Gabby Williams’ legendary WNBA Finals Game 7 performance did something even LeBron never did
Gabby Williams finished a landmark season with a dominant WNBA Finals Game 7, an iconic performance that's the stuff of legends
Mark
In a season where so many other big names dominated WNBA headlines, Gabby Williams made sure her name shone brightest on the marquee.
She led her Golden State Valkyries to their first WNBA championship in franchise history on Saturday night with a 68-63 victory in Game 7 of the WNBA Finals.
What Williams accomplished in the second half of that game was truly astonishing.
Williams led all scorers with 30 points in the game.
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Much like her career as a whole, Williams got better as the game went on.
Her 28 points in the second half was a legendary performance.
Obviously, as this was the first Game 7 in WNBA history, she set a league record — and it’s a staggering record that may stand for years. Yet it’s interesting to note that this is likely more points than even a player has scored in the NBA Finals Game 7.
NBA currently available accounts of some of the earlier NBA Finals don’t indicate how many points a player scored in each half. Without that information, it’s impossible to say whether any NBA player has matched Williams’ second-half scoring.
Jerry West scored 42 points for the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 7 of the 1969 NBA Finals, but again, points by half weren’t recorded back then.
The most second-half points on record for an NBA Finals Game 7 is 22 by LeBron James for the Miami Heat, against the San Antonio Spurs in 2013.
Dream season for WNBA Finals MVP Gabby Williams
It was truly a dream season for Gabby Williams — complete with a Pride Night win — who had spent the first part of her career with the Chicago Sky and the Seattle Storm. Her first season in the Bay Area was as perfect as possible, and it’s a fit that should continue to benefit both her and the Valkyries for years to come.
“I just walked into a group full of love,” Williams said. “And that just changed the entire trajectory of my career.
“All it took was good people. All we heard last year was, we don’t have no stars. We don’t have no talent. Yeah right!
“We got good people. We got good people. We got winners. We got people who are ready to put their bodies on the floor to win a game.”
The Valkyries are in fact the first team to win the WNBA Championship with no players on that season’s All-WNBA team.
Out of the last 21 WNBA Finals MVPs, Williams becomes the 11th openly out LGBTQ player to win the award.
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