Gabby Williams is a closet mathematician, it turns out.
As Game 1 of the WNBA Finals lurched down the stretch Saturday, with the outcome twisting in doubt, Williams found comfort in numbers. She peered at the scoreboard, as she often does in high-pressure situations, and calculated what her Golden State Valkyries needed to push across the finish line.
Williams referenced this habit a day earlier, so a reporter asked her about it after she ushered the Valkyries to a 68-64 victory over Atlanta at Chase Center. Where was her mind in those final, tense moments?
"Same thing, doing math," Williams said.
Next to her, teammate Kiah Stokes couldn't help but smirk.
"Nerd," she said softly, smiling.
That's apparently the under-the-radar secret of the Bay Area's newest basketball superstar. Williams scored 26 points in her first Finals game, a mix of drives to the basket, pull-up jumpers, majestic long-distance shots and a parade of fourth-quarter free throws.
The Valkyries needed all of it to subdue the Dream in a rugged, inartistic series opener. For all of Golden State's extraordinary depth, the Valkyries lean on one simple, entirely logical play in the closing minutes of a tight game:
They give the ball to Williams and get the hell out of the way.
She copes with this burden by losing herself in numbers. Williams fixes her gaze on the scoreboard and does some quick math, amid the raucous din around her.
"I'm counting," she said. "I'm counting possessions, counting points. OK, what do we need now? What's the most timely time to go? I think it's the best way to kind of take the pressure off things, to break them down possession by possession."
That worked out nicely for the Valkyries on Saturday. Williams was plus-16 in her 33 minutes on the court, meaning Atlanta outscored Golden State by 12 in the seven minutes she spent on the bench.
Maybe the "non-Gabby minutes" soon will become a catchphrase for the Valkyries, the way "non-Steph minutes" are for Stephen Curry and the Warriors.
Williams, much like Curry, offers an appealing blend of off-court humility and on-court bravado. She practically cringes when asked to talk about herself. She's eager to deflect credit, at one point raving about the screens Stokes sets to spring her free.
But these WNBA playoffs have made it clear Williams belongs in a lofty realm. The Valkyries are deep, no question, but Williams is the one leading them on an exhilarating postseason run - now three wins from an improbable championship in the franchise's second year of existence.
"Gabby is one of the best players in the world, hands down," head coach Natalie Nakase said. "She's showing that when we need some buckets, she's willing to get to her spots and take over. I think she's showing it at the perfect time right now, and that's what we need."
The Valkyries spent much of Saturday's game trying to solve Atlanta's stout defense. Golden State looked uptight in the first quarter, missing shots by wide margins in falling behind 22-14. Williams was scoreless in the quarter.
Then she hopped to life, first driving to the basket and soon rediscovering her touch from the perimeter. Williams scored 16 points in the second quarter, the third most in a quarter in WNBA Finals history. Her 26 for the game tied for fourth most in a Finals debut.
Most important, she came up big when it mattered most. Williams scored eight of her team's final nine points, including going 6-for-6 from the foul line in the game's final two-plus minutes.
Time after time, the Valkyries spread the floor to give Williams space to operate. Time after time, it paid off. She averaged a career-high 14.4 points in her inaugural season with Golden State - and now she's averaging 23.1 in the playoffs.
Williams ultimately took 22 shots from the field Saturday, one short of her season high - reflective of how much her team's sluggish offense depended on her.
"I've been in this situation obviously many times this season," Williams said of her fourth-quarter responsibilities. "I feel the belief and the trust from my teammates and staff, and I think that's why those moments maybe don't feel as heavy - because I know whatever happens this team is just gonna find a way."
Saturday's fourth quarter included an unexpected obstacle. After making one free throw, Williams got tangled with Dream point guard Jordin Canada, who was boxing out Williams at the line. Canada fell on Williams, who got up flexing her left leg/knee in apparent pain.
She hobbled through the next couple of possessions, then marched back to the line and made two more key free throws. Williams insisted afterward she was fine, saying it was just a "long, physical game."
In the end, she crunched the numbers - and they came up in Golden State's favor.
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There’s more to San Francisco with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at How Valkyries' Gabby Williams uses math to shoulder a heavy offensive burden.