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Valkyries vs. Dream: the 2026 WNBA Finals will crown a first-time champion

By McKinley Malbrough III, J.D., MS-HRM · Certified WNBA player agent · Former certified NBA agent

Published October 13, 2026. Last updated October 13, 2026.

When and where are the Finals games?

Games 1 and 2 are at Chase Center in San Francisco, and Games 3 and 4 are at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. The Atlanta dates moved after an arena conflict, covered in the post on the Dream’s Finals arena scramble. Times are Eastern, per Front Office Sports for the original schedule and the Deseret News for the Atlanta changes.

*If necessary. Game 3 airs on CNBC and USA Network and Game 4 on NBC, with Peacock streaming both, per the Deseret News.

How did each team reach the Finals?

Golden State went 32-12 as the No. 2 seed, survived a three-game first round against Dallas and swept the defending champion Las Vegas Aces, per Newsweek. In their second season, the Valkyries are the quickest expansion team to reach the Finals in the league's 30-year history, per the Associated Press. Their build started with the 2024 expansion draft.

Atlanta went 30-14, swept the Washington Mystics and then the New York Liberty, per FOX 5 Atlanta. It is the Dream's first Finals since 2013. They were swept in 2010, 2011 and 2013, per the AP.

Who are the players to watch?

• Gabby Williams, Valkyries: signed in free agency, she has averaged 22.7 points in the playoffs, up from 14.4 in the regular season, per the AP.
• Kayla Thornton, Valkyries: led Golden State with 18 points in the overtime clincher against Las Vegas, per Newsweek.
• Angel Reese, Dream: Defensive Player of the Year in her first season in Atlanta, per FOX 5 Atlanta.
• Allisha Gray, Dream: the team's leading scorer, who hurt her left hand in the semifinal opener and missed the next two games, per the AP.
• Rhyne Howard and DeWanna Bonner, Dream: Howard is one of Atlanta's three named stars with Reese and Gray, and Bonner was added late in the season, per the AP.

What decides the series?

Defense, and whether Atlanta can solve a team it has not beaten. Golden State won all three regular-season meetings, the last on July 4, and both teams play top-tier defense, so the AP expects low scores. Golden State leans on 3-point shooting and bench depth. Both teams have had about a week off.

The coaching matchup is just as new. Natalie Nakase, the 2025 Coach of the Year, won two titles as an Aces assistant, per KQED. Karl Smesko set the WNBA record for wins by a first-year head coach in 2025, per CBS Sports.

What does a first-time champion mean for the league?

It shows how fast the league's map is moving. One finalist is a 2025 expansion team; the other has played since 2008. Sportico ranked Golden State first in franchise value at $850 million and Atlanta last at $280 million in May, per Just Women’s Sports, a gap explained in why the Valkyries are the most valuable team.

A title for either team adds a champion's market to a league with three more expansion teams on the way, and the pay players can earn in that market is set by the new WNBA salary structure.