The WNBA officially kicked off this past Friday, and Northwestern has two former Wildcats playing on opposite ends of the country. Two years ago, Golden State Valkyries guard Veronica Burton was trying to carve her way back into the league after being waived by the Dallas Wings. Last season, Minnesota Lynx forward Nia Coffey averaged a career-low in minutes per game, playing just over 10 minutes for the Atlanta Dream.
But now, despite being at two very different stages of their respective careers,
the two former ‘Cats both find themselves in some of the most consequential chapters of their professional lives on teams poised to make a deep postseason run.
Veronica Burton: From Afterthought to Franchise Cornerstone
When Golden State drafted Burton ahead of its inaugural season, it appeared to be an opportunity of convenience for the young franchise. The former No. 7 pick had struggled through her first three seasons, leading her to get waived by the Dallas Wings, who drafted her, and go unprotected by the Connecticut Sun in the expansion draft in December 2024. Without anything to its name at that point, the Valkyries took a chance on the then-24-year-old, and what followed made them look like geniuses.
In her first season with Golden State, Burton started all 44 games and jumped from a career average of 2.7 points to 11.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and a team-high 6.0 assists. The jump in production earned her the 2025 Most Improved Player award and an All-Defensive Second Team nod. After years of struggling, the former Wildcat who earned a 2021-22 AP All-American Third Team selection had finally found her footing in the league and landed a lucrative multiyear extension following the WNBA’s historic CBA.
“She’s the backbone of this team,” Valkyries general manager Ohemaa Nyanin said in the press release announcing the extension in April. “[She’s] the connective tissue between our locker room and our coaching staff.”
Burton’s offseason only added to her case of being one of the league’s rising stars. Playing alongside Breanna Stewart and Arike Ogunbowale, Burton won Unrivaled’s second championship ever with the Mist and competed in the 2026 FIBA 3×3 Champions Cup for USA Basketball.
So far this season, Burton and the Valkyries have played twice and taken home two victories. In the season debut, Golden State bested Seattle 91-80, with Burton contributing 16 points and six assists in 31 minutes played. In their home debut, Burton added another 13 points and was the driving force behind their offense in the 95-79 win over the Phoenix Mercury with 12 assists and zero turnovers.
As far as expectations for 2026, it’s reasonable to assume that she continues this upward trajectory and earns herself an All-Star nod. Though it’s been just two games, her 14.5 points per game would be a career-high, and her 9.0 assists are tied for the second-highest mark in the league. Her biggest concern, as it has been throughout her career, is her efficiency. She had her best shooting season last year but still has yet to hit over .400 of her shots in her four completed seasons. Becoming a threat from deep would do wonders not only for her game but could be just what the Valkyries need to get even closer to contention.
Nia Coffey: Homecoming and Opportunity
For Coffey, 2026 is about taking advantage of a larger opportunity in a league that has quietly tried its best to push her out.
After spending the previous four seasons in Atlanta and averaging a career-high 8.3 points per game in 2021 with the Los Angeles Sparks, Coffey left the Dream as a free agent. Just under a month before the season tipped off, Coffey signed a two-year deal to join the Minnesota Lynx, bringing her back to Minneapolis where she grew up and played at Hopkins High School, just a 13-minute drive from Target Center.
The timing of her homecoming couldn’t be better. Franchise cornerstone and perennial MVP candidate Napheesa Collier is still recovering from surgeries on both of her ankles, leaving a gap in the Lynx frontcourt and, most importantly for Coffey, an opportunity to prove herself.
That time to prove herself came in the Lynx’s home debut where she started against her former team in Atlanta. In the game, Coffey didn’t wow fans by any means, but she delivered what was expected of her, making the team’s first field goal of the season via a three-pointer. She went scoreless the rest of the way, adding three rebounds and three blocks in the 91-90 loss. The scoring was quiet, but her defensive play was strong against a frontcourt that featured Angel Reese and Naz Hillmon.
The hope for the Lynx is to bring back the version of Coffey who averaged 25 minutes and career highs in points, rebounds, blocks and efficiency when she was with the Sparks. While her ceiling is high, the floor is much more meaningful. Her 3.9 points and 2.6 boards in just over 10 minutes in 2025 doesn’t completely reflect what she can do with a heavier load.
Her season is separated into two phases based around Collier’s projected June return. In Collier’s absence, Coffey is projected to be a solid starter, averaging around six to eight points and four to five rebounds with capabilities of taking on meaningful defensive frontcourt assignments.
With Collier back, Coffey will likely move into a rotational piece off the Lynx bench, shrinking her production. The real test of her effectiveness for the team won’t be the numbers but whether she’ll be able to get those opportunities to fill in for the Minnesota frontcourt as they make their push to the playoffs. Finding her footing defensively is a big part of that, and if her three blocks in her debut are any indicator, she could be on her way to a resurgence.
The McKeown Effect
While Burton and Coffey represent the on-court success stories of Northwestern women’s basketball, the architect behind their development remains former head coach Joe McKeown. After 18 seasons in Evanston, McKeown retired this spring, leaving behind a program transformed. While the results near the end may not have been pretty, no one can deny that he produced top-ten WNBA draft picks that always punch above their weight. The culture of resilience he built will outlast his tenure, captured in his cutting down the Big Ten nets. Carla Berube will certainly try to continue it. As Burton thrives as a franchise cornerstone and Coffey fights for her homecoming opportunity, both carry the fingerprints of a coach who saw their potential long before the league did. For McKeown, seeing his former players succeed at the highest level is the ultimate validation of a career built not on shortcuts but on trust and patience that indelibly left a mark on all the players that came through his programs. His impact on Northwestern and the WNBA is already secured.
