On Monday, Sept. 15, the WNBA declared Golden State Valkyries guard Veronica Burton the winner of the league’s Most Improved Player award.
The Bay is a long way from New England, but VB is still a woman of the northeast.
Burton is 25 years old. She grew up in Newton, Massachusetts and went to Newton South High School. In college, she played for the Northwestern Wildcats. As a wildcat, Burton was named the 2022 WBCA Defensive Player of the Year. She was also the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year for 2020, 2021 and 2022. Burton graduated from Northwestern in 2022 and entered the draft that same year.
Burton was drafted to the Dallas Wings as the 7th pick in the first round and played for the wings for two years. However, she was waived three days before the start of the 2024 season. On June 5, 2024, Veronica Burton signed a rest-of-season contract with the Connecticut Sun. She played 31 games with the Sun, but only started in one game during the 2024 season.
In the 2024 expansion draft, which took place on Dec. 6, 2024, Burton was selected by the Golden State Valkyries, and immediately became an integral part of the team’s development. During the Valkyries’ record-breaking inaugural season, Burton started in all 44 games and was the only player on the team to do so. Burton averaged 11.9 points per game, 4.4 rebounds per game, 1.1 steals, and 6 assists per game. When compared with the 2024 season, when she averaged 3.1 points, 1.4 rebounds, 0.5 steals and 1.9 assists, Burton’s 2025 statistics make her qualifications for Most Improved Player clear.
Burton demonstrates the power of grit and determination. Her game has transformed and she has led the Valkyries to their first playoffs. And we here at Women of the Northeast know that for this Newtonite, MIP is only the beginning.