Gabby Williams Reveals Michael Jordan’s Message After WNBA Finals

Michael Jordan’s text reached Gabby Williams on the morning of Nov. 2, two days after she scored 30 points in Game 7 of the WNBA Finals. Before it arrived, someone warned her it was coming.

“My Jordan rep agent texted me, and he was just like, ‘Just so you know, it’s not spam, but you’re gonna get a text,’” Williams told People. “And I was driving, and I was like, ‘Do not crash your car, do not crash your car. Get to the gym, get to the parking lot.’”

The Golden State Valkyries had beaten the Atlanta Dream 68-63 at Chase Center on Oct. 31, and Williams, who had 2 points at halftime, finished with 30 while wearing Air Jordan 41s, ESPN reported.

Jordan’s note covered the whole season. Williams went through the exchange again Monday on “CBS Mornings.”

“He just congratulated me on the season, said he had fun watching, and just a very Michael Jordan thing to say,” Williams explained. “He told me to stay hungry, not to settle, and I told him I’d never been [hungrier].”

Six championships. Six Finals MVP awards. That was Jordan’s haul with the Chicago Bulls, and Williams had her own pile before Oct. 31, including NCAA titles at UConn in 2015 and 2016 and a EuroLeague Women title with Fenerbahçe in April, when it beat Galatasaray 68-55 in the final in Zaragoza, Spain.

With France, she has two silver medals in the last three years. The French lost the 2024 Olympic gold medal game to the United States by one point in Paris, then lost to the Americans again for gold at the FIBA Women’s World Cup in September.

Her eighth WNBA season, and first in Golden State after three in Chicago and four in Seattle, ended with Finals MVP. She averaged 19.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 2.6 steals in the series. Angel Reese edged her for Defensive Player of the Year, and Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase called her the best two-way player in the world before Game 1 of the Finals.

The Valkyries’ 2027 season will be their third.

“Now that I’ve kind of gotten a taste of it, I just want to keep tasting it,” Williams said. “So just even more motivated for next season.”

Her answer about her own motivation ran five words.

“I just wanted to win,” Williams said.

Three years ago, when Golden State was granted an expansion franchise, owner Joe Lacob guaranteed a championship within five years, The Associated Press reported. His team made the playoffs in 2025, its first season. It won the whole thing in its second.

“Her second half ... legendary,” Lacob said after the clincher. “That was unbelievable stuff.”

At the team’s exit interviews on Nov. 2, the same day Jordan’s text came in, Williams said she had barely looked back at Game 7.

“I’m just living in the moment,” Williams said. “This was a really long month, a really long series. I’ve been focusing on my friends and my family, my loved ones and soaking this in with my teammates.”

“Unfortunately, I don’t think we’ll ever have this exact group again,” Williams continued. “So I am trying to soak in this moment as long as I can with these people.”

Stephen Curry has been one of the people she leans on. The two held a fireside chat at a restaurant outside Chase Center after the Nov. 4 parade, and the 2022 NBA Finals MVP said after the title that the Valkyries will be around for a long time.

Williams signed a three-year contract with Golden State in April. In January, she debuts in Unrivaled, the 3-on-3 league.