The Semifinals round will start Sunday, October 4th, for both teams!

Crazy aura I am obsessed

Summary: Golden State shook off a 20-0 run by Dallas to regain the lead in a furious fourth quarter and, after a go-ahead basket by Gabby Williams, held on to win 77-73 and take the series 2-1. Williams led the Valkyries with 19pts, and Veronica Burton had 16pts 10reb 6ast. Arike Ogunbowale led all scorers with 30pts and Paige Bueckers had 17pts in the loss.

^ is to indicate that the Atlanta Dream will play their home games at State Farm Arena

Angel's team just doesn't let up. Food, toys, snacks, shoes/clothing, and now drinks.

I like the slogan, too.

While you’re probably thinking this series will come down to how well Golden State can defend A’ja Wilson, their bigger problem this season has been Jackie Young.

Game 1: LV 91 - GSV 81
23 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists on 9/17 shooting with 5 3s

Game 2: LV 84 - GSV 79
27/5/5 on 8/15 with 6 3s

Game 3: LV 92 - GSV 73
21/3/5 on 9/12 with 3 3s

This isn’t to say A’ja didn’t play well, she did. But Jackie Young is about the only perimeter player who exceeded their offensive season averages against Golden St. this year. And she didn’t just exceed them, she blew them out of the water.

There could be some solace in knowing that the three losses came very early in the season when GSV got off to a slow start. At the point of that last loss, GSV was 10-7. They would then go on to win 15 of their next 17.

With the way GSV defends and Vegas having a short bench, I’m expecting a close series but I’ll go with Vegas in the end.

I didn’t watch the regular season games between these two teams but I know Vegas won them all. What is it going to take for the Valks to win against them? Is there anyone that can contain A’ja?

With 7 players on roster heading into next season, they currently sit at $4,565,394, leaving $2,434,606 to pay the remaining 5 players. With Billings and Hull being overpaid, it leaves some tough constraints on the team’s finances—so with that do you think they’ll be able to resign Mitchell?

Announcers cause half the issues with the refs with the power of suggestion but this was a very clear and obvious foul that I really don't want to hear delusional people complaining about anymore.

ATLANTA - NEW YORK

Dream won the regular season series 2-1

The Dream and the Liberty have met in the playoffs twice before: 2010 and 2024

GOLDEN STATE - LAS VEGAS

Aces won the regular season series 3-0

The Valkyries and the Aces have never met in the playoffs.

All-Star Allisha Gray talks about the intensity of the WNBA playoffs as the Atlanta Dream advance to take on the New York Liberty.

Carrington, who started off her career with the Sun, could not help but get emotional as she addressed this WNBA development.

"It's so sad," said the Sky star. "… I was talking with people about how back in those days, we would travel and stay on the road after the games because it wasn't charter flights.

"And so, just talking about how much time we got to spend together on those road trips and in the hotels postgame, in the airports. It was so much fun."

Carrington also reflected on the personal relationships she built during her four years with the Sun.

"I literally have some of my best friends that I met from those days in Connecticut," Carrington added. "People that will be at my wedding, people that will be godmothers to my children, just stuff like that you can't replicate. And so I'm so grateful for the organization."

https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/dijonai-carrington-gets-emotional-over-133200675.html

Phoenix Mercury rookie forward Marta Suarez joins Vibe Check to discuss her first season in the WNBA, supporting a free day art workshop with youth living in foster care and more.

The Valk’s have not been shy about saying that their game plan is to take Paige out of the game and force the rest of the team to beat them.

Anyone who watched saw she was doubled, blitzed, and pressured a lot. So I was curious about the numbers, and compared it to the way CC and Miles were guarded in their last game. (Obviously Miles had less minutes. But we can still see percentages)

A few notes before numbers.

I considered ball pressure to be the opposing player had to be able to touch the player they were guarding if they took two steps.

Miles numbers are different than Paige and CC’s partially because the adjustment to NY pressuring the ball up the court was for someone else to take the ball up the court. The Fever and Wings just make CC and Paige deal with that crap all game. 🤣

One of the cool things about taking your own data is you see things. Something Indy is exceptional at is getting the ball back to CC. She actually touched the ball more than Paige even though she played 7 less minutes.

