All Hail Ballhalla: The Bay Turns Up for its Champions

With the score tied 57-57 and 2:19 left, Gabby Williams hit a 31-foot 3-pointer. Golden State had the lead. Atlanta was running out of time.

Williams added two free throws. Kiah Stokes grabbed two offensive rebounds before scoring a putback for a 64-57 lead. Atlanta fought back, cutting the gap to three with 10.5 seconds left.

Williams won a jump ball. Veronica Burton made two free throws with 5.1 seconds remaining. Then the clock reached zero. 

The Valkyries were WNBA champions.

After the game, postgame host Elle Duncan asked Williams something that Ballhalla has heard a variation of all postseason, “What’s your favorite word?” 

Duncan suggested “CHIP!”  short for championship, but before she could get the words out, the crowd responded with the slightly more popular answer. This time, Golden State had one to celebrate. 

Golden State beat the Atlanta Dream 68-63 at Chase Center on Oct. 31, winning its first title in its second season. Williams scored 30 points and earned Finals MVP honors.

For Jennie Padilla Genilo,of San Francisco, watching Williams break the tie felt like the moment the game turned.

“Gabby was on fire,” she said. “She was in a flow, like nobody could stop her.”

Genilo watched at Thrive City outside Chase Center. When the game ended, the people around her jumped, screamed and hugged.

Five days later, she joined fans along San Francisco’s waterfront to celebrate again.

The celebration started in Oakland on Nov. 4. The team then took a ferry to San Francisco, where fans were waiting. From the Ferry Building near Mission Street, the parade went down the Embarcadero and ended at Second and King streets near Oracle Park.

Fans wore Valkyries jerseys, championship shirts and hats. They held up phones and homemade signs as players passed on purple double-decker buses, fire trucks and decorated trolleys.

One fan wore a cap topped with a plush purple mascot. Another raised a sign asking, “WHAT’S MY FAVORITE WORD?!” The Bartmobile, a miniature Bart car that frequents parades, rolled by with a smiling face and an oversized black Valkyries cap.

Williams raised a champagne bottle from a bus. Later, she walked near fans, smiling and reaching up for high-fives in a black “FOR THE BAY” hoodie.

Kaitlyn Chen carried a champagne bottle along the Embarcadero while fans held out purple caps for autographs.

Team owner Joe Lacob clapped from a convertible. Bay Area singer Kehlani rode with Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee, while rapper P-Lo stretched his arms toward fans from another car.

Former San Francisco Giants outfielder and World Series champion Hunter Pence also joined the celebration. Nancy Pelosi rode on a cable car-style float.

Some spectators watched from open windows above the street. Below them, fans kept their phones raised as the buses passed.

Genilo moved her work meetings so she could attend. She brought her husband, who had missed the championship game because of a trip.

For her, the parade was also a chance to see people of different backgrounds come together to support women’s sports.

“These are incredible athletes, period, without even thinking about gender,” she said.

Chris Biasbas, of Hayward, brought his wife, Diana, and their 4-year-old daughter, Rylie. He had taken his older daughters to Warriors parades, but this was Diana and Rylie’s first parade.

Biasbas spent Game 7 at his mother-in-law’s house, watching basketball while handing out Halloween candy.

“I literally jumped out of my seat and high-fived everybody in the room,” he said.

Williams was his favorite player. He praised her 30-point performance but said the championship took the whole team.

Watching the team finish the series at home made the win even better.

“There’s no better feeling as a sports fan,” Biasbas said.

For Biasbas bringing his family meant giving them a memory they could share long after the buses passed.

“It’s an experience I know they’ll never forget,” he said.