Ten of 15 WNBA teams have extended core qualifying offers to players since free agency started Monday.
Players who have been “cored” — akin to being given the NFL’s franchise tag — include Sabrina Ionescu, by the New York Liberty; Napheesa Collier (Minnesota Lynx); Kelsey Mitchell (Indiana Fever); Kelsey Plum, (Los Angeles Sparks); and Arike Ogunbowale (Dallas Wings).
The core designation gives a team exclusive negotiating rights to a player and comes with a baseline contract of a fully guaranteed one-year deal worth the supermax ($1.4 million in 2026), though the player can negotiate different terms.
We’re just in day-one of the 2026 WNBA Free Agency and the Chicago Sky just made a blockbuster trade by sending Angel Reese to the Atlanta Dream for two (2) first-round draft picks in 2027 and ’28. Aside from Angel Reese, Atlanta Dream will also receive 2028 second-round swap rights.
🚨 TRADE ALERT 🚨
The @chicagosky trades the contract of Angel Reese and the right to swap the teams’ own 2028 2nd round draft picks to @atlantadream in exchange for Atlanta’s own 2027 1st round draft pick and Atlanta’s own 2028 1st round draft pick. pic.twitter.com/24g37U3Cdc
The Indiana Fever once again rose to the occasion, evening the series against the Atlanta Dream (77-60) and forcing a winner-take-all Game 3 back in Atlanta.
It was a relatively close game in the first half, where the Fever’s largest lead was only 11 points. Atlanta even closed the half with a 10-to-5 run to cut the lead to just six points (35-29). In the third quarter, the Dream was able to cut the lead to just three points (40-37) with a bounce pass from Rhyne Howard and an easy two points by Naz Hillmon. But Indiana ended the quarter with a 19-to-7 run (59-44) and never looked back.
5 points in the final 9 seconds of the third quarter 🔥
Aliyah Boston gets inside for the bucket, Kelsey Mitchell steals the inbound and Lexie Hull cashes in with a three at the buzzer to put us up 15 at the end of three ♨️ pic.twitter.com/HI1IDZJIHI
Kelsey Mitchell lead the team with 19 points, compared to Game 1, both Aliyah Boston and Natasha Howard had a great game, scoring 15 points and 12 points, respectively. But was also a full team effort for the Fever where everyone who played scored. Allisha Gray and Rhyne Howard was a no show for the Dream and only two players scored in double-digits.
The series will not shift back to Atlanta with the pressure on the Dream to close the game at home. Game 3 of the 2025 WNBA First Round of the Playoff will be this Thursday at Gateway Center, Atlanta.
Atlanta Dream takes Game 1 against the Indiana Fever of the 1st Round of WNBA Playoff. The team was lead by Allisha Gray and Rhyne Howard, scoring 20 apiece. Gray added 6 rebounds and 4 assists, while Howard grabbed 6 more rebounds.
It was a close game in the first 3 quarter, where neither team’s largest lead is only 7-points, and entering the 4th quarter Dream’s lead was just 5-points but Atlanta went on a 14-to-6 run and the team never look back.
Kelsey Mitchell lead the Fever with 27 points while Odyssey Sims added 10 points. Aliyah Boston who got into foul trouble and needed to sit at the start of the 4th quarter added 8 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists.
Game Highlights
Game 2 will be in Indiana and it will the home crowd should be able to provide the energy that the team needs to even the series.
The Atlanta Dream narrowly defeated the Indiana Fever last night in a tightly contested and physical matchup at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, emerging with a 91-90 victory. Atlanta capitalize on their size and physicality for most of the game, until the Fever made a furious fourth-quarter rally but it was not enough to get the win at home.
Atlanta established an early lead, showcasing their stifling and physical defense that disrupted the Fever’s offense. They outshot Indiana in the paint during the first quarter, ending it with a 31-23 advantage. The Dream’s strong defensive presence continued throughout much of the game, making it difficult for the Fever to find consistent offensive flow.
Despite the defensive pressure, the Fever, lead by Caitlin Clark, began to claw their way back. Clark, who had a standout night with 27 points and 11 assists, hit crucial shots to keep Indiana in contention. Aliyah Boston followed-up her first game performance with 24 points and 10 rebounds, marking her second consecutive double-double. Kelsey Mitchell added 24 points to complete a potent scoring trio for the Fever.
Brittney Griner led Atlanta with 21 points and 8 rebounds in her first win with the team, while Rhyne Howard added 20 points, including key free throws in the final seconds. Brionna Jones contributed a double-double with 19 points and 13 rebounds, and Allisha Gray chipped in 16 points.
The fourth quarter was a nail-biter, with the Fever battling back from an 11-point deficit early in the period. Clark and Lexie Hull combined for nine points on three-pointers to close the gap, and Indiana took its second lead of the game with just 21 seconds remaining. However, a crucial foul sent Rhyne Howard to the free-throw line, where she sank both shots to retake the lead for Atlanta. Despite a last-ditch effort by the Fever at the buzzer, the Dream held on for the one-point victory.
The game was a physical affair, with both teams battling hard on every possession. While the Fever showed resilience in their comeback attempt, their 10 missed free throws and 14 turnovers ultimately proved costly.
