The Atlanta Dream fell short while hosting the Indiana Fever Thursday night, but that didn't stop franchise player Rhyne Howard from thrilling fans and showing the rest of the league why it's crucial to have athletes like her on a team. Howard racked up 24 points, two assists, two blocks, and five rebounds, got into a heated argument with Caitlin Clark, and relentlessly hammered the Fever and made the team work for every single one of its 81 points.
Rookies attract a lot of attention in the league from fans and insiders alike, and for good reason: teams might build a whole season around who they can draft the following year, and there's something about new athletes coming into a franchise and breathing life into it. But if a team wants to maintain a fanbase and thrive for multiple seasons, it's just as important to invest in a true franchise player: someone who can step up to the plate and become the face of a team.
Some teams have already assigned these roles: the Lynx and Napheesa Collier, Clark and the Fever, Breanna Stewart or Sabrina Ionescu and the Liberty, the Aces and A'ja Wilson, and Nneka Ogqumike and the Seattle Storm all spring to mind. Howard showed last night that she's committed to the Dream and more than capable of filling that role for the team.
Rhyne Howard was drafted in 2022
Howard joined the Dream in 2022 as the No. 1 overall pick in that year's WNBA Draft. She was named Rookie of the Year that season and has appeared as a WNBA All-Star twice so far, and she averaged 17.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game durig the 2024 season.
Last night Howard showed she is ready to step into the next phase of her evolution as the building block of the Atlanta Dream. She was a relentless defensive and offensive force, and her dispute with Clark did absolutely nothing to slow her down.
A franchise player needs to be tough and needs to lead, and they also need to be good enough to build a championship team around. It's one thing to excel at one skill or another on the floor; a franchise player has to inspire their teammates and the team's fans at the same time. They have to be unafraid to wade into a mess, especially if they know it's right to do so, and to advocate for teammates when they can't advocate for themselves.
They also need an organization to build around them, which is something the Dream has taken seriously this year. This is the first season Howard has truly had the opportunity to play with a team that can completely support her — and that she, in turn, can guide toward their major goals. With vets like Brittney Griner and Allisha Gray on her side, it's beginning to look like there's little Howard can't accomplish.