Atlanta Dream

The Atlanta Dream arrived in the WNBA in 2008 and wasted no time announcing themselves as a force. Within just two years of their founding, the Dream reached the WNBA Finals, and they would return twice more in 2011 and 2013 - three Finals appearances in four seasons, all fueled by the incandescent scoring of Angel McCoughtry. Those teams played with a ferocity that belied the franchise's youth, and while all three Finals ended in defeat, they established Atlanta as one of the league's most ambitious and competitive organizations in its formative years.

The franchise's trajectory shifted dramatically off the court when then-senator Kelly Loeffler's ownership became untenable amid player activism in 2020. The 2021 sale to a group led by Larry Gottesdiener and former Dream guard Renee Montgomery represented a watershed moment - a former player taking an ownership stake in the team she once suited up for, signaling a new era of player empowerment and community investment. Montgomery's presence in the ownership group gave the franchise an authenticity and connection to its players that few teams in professional sports can claim.

The investment has paid dividends on the court. The 2025 season brought the best regular-season record in franchise history at 30-14, earning the Dream the number three seed - a testament to a roster anchored by Rhyne Howard, the 2022 number one overall pick who blossomed into an All-Star and earned All-Defense Second Team honors while averaging 17.5 points per game. The addition of Brionna Jones from the Connecticut Sun bolstered the frontcourt, and the Dream entered the playoffs with genuine championship aspirations before falling to the Indiana Fever in the first round. The loss stung, but the trajectory is unmistakable: Atlanta is building something real, and in one of America's most vibrant sports cities, the Dream are no longer an afterthought.