2023 Atlanta Dream season

Last updated

2023 Atlanta Dream season
Coach Tanisha Wright
Arena Gateway Center Arena
Attendance3,006 per game
Results
Record1921 (.475)
PlaceT-3rd (Eastern)
Playoff finish5th seed; Lost 1st Round 0–2 to Dallas
Team Leaders
Points Rhyne Howard – 17.5 ppg
Rebounds Cheyenne Parker – 6.7 rpg
Assists Rhyne Howard – 3.5 apg

The 2023 Atlanta Dream season was the 16th season for the Atlanta Dream of the Women's National Basketball Association, and their second season under head coach Tanisha Wright.

Contents

The Dream secured the third overall pick in the 2023 WNBA draft in the 2023 Draft Lottery. They entered the lottery with the 2nd best odds to get the first overall pick. [1]

Former assistant coach Christie Sides from the 2022 season left the team in the offseason after she was named the new head coach of the Indiana Fever. [2]

The Dream alternated losses and wins to begin the season and finished May with a 2–2 overall record. The pattern didn't carry over into June where the team lost its first three games of the month. However, fortunes turned as the Dream won their next three. Again, the team was streaky, and lost their next three games. They won the final game of the month to finish with a 4–6 record in June. The Dream carried that momentum into July as they won six straight games to start the month, and extended their winning streak to seven games. They lost two games back to back against Connecticut but won two of their last three games in the month to finish July 8–3. The Dream's good form did not carry over into August as they lost their first two games of the month. They did pick up a win before losing their next three. After stopping that losing streak with a win against Chicago, the Dream lost their next three games before ending the month with a win. A 3–8 August record left them in the hunt for a playoff spot entering the final month. They started September with an overtime loss against Minnesota before winning their next two games. The first of those wins secured them a playoff spot. They lost the final game of the regular season and finished in a three-way tie for fifth place. They finished September with a 2–2 record, which made their season record 19–21.

The Dream won the tiebreakers over both Minnesota and Washington. The tiebreaker was combined regular season record, where the Dream were 5–2. The Dream earned the fifth seed for the playoffs, which meant they would face off against the fourth seed Dallas Wings. In the first game, in Dallas, the Dream kept the game close, but ultimately came up short losing 82–94. The second game in Dallas was not as close and the Dream lost 74–101 to end their season. Their nineteen regular season wins were their highest total since 2018 and their playoff qualification was only their second in the last eight years.

Transactions

WNBA draft

RoundPickPlayerNationalitySchool/Team/Country
16 Haley Jones Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States Stanford
18 Laeticia Amihere Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada South Carolina
215 Leigha Brown Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States Michigan

Transactions

DateTransaction
December 20, 2022Extended Head Coach Tanisha Wright and General Manager Dan Padover to 5 Year Extensions [3]
January 13, 2023Extended Qualifying Offers to AD Durr and Beatrice Mompremier [4]
Traded Kristy Wallace to the Indiana Fever in exchange for Danielle Robinson [5]
January 21, 2023Traded the #3 Overall Pick in the 2023 WNBA draft and a First-Round Pick in 2025 to the Dallas Wings in exchange for Allisha Gray [6]
February 1, 2023Signed Nia Coffey and AD Durr [7]
February 3, 2023Signed Monique Billings [8]
February 9, 2023Traded Tiffany Hayes to the Connecticut Sun in exchange for the 6th Overall Pick in the 2023 WNBA draft [9]
Hired Vickie Johnson as Assistant Coach [10]
February 11, 2023Claimed and Awarded Iliana Rupert of a Waivers [11]
February 21, 2023Signed Beatrice Mompremier to the Qualifying Offer - Training Camp Contract [12]
February 24, 2023Exercised 4th-Year Team Option on Aari McDonald
March 2, 2023Signed Mikayla Pivec to a Training Camp Contract [13]
March 7, 2023Signed Allisha Gray to a Contract Extension [14]
March 8, 2023Signed Lorela Cubaj to a Training Camp Contract [15]
March 9, 2023Signed Cheyenne Parker to a Contract Extension [14]
April 13, 2023Signed Laeticia Amihere to a Rookie Scale Contract
April 17, 2023Waived Beatrice Mompremier [16]
April 18, 2023Signed Haley Jones and Leigha Brown to Rookie Scale Contracts
April 20, 2023Signed Alaina Coates to a Training Camp Contract [17]
May 5, 2023Waived Alaina Coates and Mikayla Pivec [18]
May 16, 2023Traded Leigha Brown to the Connecticut Sun in exchange for a 2025 third-round pick [19]
May 18, 2023Temporarily suspended the contract of Iliana Rupert due to Overseas Commitments [20]
June 3, 2023Waived Lorela Cubaj [21]
June 5, 2023Signed Taylor Mikesell [22]
July 3, 2023Waived Taylor Mikesell [23]
July 4, 2023Activated the temporarily suspended contract of Iliana Rupert due to Overseas Commitments [24]

