, the Mariners scored a pedestrian 4.68 runs per game, and a lot of that had to do with Raleigh, who needs to wake up from his slumber while there’s still time.