Last week, in front of thousands of fans at Chase Center, the Golden State Valkyries introduced their new mascot: a glasses-wearing purple raven named Violet, who hopped onto the court at halftime of their game against the Connecticut Sun and quickly won the hearts of Valkyries’ supporters.

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Violet stirred up a big reaction on social media. Users on Reddit commented that she has a “charming name” and is “undeniably cute.” She doesn’t come across as a total copy of Ellie, the popular elephant mascot of New York Liberty who is also a dance star. If Ellie is the edgy “cool kid smoking behind the football field,” Violet is more like the cheerful, bubbly cheerleader.

The Golden State Valkyries mascot Violet is unveiled at halftime during the Valkyries game against the Connecticut Sun at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Monday, Aug. 11, 2025. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) 

According to the Valkyries marketing team, Violet is “a music-loving, dance-floor-dominating songbird with an eye for anything shiny.” Though she doesn’t know how she ended up in Ballhalla, which is the nickname of Chase Center, she is “thrilled” to be here.

Born in Nordic folklore, according to the team, she’s as “clever and loyal as the mythic ravens who once soared beside Valkyries, only with a bit more sparkle and a whole lot more groove,” according to loving comments from Reddit.

RELATED: Valkyries unveil their bespectacled mascot, with a tie to Norse mythology

While many of the mascots present themselves as female, others are male. A recent controversy forced the Chicago Sky to change their mascot from Sky Guy (a male) to Skye the Lioness, which seems more appropriate for a team in a league that has the word Women’s in its acronym.

Violet is just one more of the collection of animal mascots in the WNBA. Meet other WNBA mascots and their quirky personalities:

Los Angeles Sparks: Sparky

As told by the Sparks’ homepage, he was born in 2007 in Cainaheim, CA, which is a place made up by the Sparks. Sparky comes from a big family as the “trailblazing eldest pup of nine, four brothers and five sisters.” While all his siblings dreamed of mascot stardom, according to the team, it was Sparky’s slick dance moves and playground tricks that “caught the eye of a high school athletic director, who invited him to work the crowds at basketball games.”

When not working the Sparks’ games, Sparky unwinds with his favorite show, The Dog Whisperer. Some people think his costume is “too old and needs an upgrade,” but others say he is a “nostalgic mascot” for the team who brings up fond memories from their childhoods.

Chicago Sky: Skye the Lioness

Skye the Lioness is a new member of the team. Replacing the Sky Guy, who created an online controversy for being a male, the lioness draws more loving attention. Users on Reddit said it’s an improvement over Sky Guy, who “draws abomination within fans group.” Nobody, though, would confuse Skye with a lioness in the wild: The mascot is bright yellow and has a very big triangular head.

Phoenix Mercury: Scorch

Scorch, according to the team, is an “extraterrestrial visitor from the fiery planet Mercury” — the only mascot in the WNBA not from our planet. The storyline says he’s on a top-secret mission to Earth to check out this thing called basketball.

For the onlooker, Scorch might seem like a big, fuzzy, purple earthworm, although the team insists his out-of-this-world status makes him the “hottest mascot” in WNBA. Since he’s from a place where everything’s hot, Scorch’s Earth favorites are warm food: hot dogs and hot chocolate (he likes his treats spicy and cozy). When he’s not dunking or dancing, you might catch him jamming to “Intergalactic” and occasionally getting a little homesick.

Minnesota Lynx: Prowl

Lynx, according to her official website, is Minnesota’s fluffy star. With gray, seemingly soft fur, wide shoulders and “laser-focused blue eyes,” the team says she shows the power of a lynx — a swift, relentless predator in the wild.

On the court, Prowl loves to show her signature “two-handed windmill dunk.” And when she’s not wowing the crowd? You’ll probably find her curled up with her favorite book, “Forest Cats of North America,” because after all, a cat is a cat. What’s next, a cat fight between Skye and Prowl?

Washington Mystics: Pax

Pax the Panda, straight from the Smithsonian National Zoo, was born in 2006, so she’s been rocking the mascot life for a while. According to the team, the bear is a devoted fan of “Kung Fu Panda,” and “she loves chomping on bamboo, though she jokes it’s her secret slimming snack” because it would seem that the team wants to put her on a diet.

According to her bio, her favorite colors are red, white and blue — for the American flag, or the French? Her favorite vacation spot is always China, and she is adamant that Panda Express is not real Chinese. (These mascots are very opinionated.)

Dallas Wings: Lightning

Lightning is the “southern diva and hype queen” of the Dallas Wings. She’s described as female Pegasus, an “ethereal animal in the human world.” According to the marketing team, she has urban flair and high-energy moves that would steal the spotlight even from Gazelle in “Zootopia.” Apparently she is the only mascot in the WNBA that can fly without superpower while rocking a ponytail on her head. People on TikTok are asking for a dancing competition between Lightning and Ellie; now Violet can join the list.

Indiana Fever: Freddy Fever

Fans can never quite pin down what he is: maybe a muppet, a dragon, a dinosaur, or even a delightfully deranged tomato. Freddy Fever has bright red fur, a huge smile and blue eyelashes. Among comments on Reddit: “Freddy Fever was a normal human but was bitten by a radioactive spider, hit with gamma rays while drinking a mai tai made of compound V” and “I still stand by sentient Flaming Hot Cheeto.”

New York Liberty: Ellie the Elephant

Ellie is the stylish superstar of the New York Liberty, and undoubtedly one of the best known WNBA’s mascots. With a long braided ponytail, she has versatile styles in both outfits and dance moves. Surprisingly, as an elephant, she is a very flexible dancer with her signature moves, the legendary Ellie Stomp and Ellie Wave — all set to her theme song, LL Cool J’s “Headsprung Remix” — making her popular among fans on Reddit and Tiktok. Don’t even think about giving her peanuts, because the team got creative and made Ellie allergic.

Seattle Storm: Doppler

Doppler is a quirky red furry mascot with sunflower-petal eyelashes and a cup anemometer perched on his head. Based on his personal story, Doppler is inspired by stormy weather and his favorite song is “Thunderstruck” by AC/DC. Born from a napkin sketch during a Houston Comets game, Doppler looks like a huge fluffy tomato, his anemometer reminding everyone that he is the “lightning on the court.”

Las Vegas Aces: BUCKET$

BUCKET$ is the high-flying black-tailed jackrabbit of the Las Vegas Aces. Hopping all the way from the Mojave Desert, this lucky hare found a new home behind Michelob ULTRA Arena and quickly became the team’s energetic mascot with a very Las Vegas name. BUCKET$ loves “Space Jam,” adores Air Jordans, and jams out to Bad Bunny which is his favorite artist, according to his profile. Some fans think he is the best dancer in WNBA, competing with Ellie.

Connecticut Sun: Blaze

Blaze is the “free-spirited, dancing mascot” of the Connecticut Sun. His quirky look also nods to the team’s roots with the Mohegan Sun casino, according to the team. But if you look closely, people could easily confuse Blaze with a colorful Fanta drink. But, in reality, no one seems to really knows what he is.

Atlanta Dream: None (but waiting patiently)

The Atlanta Dream are now the only WNBA team without a mascot, according to New York Times. The previous mascot, Star the gray bird, was retired in February 2020 with the team promising a successor, but fans continue to wait.

Up next?: Toronto Tempo

Toronto’s new WNBA team, the Tempo, is set to debut in 2026 as Canada’s first team in the league. The club will need to come up with a mascot that can rival the cuteness of Violet, be more bonkers than BUCKET$, and more regal than Ellie.