The two teams will face off again on Thursday, with the Fever traveling to Atlanta for another anticipated matchup.
Steph Curry and Andrew Wiggins lead the Warriors to rout the Atlanta Hawks 120-97 on Wednesday evening. Andrew Wiggins lead the Warriors with his 27 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists outing in their win against the resurging Atlant Hawks. Prior to their game against the Warriors, Hawks won 3 game out of 4 including a win against the defending champs, the Boston Celtics.
Steph Curry added 23 points and help setup his teammates with 8 assists. The Warriors lead as much as 31 points in the first half but cut it just 15 points entering the 4th Qtr.
Third Year Jalen Johnson lead the Hawks with 15 points and 14 rebounds. French Rookie Zaccharie Risacher and Trae Young scored 12 points apiece. No other Hawks player scored more than 15 points in the game.
The Hawks will their last game of their four-game road trip this Friday against the Chicago Bulls, while the Warriors will visit the New Orleans Pelicans, also Friday evening.
They moved one step closer as Sabrina Ionescu tied a franchise playoff record with 36 points to help the Liberty beat the Atlanta Dream 91-82 on Tuesday night and advance to the semifinals of the WNBA playoffs.
The Liberty shouldn’t have any problem advancing to the 2nd round, since the Dream barely qualified for the playoffs. They need to move past the Las Vegas Aces to advance to the 2024 WNBA Finals.
The first game of the 2nd round of the WNBA Playoffs will on Sunday, September 29, 2024 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.
The Indiana Fever had their biggest comeback win of the WNBA season Sunday, rallying from a 16-point deficit to beat the Atlanta Dream 104-100 in overtime at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
One heck of a game by Indiana Fever, erasing a 16-point deficit and winning in OT. A monster game from Indiana Fever’s Big 3; Caitlin Clark had 26 points, 12 assists and 5 rebounds, her fifth 25 and 10 game of the season. Aliyah Boston scored a career-high 30 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and 5 assists, while Kelsey Mitchell added 21 points.
The scores;
Atlanta Dream 100 – N. Hillmon 5, T. Charles 17, A. Gray 15, J. Canada 17, R. Howard 36, N. Coffey 5, L. Cubaj 2, M. Caldwell 3, H. Jones 0, C. Parker-Tyus DNP, L. Amihere DNP, A. Powers DNP
Indiana Fever 104 – N. Smith 6, A. Boston 30, K. Mitchell 21, L. Hull 12, C. Clark 26, D. Dantas 0, K. Samuelson 0, T. Fagbenle 9, E. Wheeler 0, V. Saxton DNP, K. Wallace DNP, G. Berger DNP
The 1st round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs ended with a convincing victory for the Boston Celtics over the Atlanta Hawks in Game 6.
The Celtics dominated the 2nd of the game after a close 1st half, leading by as much as 8 points with a little more than 2-mins in the game. The Hawks are lead by Trae Young who had 30 points and 10 assists but missed 12 of 13 shots over the final two quarters.
Dejounte Murray returned to the Hawks lineup after receiving a one-game suspension for bumping an official at the end of Atlanta’s Game 4 loss, only scored 14 pts, 11 assists and 7 rebs but was a -13 in the plus/minus column.
The Hawks tried to mount a comeback to force a game 7, but the Celtics were prepared to take on any run by Hawks.
Former-Hawks Horford hit a huge 3-pointer to keep the Atlanta at bay. Jalen Brown and Jason Tatum led the Celtics, contributing 32 and 30 points, respectively. Al Horford chipped 10 points, 12 rebounds two steals and three blocks.
Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum go to WORK in the @celtics Game 6 win 🔥
The Celtics won 128 – 120 and advanced to the second round, where they will face the third-seeded Philadelphia 76ers this Monday night at the TD Garden.
The Miami Heat and the Atlanta Hawks faced off in a thrilling play-in game on Tuesday night, with a spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs on the line. The Hawks, led by their new coach Quin Snyder, who took over the team last February, showed their resilience and determination as they defeated the Miami Heat to secure a 116-105 victory.
The Heat, who were the defending conference champions, struggled to contain the Hawks’ dynamic duo of Trae Young and Clint Capela. Young, who averaged 26.2 points and 10.2 assists per game in the regular season, scored 25 points and dished out 7 assists in the win. Capela, who is top 7 in rebounding with 11.0 per game, dominated the paint with 21 rebounds, two blocks and 4 points.
The Hawks also got contributions from their supporting cast, as Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 14 points, John Collins added 10 points and four rebounds, and Dejounte Murray chipped in with 18 points, 6 assists and five rebounds. The Hawks shot 46% from the field and 24.4% from three-point range, while holding the Heat to 42.9% and 32.4%, respectively.
The Heat were led by Jimmy Butler, who had 21 points, four rebounds and 9 assists. Bam Adebayo contributed with 12 points and 9 rebounds, while Tyler Herro scored 26 points and two steals. The Heat were missing Victor Oladipo, who only played for just 9 mins and made just one assist.
The Hawks will now face the No. 2 seed Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs, starting on Saturday. The Heat will face the loser between the Toronto and Chicago game this Thursday.
