Two words: “Game Seven.” They’re the most exciting two words in professional sports. In the WNBA’s 30th season, they also instituted their first seven-game finals series. The Atlanta Dream took on the Golden State Valkyrie. Both teams were on their way to the respective top-seeded former champions, the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces, for starters. If nothing else, this series exemplified just how deep the talent is in today’s WNBA.
Both teams entered this season with plenty to prove. The Valkyrie, for instance, have just completed their second season! They are the fastest professional team to win a championship from their inception. As an expansion team, it typically takes time to cultivate an identity. But the Valkyrie, from their branding to their fanbase, proved that wasn’t the case. Coining the Chase Center as “Ballhalla” was certainly the start. But their fanbase is rabid, too. They go nuts for them, as their NBA counterparts do for the Golden State Warriors.
Touting a sold-out capacity crowd for game seven, it truly shows who the team’s sixth woman really is.
The Dream, meanwhile, acquired one of the WNBA’s brightest young stars this past off-season: Angel Reese. Reese, on the heels of a good second season, but one where she just wasn’t getting along with the new head coach, seemed ready for a fresh start. The Chicago Sky were willing to oblige. But their first slight against Reese was suddenly firing Teresa Weatherspoon, Reese’s rookie-season head coach. Weatherspoon was inexplicably fired after one season with The Sky. And for a player like Reese, who seemed to really have forged a strong relationship with the Hall of Fame guard, the team certainly began to lack her vote of confidence in what would make her happy.
So both teams, with the perfect balance of veterans and young legs, were well-suited to go the distance, as long as they found ways to build and maintain continuity. Throughout this playoff run, that’s what we saw from both squads: models of consistency, all culminating in the beautiful chess match that was this WNBA Finals. Gabby Williams of the Valkyrie reigns as this year’s WNBA Finals MVP. But so many ladies had starmaking moments. Angel Reese and her first crack at gold will most certainly light a fire in her to come back stronger next season.
But ultimately, this finals was a celebration of what the competitive fervor in the WNBA can breed. From midday finals games, never before seen, but just as enthusiastic, to the mere fact that the women now get seven games to decide a champion just shows how far the game has come. The most exciting part of this all? We’re just scratching the surface.
After a season that brought new blood to this WNBA, let’s not forget that next season, the vets may have something to say.