The Valkyries and the Dream open the WNBA Finals on Saturday at Chase Center, and Golden State's entire series comes down to one problem: containing the energy Angel Reese provides Atlanta. The putbacks off her or her teammates' misses, picking a pocket or jumping into a passing lane, and-ones, and more feed ATL's spirit, and Natalie Nakase's squad needs to stomp that out.
They're built to do it.
The Valks just spent the semifinals slowing the Aces below any pace they played all season. The good news for Golden State is that they've already done it to Atlanta three times and never once needed to keep Reese off the stat sheet entirely.
Containing Reese doesn't mean stopping her
The newly crowned Defensive Player of the Year posted a double-double in all three regular-season meetings with the Valkyries. Atlanta still lost. The rebounds were always coming; Angel led the W at 12.1 a game and set the single-season record with 521 of them. What Coach Nakase's ball club took away was everything else.
June 24 in Ballhalla is the blueprint. Reese didn't score until the third quarter, and Golden State led 44-27 at halftime on the way to a 77-66 win. The Bayou Barbie still got her 12 boards, but she only shot 25% FG and finished with 10 points, one of her worst nights of the season. The Dream struggled to find a pulse without her putting her stamp on the game.
The Valkyries and Dream faced off again two days later, and this time, Reese dropped 15 points and 12 rebounds, while adding six steals to her sheet. But her field goal percentage was still low (36%), and Golden State drew five fouls on ATL's prize offseason acquisition.
Their meeting on July 4 is where Angel shone brightest, and the Valks still dimmed her light. Reese got loose for 17 and 13 on 46% FG, but GS forced her into four turnovers, and she fouled out of the game. The Dream's star forward has yet to have an all-around clean game against the Valkyries this season.
Nobody guards Angel Reese alone in Golden State
Ahead of that June series, Nakase said her group plays team defense first, so everything is matchup-based. That's the answer to Reese. Not a stopper. A rotation.
However, I anticipate Kiah Stokes being a very large part of that. In Game 1 against Vegas, Stokes scored zero points in 27 minutes, but pulled 14 boards, with seven on the offensive end, blocked three shots, and held five-time MVP A'ja Wilson to four rebounds—tied for the lowest total in Wilson's 59 career playoff games. Natalie called her the MVP of the game.
The reason for that is simple: Kiah, with Kayla Thornton's help, held the Aces to one shot per trip and gave Golden State extra ones. That's the job against a forward who led the league at 4.8 offensive boards a night.
Aminata Gueye spells Stokes in a two-big look, Gabby Williams will have her hands full with Rhyne Howard, and somebody still has to find Jordin Canada, but Reese is still the lightning rod the Valkyries will work to control.
The wrinkle: Angel is shooting 35% from deep since the World Cup. Kiah does her best work in the paint. Every closeout she has to make is a potential head start to the basket for ATL's playoff MVP if she bites on a pump fake. They'll be better off playing the percentages and hoping Reese comes back down to Earth. Dominating the paint is too important.
Keep her in check, and you cut off the Dream's biggest momentum generator. That's the key to a Valkyries WNBA Finals championship.
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