Roster Changes

Roster

2023 Atlanta Dream roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#Nat.NameHeightWeightDOBFromYrs
F 7 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Amihere, Laeticia 6' 3" (1.91m)185 lb (84kg)07-10-2001 South Carolina R
F 25 Flag of the United States.svg Billings, Monique 6' 3" (1.91m)192 lb (87kg)12-15-1998 UCLA 5
F 12 Flag of the United States.svg Coffey, Nia   Cruz Roja.svg 6' 1" (1.85m)182 lb (83kg)1995-06-11 Northwestern 6
G 23 Flag of the United States.svg Durr, AD 5' 10" (1.78m)151 lb (68kg)04-05-1997 Louisville 2
G 15 Flag of the United States.svg Gray, Allisha   Cruz Roja.svg 6' 0" (1.83m)167 lb (76kg)1995-01-12 South Carolina 6
F 00 Flag of the United States.svg Hillmon, Naz 6' 2" (1.88m)190 lb (86kg)04-05-2000 Michigan 1
F 10 Flag of the United States.svg Howard, Rhyne 6' 2" (1.88m)175 lb (79kg)04-29-2000 Kentucky 1
G/F 13 Flag of the United States.svg Jones, Haley 6' 1" (1.85m)187 lb (85kg)05-23-2001 Stanford R
G 2 Flag of the United States.svg McDonald, Aari 5' 6" (1.68m)141 lb (64kg)1998-08-20 Arizona 2
C 32 Flag of the United States.svg Parker, Cheyenne 6' 4" (1.93m)193 lb (88kg)1993-08-22 Middle Tennessee 8
G 3 Flag of the United States.svg Robinson, Danielle 5' 9" (1.75m)137 lb (62kg)1989-05-10 Oklahoma 11
C 21 Flag of France.svg Rupert, Iliana 6' 4" (1.93m)189 lb (86kg)07-12-2001France1
Head coach
Flag of the United States.svg Tanisha Wright (Penn State
Assistant coaches
Flag of the United States.svg Vickie Johnson (Louisiana Tech)
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Paul Goriss
Flag of the United States.svg Barbara Turner (Connecticut)
Athletic trainer

Flag of the United States.svg Natalie Trotter

Strength and conditioning coach

Flag of the United States.svg Drew Williams


Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (IN) Inactive
  • (S) Suspended
  • Cruz Roja.svg Injured

Depth

Pos.StarterBench
PG Danielle Robinson Aari McDonald
SG Allisha Gray Haley Jones
SF Rhyne Howard AD Durr
PF Nia Coffey Cruz Roja.svg Naz Hillmon
Laeticia Amihere
C Cheyenne Parker Monique Billings
Iliana Rupert

Schedule

Preseason

2023 pre-season game log
Total: 0–2 (Home: 0–1; Road: 0–1)
May: 0–2 (Home: 0–1; Road: 0–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance
Record
1May 10@ Washington L 76–88 Allisha Gray (14) Leigha Brown (8) Haley Jones (6) Entertainment and Sports Arena
3,612
0–1
2May 14 Connecticut L 68–85 Allisha Gray (12) Cheyenne Parker (7) Danielle Robinson (4) Gateway Center Arena
N/A
0–2
2023 pre-season schedule

