WNBA Sensation: Dream Sweeps Liberty for First Finals Bid Since 2013!

Exactly one year ago, Angel Reese made a prophetic declaration on social media, stating "manifesting the finals" while watching Game 4 of the 2025 WNBA Finals. This personal manifestation came to fruition on Friday night as Reese led the Atlanta Dream to their first WNBA Finals appearance since 2013. The Dream secured an 85-83 victory over the New York Liberty in a series-clinching Game 3 on the road, completing a dominant 3-0 semifinal sweep.

Reese, in her inaugural postseason, showcased exceptional performance, averaging 20.7 points and 7.7 rebounds throughout the semifinal series. Reflecting on her journey, Reese attributed her success to the power of positive thinking and divine intervention. "I manifest a lot of things," Reese stated. "I think it's important to speak positive into your life, positive into your team. But this is all God. I'm just so thankful, and I'm blessed to be able to be in this situation. A lot of people wish they were here, and I'm not going to take this moment for granted. I'm here for a reason. We're all here for a reason." She emphasized the importance of speaking things into existence: "It just shows the power of the tongue. Being able to speak things into your life. When you speak positive things in your life, it happens. You manifest big things and big dreams and have those goals and you can do anything you put your mind to."

The Atlanta Dream will now face the Golden State Valkyries in the WNBA Finals, scheduled to begin on October 17. The Valkyries also achieved a sweep in their semifinal series, defeating the defending champions, the Las Vegas Aces. Golden State has opened as -125 favorites to win the championship.

Reese's path to the Finals is particularly noteworthy given her situation at this point last season. She was a member of the Chicago Sky, following a disappointing campaign that saw her critical of the team's roster. This led to her trade to Atlanta in April. Since joining the Dream, Reese has had a stellar year, earning her third All-Star nod, being named Defensive Player of the Year, and winning a gold medal with Team USA at the FIBA World Cup.

After the series-clinching win, Reese was the last player to leave the court, embracing friends and family, and finally allowing herself to exhale. "Just knowing I belong here," Reese said. "Knowing, coming to Atlanta, how much I wanted to help this team and do whatever it takes. Not just to get out of the first round, not just to get out the semis, but to make it to the Finals and win a championship. And the job is not done. We're definitely happy about where we are right now, but we're not satisfied."

The Dream's success has been heavily influenced by their transformation into an elite defensive unit, a quality that was evident throughout the series against the Liberty. New York was limited to 82 points in Game 1 and 83 points in Game 3. Even in Game 2, which extended into overtime, the Liberty committed 17 turnovers, and All-Star guard Sabrina Ionescu was held to just 10 points. Impressively, the Dream achieved this sweep despite four-time All-Star Allisha Gray missing the final two games due to a hand injury.

Key contributions in Game 3 included Rhyne Howard's 21 points, Jordin Canada's 19 points and 11 assists, and DeWanna Bonner's 13 points and 13 rebounds. The Liberty had a late opportunity to tie or take the lead with 17.7 seconds remaining, but Breanna Stewart's 5-foot jumper, despite her 26 points and 6 assists, did not fall. Stewart acknowledged the missed opportunity, stating, "I think that I needed to just have a little bit better touch when you're going off the backboard. But those are positions that you want to be in. That's the shot that I want to take. It hurts because you don't always make those shots."

Dream coach Karl Smesko expressed his relief and satisfaction with finishing the series promptly. "The last thing we wanted to do is to have them have an opportunity to get a win and feel some momentum. So we're glad we took care of it today," Smesko remarked. He added, "We're at the point right now where we'd like to be playing every couple days. We're playing really well, but we will make the most of this time to be as prepared as we can be."