Dream's Gray expected to play in Game 1 of WNBA Finals — SkimNews
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- Allisha Gray is expected to return from an injured left ring finger for Game 1 of the WNBA Finals on Saturday against the Golden State Valkyries after missing Atlanta's two semifinal wins over New York, with coach Karl Smesko calling her status "trending in the right direction."
- Gray, 31, led Atlanta in scoring at 19 points per game this season and is the Dream's top outside shooter at 3.1 three-pointers per game — making her shooting hand the critical injury concern.
- Smesko said if Gray is cleared to play, he doesn't anticipate any restrictions beyond potential in-game discomfort with the hand.
- The best-of-seven Finals opens at sold-out Chase Center, pitting the top two defensive teams in the WNBA against each other.
- Golden State has sold out every home game during its two-year existence, and coach Natalie Nakase challenged fans this week to "do their own game-planning" for Game 1 in the "Ballhalla" atmosphere.
- Atlanta advanced by sweeping the defending-champion New York Liberty in the best-of-three semifinal round.
Why it matters: Gray is Atlanta's leading scorer (19 PPG) and primary three-point threat (3.1 per game), so her availability directly shapes the Dream's offensive ceiling in a Finals matchup against a Valkyries team that has won every regular-season home game at a deafening Chase Center. With the top two defenses in the league meeting, the series may hinge on which offense can generate enough outside shooting to break the other's half-court sets.
Ask SkimNews