Regular Season

2023 game log
Total: 19–21 (Home: 11–9; Road: 8–12)
May: 2–2 (Home: 1–1; Road: 1–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance
Record
1May 20@ Dallas L 78–83 Rhyne Howard (20) Cheyenne Parker (11) Allisha Gray (7) College Park Center
5,588
0–1
2May 23@ Minnesota W 83–77 Allisha Gray (26) Allisha Gray (10) Howard
McDonald (6)
Target Center
7,803
1–1
3May 28 Indiana L 87–90 Rhyne Howard (23) Cheyenne Parker (6) Allisha Gray (4) Gateway Center Arena
3,209
1–2
4May 30 Chicago W 83–65 Rhyne Howard (20) Coffey
Parker (8)
Coffey
Hillmon (4)
Gateway Center Arena
2,562
2–2
July : 8–3 (Home: 5–1; Road: 3–2)
August : 3–8 (Home: 3–2; Road: 0–6)
September : 2–2 (Home: 1–1; Road: 1–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance
Record
37September 1@ Minnesota L 85–91 (OT) Cheyenne Parker (20) Monique Billings (10) Rhyne Howard (6) Target Center
7,114
17–20
38September 6 Seattle W 79–68 Allisha Gray (18) Monique Billings (14) Howard
McDonald (7)
Gateway Center Arena
2,731
18–20
39September 8@ Washington W 80–75 Rhyne Howard (21) Rhyne Howard (12) Rhyne Howard (4) Entertainment and Sports Arena
4,210
19–20
40September 10 Dallas L 77–94 Rhyne Howard (19) Monique Billings (7) Rhyne Howard (7) Gateway Center Arena
3,207
19–21
2023 season schedule

Playoffs

2023 playoff game log
First Round vs. Dallas
Lost Series: 0–2
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance
Series
1September 15@ Dallas L 82–94 Rhyne Howard (36) Billings
Parker (8)
Robinson
Parker (4)
College Park Center
5,053
0–1
2September 19@ Dallas L 74–101 Rhyne Howard (21) Allisha Gray (7) Allisha Gray (6) College Park Center
4,798
0–2
2023 playoff schedule

Standings

#Team
W L PCT GB Conf. Home Road Cup
1xLas Vegas Aces 346.85018–219–115–59–1
2xNew York Liberty 328.800216–415–517–37–3
3xConnecticut Sun 2713.675714–613–714–67–3
4xDallas Wings 2218.5501211–911–911–96–4
5xAtlanta Dream 1921.4751511–911–98–126–4
6xMinnesota Lynx 1921.4751512–89–1110–105–5
7xWashington Mystics 1921.475159–1112–87–135–5
8xChicago Sky 1822.450165–157–1311–93–7
9eLos Angeles Sparks 1723.425179–1110–107–135–5
10eIndiana Fever 1327.325215–156–147–132–8
11eSeattle Storm 1129.275238–124–167–134–6
12ePhoenix Mercury 931.225252–188–121–191–9

Notes

(#) – League Standing
x – Clinched playoff berth
e – Eliminated from postseason contention
Source: Overall standings and Commissioner's Cup Standings

Playoffs

Round One:
Best-of-3
Semifinals:
Best-of-5
Finals:
Best-of-5
         
1 Las Vegas Aces 2
8 Chicago Sky 0
1 Las Vegas Aces 3
4 Dallas Wings 0
4 Dallas Wings 2
5 Atlanta Dream 0
1 Las Vegas Aces 3
2 New York Liberty 1
2 New York Liberty 2
7 Washington Mystics 0
2 New York Liberty 3
3 Connecticut Sun 1
3 Connecticut Sun 2
6 Minnesota Lynx 1

Bold Series winner

Statistics

Legend
  GPGames played  GS Games started MPG Minutes per game RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game SPG  Steals per game BPG  Blocks per game PPG Points per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage 3P%  3-point field-goal percentage FT%  Free-throw percentage TO  Turnovers per game
 PF  Fouls per gameTeam leaderLeague leader