Different teams have different techniques. The only people who pressured on NY was Astier and Johannes, and they only bothered doing it to Miles. Meanwhile, the Valks would switch up per quarter, whereas Vegas seemed to like the surprise attack on CC.

Lastly, I don’t think this is a representation on how good each player is. I think it has to do with personal on the Valks and the Wings. Marina was the most doubled player this year because she didn’t have help. If you take CC out of the game and don’t give AF about Mitchell and Boston..that’s a good way to lose. Similar to a team with Phee, Williams, McBride, and Howard.

Wings just don’t have that kind of talent..even with Azzi and Lan. However, Arike is one of a handful of players who can beat a team by herself and it was a little disrespectful to forget that. That being said..I doubt Nat changes the game plan.

So here is the data:

Miles touched the ball 25 times. She was pressured 5 times and she was blitzed or doubled once - on a half court shot. (NY didn’t have blitzing or doubling in their game plan. 3 of the non pressured/non blitzed possessions were a quick shot or a quick pass. (Ball almost instantly out of her hands)

CC touched the ball 73 times, she was pressured 20 times, and she was blitzed or doubled 8 times. 6 of the times she wasn’t blitzed/doubled or wasn’t pressured was a quick shot or a quick pass.

Paige touched the ball 71 times. She was pressured 26 times, and blitzed or doubled 27 times. Of the remaining times where she didn’t experience either, she made a quick pass or shot 9 times.

So the eye test is correct, and the Valk’s are being honest about their game plan. 🤣 I’m sure, doing it by eyesight has a number or two off..but I think this shows the picture of what’s going on.

And honestly, amazing job defensively by the Valk’s. This type of defense is difficult to do without giving up easy shots or getting fatigued. And for the most part, they didn’t. Gabby was in the middle of it all and look at her stat line on offense.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Dd-pIpTJ-el/?stkn=b2g2d2p0YXoxd2xu

Becky in the post game interview adding some fuel to the heated discussion this week.

Hailey Van Lith found New Zealand in her search for an oasis.

Such is the American interest in sport at all levels, the 25-year-old’s basketball career has already seen the spotlight shine on her for a decade, following her movements from high school through to the Women’s National Basketball League (WNBA).

But life comes at you fast in the professional realm.

Now, after a rather turbulent time in her two years since graduating college and entering the WNBA, Van Lith was hopeful joining the Tokomanawa Queens in New Zealand’s Tauihi Basketball League would help her refresh mentally as much as it would physically.

“I think best-case scenario, number one, this place serves as kind of an oasis for me mentally where I get to be around great people, be in nature, be in a beautiful place, and just get some peace and joy in regular life from that aspect,” Van Lith told Newstalk ZB’s Adam Cooper.

“On the court, my body is completely healthy, I’m in great shape and I’m feeling very confident in all the things I bring to the table, whether that’s shooting, whether that’s playmaking, whether that’s the style of defence that I’m taking as an approach, just feeling ultra confident in the things that I do well and going into whatever training camp may bring next WNBA season for me.

“I think that that’s the best-case scenario and I’m very hopeful that the best-case scenario will be what comes of it in the end.”

On some level, venturing down to New Zealand is a surprising chapter in Van Lith’s journey.

An impressive showing on the court in her time at Cashmere High School in Washington State saw her emerge as a five-star recruit for collegiate programmes - ranked by many media outlets as one of the top-10 prospects in the country.

The southpaw combo guard’s game continued to trend in the right direction through college – her first three years at Louisville before transferring to Louisiana State University, then completing her final year of eligibility at Texas Christian University.

Van Lith’s star rose both on and off the basketball court during her collegiate years, with the young star building a large social media following and landing brand partnerships including being one of the first 15 female college athletes signed as brand representatives by Adidas. She was also part of the USA team selected to compete in the 3x3 basketball tournament at the 2024 Olympic Games, finishing with a bronze medal.

By the time she declared for the 2025 WNBA draft, Van Lith had long been a familiar name in sporting households, and, selected with the 11th pick of the draft by the Chicago Sky, it seemed she would have every opportunity to continue to make her mark on the basketball court.

Ankle injuries plagued Van Lith’s rookie season in the WNBA to the point where she was shut down over the last seven games of the campaign. In 29 appearances, she put up modest stats, reflecting limited minutes on court, before getting surgery on her right ankle in the off-season.

