Atlanta Dream players and head coach Karl Smesko are maintaining focus ahead of Thursday's historic Game 6 of the WNBA Finals against the Golden State Valkyries, despite controversy over the unusual 12:30 p.m. ET start time.
Scheduling controversy
The game was moved to a midday tip-off after the Dream's regular playoff venue, Gateway Center Arena, proved too small at 3,500 seats, and State Farm Arena was unavailable due to an Atlanta Hawks game. The change sparked criticism from Dream ownership and fans, but the team says it has not been a distraction.
Team mindset
"I haven't really heard them mention much about it, so I think we're handling it great," Smesko said. "We're trying to focus on the basketball and let other people take care of that."
Star forward Angel Reese, who was held to 15 points combined in the last two games, said the team had a productive film session Wednesday. "We are able to see in film that a lot of these things are just us, like missing shots or turning the ball over," Reese said. "Just kind of figuring that thing out is really just keeping us together."
Veteran DeWanna Bonner dismissed concerns about the timing. "It's just win or die. No matter what the timing says, you can't even worry about that," she said. "We haven't lost confidence."
Series context
The Valkyries have won the last two games, 67-62 in Atlanta and 64-55 in San Francisco, to take a 3-2 series lead after the Dream won Game 3, 97-91. This is the first Game 6 in WNBA Finals history since the championship series adopted a best-of-seven format in 2025. A Dream victory would force a Game 7 at Chase Center on Halloween.
