On October 4, Golden State Valkyries forward Janelle Salaun was unanimously crowned the 2026 Kia WNBA Sixth Player of the Year, receiving all 74 votes from a national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. To achieve this honor, a player must play more games as a reserve than as a starter, and Salaun did that brilliantly, leading all reserves in scoring with a career-high 12.7 points per game. Having such form, you would think the French star would be one of, if not the key, rotation players for head coach Natalie Nakase in the postseason. However, that was far from the case. The French star was already on the sidelines for the Valkyries’ final three WNBA Finals games against the Atlanta Dream after seeing limited minutes earlier in the series. However, her absence will now extend beyond the hardwood. Despite Golden State making history by capturing its first WNBA championship in just its second season, Salaun will miss out on the biggest celebration yet.

“Hey Valks fans! Sadly, I won’t be able to join the parade today due to a family commitment. I’ll be celebrating with you in spirit, and I really wish I could be there. I know it’s going to be a blast! Enjoy every second of it! – Ja,” Salaun wrote on her Instagram story.

While winning the WNBA championship is obviously the endgame for all players, individually, Salaun’s season took a hit when the playoffs arrived. Despite a strong regular season, it was clear Nakase didn’t care about individual milestones or that the Valkyries finished as the second seed. As she said in her inaugural statement as Valkyries head coach two years ago, she wanted to win a championship.

And if someone didn’t perform when the lights were brightest, Nakase was bold enough to drop them from the rotation. Unfortunately, Salaun fell victim to that approach in the first round against the Dallas Wings. In Game 1, the French forward scored only three points on 16.7% shooting in 21 minutes, according to StatMuse. While Game 2 was better for Salaun, with 11 points and four rebounds, this would be the last time she played more minutes than her regular-season average of 22.3 (30 minutes in Game 2). In Game 3, Salaun played only eight minutes, scoring three points.

From here, the Sixth Player of the Year averaged single-digit minutes. Salaun played only 20 minutes combined in three games against the Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals, scoring seven points. Thanks to Gabby Williams and company, Valkyries swept the Aces and booked their tickets to the WNBA Finals. Salaun’s first Finals experience was also forgettable. She struggled to find her footing, playing just nine minutes combined in the first two games without registering a single point.

But Game 3 offered a glimpse of what she could bring to the table, as she recorded 13 points and two rebounds in just 12 minutes. While the Valkyries eventually lost, Nakase had only good things to say about the French forward.

“It was really good… Her spacing, just being ready to catch and shoot. That’s Ja [Janelle Salaün], the killer. It’s the confidence. It’s the floor spacer that’s really good.” Nakase said postgame.

“But also, I liked her fight, too, on the defensive end. I thought she was in good spots. I thought she was boarding. I thought she was being really physical. She was a nice little spark for us for sure. And now I just want to make sure I’m putting any of those right units together. [We need to be] super connected.”

Words like killer, confidence, and competitive are what Nakase defined Salaun with throughout the season. Unfortunately, Salaun’s momentum barely lasted. She made her final appearance of the 2026 WNBA season in Game 4, logging just three minutes and adding two points before being sidelined for the remainder of the series.

Salaun went from a key part of head coach Nakase’s rotation to barely seeing the floor when the stakes were at their highest. The Valkyries’ defense was a huge talking point throughout the playoffs. As Nakase increasingly prioritized that, Salaun’s shooting prowess alone was no longer enough to secure her a berth in the rotation. Even as the Valkyries struggled to find their offensive rhythm, the French forward’s defensive limitations ultimately outweighed what she could offer on the other end. The dramatic shift in her role raises a major question heading into the offseason: what does the future hold for her in the Bay Area? And more importantly, does she even have one? Well, for Valkyries general manager Ohemaa Nyanin, the 25-year-old’s future “still needs to be determined.”

“I don’t have an answer, but I don’t have an answer because we are thinking about one thing or the other. It’s very much so, I want everybody to breathe, relax, enjoy any and all of it and we’ll assess when the time comes.” Nyanin said, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

For now, the general manager’s attention is not on Salaun individually. She wants to celebrate the historic achievement the Valkyries have managed in only their second season.

With Salaun’s future hanging in the air, a trade sounds like the next best move. However, even that would be tricky, as Salaun still has a year left on her contract and $520,000 remaining. Moreover, her winning Sixth Player of the Year increases her value regardless of how she performed or how Nakase utilized her in the Finals. As the reigning champions, the Valkyries will have a bigger say. A long offseason awaits Janelle Salaun.