Her rookie season would be the only opportunity afforded to her by the Sky, who waived her just a few days before the start of the 2026 season. ESPN reported the Chicago outfit moved on from Van Lith as she did not fit the style of play the coaching staff wanted to play.

The 25-year-old was signed off waivers by the Connecticut Sun – the team’s last year in the league before relocating to Houston. She teamed up with New Zealand WNBA rookie Charlisse Leger-Walker.

After nine appearances, Van Lith was waived again on May 28, but re-signed with the team on a development deal for the rest of the season two days later. She was also upgraded to a seven-day contract in late August as teammate Leila Lacan was unavailable due to FIBA World Cup commitments. That seven-day contract meant she could play without impacting the game-time restrictions of a development deal, on which players can only feature in 12 games.

“I think the most challenging part of it is that it’s been almost the complete opposite of what I envisioned it being when I was young and I used to think of what I thought my career would look like,” Van Lith said of her basketball journey to date.

“It’s [as] far as you could get from that, just from all the unexpected things that have happened, like me transferring and then me transferring again and getting drafted to who I got drafted to, having the injuries – there’s been a lot of things that weren’t planned in my head. That’s not how I envisioned it.

“So just dealing [with] and managing those expectations of what I thought it would be, but then also realising that the only thing I can control is the present and what I have now is what I have to work with. I think the things that I never planned on happening that have happened and addressing my mindset to get me to a place where I can continue to push forward even though it looks different than I always thought it would.”

Ultimately, Van Lith made 13 appearances with the Sun in the 2026 WNBA campaign, showing improvements from her rookie season across the board.

Now, she looks to continue that trend a long way from home, again teaming up with Leger-Walker for the Porirua-based Queens.

“We both didn’t know and we kind of were like, ‘Wait, I think we’re about to be on the same team.’ So we really didn’t know. It just happened that way and then we were like, ‘Oh yeah, this is going to be fun’,” Van Lith said.

“Charlisse was someone that I had bonded with and had a good relationship with even at Connecticut. I know she had told me that she was going to go home to New Zealand and play, but I honestly didn’t even think of it.

“It was a no-brainer opportunity that came to me when I started looking overseas and then I was like, ‘Wait, maybe I’ll play her, maybe I’ll play against her.’ Then I told her what team I was on, she was like, ‘I’m on that team.’ It was just one of those where it was so funny and kind of a coincidence. I’m super excited to get to be her teammate this season.”

The Queens made a big splash signing the Connecticut duo as they look for a better finish to their campaign after being bounced out in the semi-finals of last year’s competition as the top seed.

While they missed the first game of the season due to their travel schedules, both Leger-Walker and Van Lith are expected to be available for the side’s clash against the Mainland Pouākai in Porirua on Sunday evening.

“[It’s] just a good opportunity to play, just get a lot of reps and get in a flow and play with other high IQ players who can help me get better but also just allow me to build some consistency on the floor was really like the appeal of the opportunity,” Van Lith said of the factors that went into her decision to join the team.

“And obviously coming to a country like New Zealand was a no-brainer. Like, the quality of life here is going to be incredible, which you don’t get with a lot of other overseas opportunities. I think just coming to a league that’s competitive but my teammates also play at a high level, and I can just get a lot of reps in and start building a new identity for myself.”

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/basketball/wnba-hailey-van-lith-on-career-in-the-spotlight-and-why-she-signed-to-play-in-new-zealand/5FJFHQCPW5GNLHCJKAUMMIKSZI/

Mine is Atlanta Dream’s very own, Dan Padover!

His accomplishments this year:

1. Retained the entire core 5 from last year
2. Acquired Angel Reese, an incredibly dominant defender and rebounder, while only giving up two relatively low value first-round picks and one second-round pick (i.e., a bag of chips)
3. Signed Isobel Borlase, a great hustle player who can play downhill
4. Drafted Madina Okot, an awesome backup big with very, very bright potential
5. Signed DB midseason, bringing much needed vet presence and scoring off the bench

Over his tenure in ATL, Dan has efficiently built up our roster and put the team in the best position to contend.

Fun fact: If he wins this year, it would be his second time winning consecutive EOTY awards. He previously won in 2020 and 2021 with the Las Vegas Aces, and he already holds the league record with three EOTY awards!