Sports
Healthy Allisha Gray gives Atlanta Dream a boost in Finals opener
The four-time All-Star is set to start Game 1 against the Golden State Valkyries after missing two semifinal games with a hand injury. Atlanta enters the WNBA Finals on a 10-game winning streak despite losing all its regular-season meetings with Golden State.
ATLANTA — Allisha Gray will start for the Atlanta Dream in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals against the Golden State Valkyries, giving the team its leading scorer back in the lineup after a hand injury sidelined her for two semifinal games.
The series opener is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday. Gray averaged 19 points per game this season and is a four-time All-Star.
She was hurt in the first quarter of Atlanta’s semifinal opener after hard contact on a screen. Gray briefly returned, then left for good after diving for a loose ball late in the first half. She missed Games 2 and 3.
Atlanta faces a different opponent than the one it encountered during a difficult regular-season stretch: Golden State swept the teams’ season series, which coincided with a five-game Dream losing streak. The Dream have since won 10 straight, with their last defeat in August.
The Valkyries also arrive in strong form, winning eight of their past 10 games. They advanced past the Dallas Wings in the first round and the Las Vegas Aces, led by MVP A’ja Wilson, in the semifinals.
Atlanta forward Angel Reese said the team is “a really different team” heading into the Finals. Veteran DeWanna Bonner, who joined the Dream after the regular-season matchups with Golden State, helped lead the semifinal victory over the New York Liberty, including a double-double in the clinching Game 3.
Guard Jordin Canada has also elevated her play in the postseason. She is averaging 19.2 points, 8.8 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game in the playoffs, compared with 11.3 points, 7.3 assists and 3.5 rebounds during the regular season. Canada said staying healthy and available has been important; she played 43 regular-season games, a career high.
The Dream will play their Finals home games at State Farm Arena after uncertainty over the venue arose because of a concert and two Hawks games scheduled during the series. Players have praised the support of Atlanta fans at the arena. The team is scheduled to move there full time in 2027.