NFL
By: Nick Andre
The 2025 WNBA Playoffs are around the corner. Who would’ve thought we’d get to this point at the start of the season? Luckily, the Atlanta Dream have found their groove at the right time. The team currently sits as the second seed in the playoff standings with an opportunity to build momentum before the postseason begins.
It’s the time of the season when the discussions for different awards begin to rise. The question is, who should win Coach of the Year? The debates have included Cheryl Reeve from the Minnesota Lynx, Natalie Nakase from the Golden State Valkyries, and others. However, if you ask me who is deserving of this season’s Coach of the Year Award, it’s none other than Karl Smesko.
In one season, the Atlanta Dream have done a complete 180 compared to where they were last season. Credit is given to Coach Smesko and his new style of play. He is an offense-oriented coach who runs different sets for his team to execute and score efficiently. The Dream currently rank fifth in scoring this season at 83.2 points, which is a huge upgrade from last season to when they ranked last. Credit is given to Coach Smesko and the way he has his players buy into his fast-paced style of play.
Because of Smesko, multiple players on the Dream are having career seasons. For example, look at the season that Allisha Gray is having. Let’s be honest, Allisha Gray has always been a phenomenal player who competes on both ends of the floor. However, her game has elevated to what has placed her in the MVP race.
The reason Gray is in the MVP race is because of her leadership. She understands that everything starts with her, so she understands she has to bring great energy on a nightly basis. Gray may not have a spectacular scoring performance in every game. Therefore, she’ll set the tone either defensively or by creating plays for her teammates to score as well. The averages of 18.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 3.6 assists speak for themselves. It’s evident that Allisha Gray is playing her best basketball, and she has different levels in her game to unlock moving forward.
Another key player has been none other than Naz Hillmon. What makes a team great is when they have both an enforcer and an anchor. Luckily, Naz Hillmon checks both of those boxes. Since she arrived in Atlanta, Hillmon has been an exceptional role player. She’s been a great complement next to the likes of Gray and Rhyne Howard, which has allowed her to be impactful for the Dream over the past few years.
Hillmon should be the frontrunner for the Sixth Woman of the Year award. Yes, I know that she has recently been placed in the starting lineup. However, Coach Smesko made a lineup change that provided playing small but added more versatility. It’s hard to ignore the impact that Hillmon has had on this team. She’s not only improved as an individual player but as a teammate as well. Hillmon’s offense is more than scoring. As a forward, she can read the defense very well, which allows her to position herself well in pick-and-rolls as well as find different ways to score and assist.
The debates continue about the Atlanta Dream: Who’s the franchise player for the team? Is it Rhyne Howard or Allisha Gray? Everyone has their own opinion, but it’s best not to put the two against one another. The Dream are primarily at their best when they play by committee, meaning they’re more dangerous when they play together. They rank fourth in the league in assists at 21 per game, and they find ways to find one another, whether it’s off backdoor cuts or finding each other for perimeter shots.
What also ignites this Atlanta Dream team is the way they come together through adversity. Coach Smesko was forced to make adjustments as Howard went down with an injury against the Indiana Fever on July 11. While the team learned the news that one of their best players would go down for several weeks, the team had a next woman up mentality. Adversity is something that the Dream runs to instead of away from. They went 7-3 in the 10 games that Howard missed and at one point landed the second seed in the WNBA Standings.
Over the last month, the Atlanta Dream have proven that they are championship contenders. Although they lost the second seed to the Las Vegas Aces after their loss against them on Wednesday night. They’re still expected to finish at least top three in the WNBA. The biggest challenge will be for the Dream to make a deep playoff run. The franchise has not won a playoff game over the past few years and wants to change the outcome this season.
The Dream have shown that they can compete with the other contenders across the league. For instance, they went into Minnesota and took down the Lynx alongside the MVP front-runner Napheesa Collier. Atlanta has also found success against other contenders like the defending champion New York Liberty, Phoenix Mercury, and several others.
There are still a few weeks left in the regular season for the Atlanta Dream to prepare for what’s ahead in the postseason. They’re rolling into the Playoffs hungry and determined to make a deep run to the WNBA Finals. That may sound cliché to many, but it’s possible for a team like the Dream. With health and team chemistry on their side, their deep playoff run is possible with the way they play together.