Regular Season

PlayerGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
Rhyne Howard 393932.9.385.352.7884.93.51.30.617.5
Allisha Gray 383832.7.465.356.8244.93.11.10.417.1
Cheyene Parker 403826.7.483.278.8296.71.81.11.515.0
Aari McDonald 24923.5.402.321.7622.03.00.60.07.9
Nia Coffey 313121.9.432.402.6254.81.50.51.26.9
Danielle Robinson 322721.6.461.290.7502.23.30.70.15.8
Monique Billings 39916.7.407.000.8365.00.80.40.34.8
AD Durr 36010.9.380.322.7691.10.70.30.14.8
Naz Hillmon 40313.5.509.000.8523.40.70.20.14.1
Haley Jones 40614.6.337.214.7562.42.30.40.33.7
Laeticia Amihere 2007.4.405.000.5371.00.20.30.52.8
Taylor Mikesell 604.8.500.4291.0000.30.30.00.02.8
Iliana Rupert 2007.9.353.273.6252.00.50.40.41.8
Lorela Cubaj 306.3.000.000.0002.30.00.00.30.0


Waived/Released during the season
Traded during the season
Acquired during the season

Playoffs

PlayerGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
Rhyne Howard 2237.5.431.458.6673.52.02.00.528.5
Allisha Gray 2236.0.424.385.7007.04.01.50.520.0
Cheyenne Parker 2233.5.323.500.7506.52.01.02.013.0
Monique Billings 2223.5.286.000.6257.00.00.50.04.5
Haley Jones 103.01.000.0001.0000.00.00.00.04.0
Aari McDonald 2018.0.273.250.0001.02.51.00.03.5
Danielle Robinson 2222.0.200.000.7501.54.01.00.02.5
Iliana Rupert 1014.01.000.000.0003.00.00.01.02.0
AD Durr 205.0.500.0001.0000.00.50.00.02.0
Naz Hillmon 2014.01.000.000.0002.01.00.50.01.0
Laeticia Amihere 103.0.000.000.0000.00.00.00.00.0

Awards and honors

RecipientAwardDate awardedRef.
Allisha Gray WNBA All-Star July 1 [25]
Cheyenne Parker WNBA All-Star July 1 [25]
Rhyne Howard WNBA All-Star Injury Replacement July 11 [26]
Tanisha Wright Coach of the Month - July August 2 [27]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlanta Dream</span> Womens basketball team

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allisha Gray</span> American basketball player (born 1995)

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The 2023 WNBA season was the 27th season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The defending champions, the Las Vegas Aces, repeated as champions after defeating the New York Liberty 3 games to 1 in the Finals.

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References

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  2. "Indiana Fever Hire Christie Sides as Head Coach". fever.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
  3. "WNBA's Atlanta Dream Make Long-Term Commitment to Head Coach and General Manager". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
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  6. "Atlanta Dream Land Allisha Gray". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
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  13. "Atlanta Dream Sign Mikayla Pivec to Training Camp Contract". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  14. 1 2 "Atlanta Dream Sign Allisha Gray to Contract Extension". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
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  17. "Atlanta Dream Sign Alaina Coates". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved April 22, 2023.
  18. @ATLDreamPR (May 5, 2023). "The Atlanta Dream have waived center Alaina Coates and guard Mikayla Pivec" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  19. "Connecticut Sun Acquires Leigha Brown in Trade with Atlanta Dream". sun.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
  20. @AtlantaDream (May 18, 2023). "Our 2023 Start of Season Roster is here! #DoItForTheDream 🅰️🔥" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  21. "Atlanta Dream Waive Lorela Cubaj". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  22. "Atlanta Dream Add Taylor Mikesell". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  23. @AtlantaDream (July 3, 2023). "Thank you, @TMikesell23 ♥️" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  24. @AtlantaDream (July 4, 2023). "The Atlanta Dream have activated center Iliana Rupert. #atlantadream" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  25. 1 2 "Connecticut Sun's Alyssa Thomas, Washington Mystics' Elena Delle Donne Highlight Reserves For 2023 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  26. "Atlanta Dream's Rhyne Howard to Replace Washington Mystics' Elena Delle Donne in 2023 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game". wnba.com. WNBA. July 11, 2023. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  27. Kennedy, Alex (August 2, 2023). "Breanna Stewart, A'ja Wilson are WNBA Players of the Month for July". basketballnews.com. Retrieved August 2, 2023.