How to watch Dream at Liberty: Atlanta seeks Commissioner's Cup final vs. reigning champs
We are a quarter of the way through the WNBA's most anticipated season to date, and no team is exceeding expectations more so than the Atlanta Dream. After going 15-25 in 2024, they hit the week with an 8-3 record and top-three ratings on both offense and defense.
This early feel-good development can morph into a league-wide warning shot on Tuesday — a road win against the powerhouse New York Liberty would send ATL to next month's Commissioner's Cup final. The seafoam squad should be motivated to quell all that, having just suffered its first loss of 2025.
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Atlanta is third in points per game despite playing at the 11th-slowest pace. It also leads the league in 3s attempted per game and 3s allowed, forming something of the consummate modern basketball outfit. Brittney Griner and Brionna Jones patrol the paint, while Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray let it fly along the outside.
Gray typifies the Dream's unlikely ascent. She's averaged 13.4 points across nine pro seasons but is up to a career-best 21 this year on 51.4/41.8 shooting splits, putting her well on track to earn her third straight All-Star nod. Gray also has more win shares than anyone else in the W and only trails three perennial MVP candidates (Napheesa Collier, A'ja Wilson and New York's Breanna Stewart) in player efficiency rating. It's a downright stunning improvement in her age-30 season.
Howard, meanwhile, tied a WNBA record with nine treys on Friday night. She dropped 36 points in an 18-point victory over the Chicago Sky, bending around ball screens and showing off her blistering release. It was the second of Atlanta's three consecutive blowout wins.
Griner passed Lisa Leslie in career blocks on Friday, too. Come Tuesday, she takes on a truly elite interior presence in Stewart. New York should find ample motivation on its grayscale court, where it can avenge its first stumble of the year. The Liberty looked overwhelmed by Caitlin Clark and the Fever on Saturday, losing 102-88, though 2024 Finals MVP Jonquel Jones was shelved by a sprained ankle.
Even if Jones can't go in this matchup, New York is handily favored to take care of business. The hosts have the best scoring offense and defense – both by sizable margins – and they generate turnovers without selling out or breaking much of a collective sweat.
If the Dream can triumph in Brooklyn, they will represent the Eastern Conference in July 1's Cup championship. If not, Clark and the Fever can secure their spot by beating the hapless Connecticut Sun on Tuesday. If Indiana manages to lose as well, New York will compete in the final for the third consecutive year.
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Best player to wear both jerseys: Tina Charles. She had three straight first-team All-WNBA nods for New York and became the league's No. 2 all-time scorer during last year's Atlanta stint.
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(Photo of Brittney Griner: Paras Griffin / Getty Images)
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