Salaün Set WNBA Records For Total Points And Threes By A Reserve Player This Season

Golden State Valkyries forward Janelle Salaün was unanimously selected as the Kia WNBA Sixth Player of the Year, the league announced Sunday. Salaün received all 74 votes from a national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters.

Salaün appeared in 40 games for Golden State this season, all as a reserve, averaging 22.1 minutes, 12.7 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.2 assists while shooting 42.5 percent from the field. The forward set the single-season WNBA record by a reserve player for total points (509), threes (93), and threes per game (2.3). Her 12.7 points per game led all reserve players this season and ranked seventh all-time in league history. Salaün shot 39.2 percent from deep this season, which ranked fourth in the league among all players with at least five attempts per game.

Salaün’s 27 10-point games this year are the most by a reserve player in league history, and her six 20-point games are tied for the fourth most in a season by a reserve in WNBA history. On July 8 at Toronto, Salaün scored a career-high 26 points on 5-6 shooting (83.3 percent) from three-point range, and is one of six reserve players in WNBA history to score 25-plus points with five or more threes in fewer than 25 minutes.

This is Salaün’s second-ever WNBA end-of-season award after she was named to the WNBA All-Rookie Team a season ago.

The Valkyries host the Las Vegas Aces Sunday, October 4 in Game 1 of the WNBA Playoffs Semifinals at Chase Center, with Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. PT on NBC and Peacock. Radio coverage is available on 95.7 The Game, 1320 AM in Sacramento and SiriusXM channels 86 and 171, with streaming on the Audacy, SiriusXM and Chase Center apps.