The Atlanta Dream drafted Rhyne Howard as the No. 1 overall pick in 2022 on purpose. A deal with the Washington Mystics brought Howard to the Dream, and the team has made a point of supporting and elevating their franchise star whenever possible. Howard, in turn, has played fantastic basketball in Atlanta, and is a huge part of the reason why the team won the second game of this year's WNBA Finals.
That win was a franchise first; up to that point, the Dream had never won a WNBA Finals match before. If everything stopped today, that's something Atlanta could and should be proud of. But, luckily for pretty much all of us, everything does not stop today when the Dream hosts the Golden State Valkyries at State Farm Arena.
Howard had a historic defensive game earlier this week when the Dream surprised Ballhalla and ran away with a 79-65 win over the Valkyries. That she did this without applying the offensive prowess that fans are used to seeing is remarkable; it also speaks to the possibility that Howard could (and likely will) end up having at least one game this series when everything aligns perfectly.
Golden State will want to be prepared once that inevitability rolls around — and if Howard has an extraordinary night that coincides with Angel Reese putting in another historic effort of her own, the Dream could easily coast to a victory that few predicted just a few weeks ago.
For head coach Karl Smesko, transition will be everything. As he told reporters Wednesday, the more the Dream can get ahead of the Valkyries in transition, the more Howard is likely to get the kind of looks she needs to hit bucket after bucket. There's a lot for Howard to focus on as Game 3 looms very near in the future, but there's also no reason to believe she isn't going to do exactly that. As much as she's been showing off her offensive skills, Howard is one of the most effective three-point shooters in the game. Once she gets going, she's gone.
Winning two games would set the Dream up nicely to take home a third when they host the Valkyries again later this week. A return to San Francisco could prove tough — especially if the home team is coming off several losses in a row — but it's not an insurmountable challenge. The Dream is ready for it all, and Howard is part of the group leading the way.
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