Brittney

Griner

Canada has put a lot of pressure on the rim and was incredibly efficient scoring the basketball. She couldn’t be stopped by the Fever’s perimeter defense as she scored often on Lexie Hull, Aeriel Powers and Kelsey Mitchell. Canada also made some incredibly difficult and shifty shots on her drives into the paint. But in addition to Canada’s scoring, she registered 10 assists and she distributed the ball to five different players in Allisha Gray, Rhyne Howard, Brionna Jones, Brittney Griner and Naz Hillmon. Between her scoring and assists, Canada was responsible for 41 of the Dream’s total 85 points, which over 48%.

Gray had a limited amount of shots on Wednesday night, but that probably is a result of the MVP candidate being on very top of the Sun’s scouting report. But also, head coach Karl Smesko was intentional about her minutes. She only played in 20 minutes, a minute total Gray probably will surpass in each playoff game she plays in beginning this Sunday. Gray didn’t get downhill as much as she usually does but rather just capitalized off of the Sun’s missed rotations on the perimeter. All of Gray’s field goals came on passes from either Rhyne Howard, Maya Caldwell or Te-Hina Paopao. Gray functioned much more as a facilitator on Wednesday night as she had five assists where she found Brionna Jones and Brittney Griner on lob passes in the post along with extra passes to Naz Hillmon and Howard who were more open than she was on the perimeter.

Griner had her most productive scoring outing since she was moved to the bench on August 10 after she missed a few games after dealing with a neck injury. With head coach Karl Smesko wanting to not play his starters too many heavy minutes just days before the playoffs begin, Griner got more of an extended opportunity. Also, the matchup against the Sun is advantageous for Griner in particular when she matches up against a smaller center in the Sun’s Tina Charles. Griner shot 63.6 percent from the field, mostly by getting great position on Charles, and then later in the game, Griner outmuscled the even smaller power forward Aaliayh Edwards, who was defending Griner. Griner also made WNBA history on Wednesday night, passing Swin Cash for 16th on the league’s all time rebounding list with 2,522 career boards.

Without Allisha Gray playing for a second straight game, the scoring came from Howard who tied two season highs in points scored and three-pointers made on Friday night. She hit four of her nine total three-pointers in the first quarter alone. All but one of Howard’s nine threes were assisted with passes coming from bigs Naz Hillmon and Brionna Jones and guards Jordin Canada and Te-Hina Paopao. Howard also had six assists herself to five different players including Jones, Brittney Griner, Maya Caldwell, Hillmon and Paopao. She kicked the ball to Hillmon and Caldwell for threes while finding Paopao cutting and Jones and Griner in their sweet spots less than ten feet from the basket.

In the minutes where Brionna Jones really struggled to begin the game, Dream head coach Karl Smeskso deployed back-up center Brittney Griner to play in her place and steady the Dream offense. Griner has at least six inches on Myisha Hines-Allen in height so she was able to exploit that matchup in ways that Jones struggled to. Griner scored 9 of her 11 total points in the first half on looks right in the paint. Griner also had two assists, two dump down passes to Allisha Gray and to Naz Hillmon. Both assists came off well timed off-ball movement from Gray and Hillmon as Griner brought the defense into the paint and found her teammates where the Wings defense wasn’t.

Gray took advantage of how the Wings guarded her. She attacked a lot of tight closeouts and blew by her defenders to attack and score in the paint. It’s not a surprise that Gray’s only three-point make came on a transition opportunity where the Wings defense wasn’t yet set. She also noticeably cut very well off the ball and helped her centers in Brittney Griner and Brionna Jones while they were getting hounded by the Wings defense. Gray’s performance on Friday night was her 29th total game of the 2025 regular season with over 15 points scored.

Jones was consistent throughout Saturday’s win, scoring efficiently in each quarter. The veteran center did all of her scoring inside the arc while remaining a force on the glass. She has had a productive season thus far and continues to lately, even with Brittney Griner’s move to a reserve role. Jones has still controlled the offensive interior alongside Naz Hillmon and is helping the Dream perform like one of the top teams in the WNBA. She’ll have a chance to impress again on Wednesday when the Dream plays the Aces.

Coming off the bench for a fifth consecutive game, Griner had one of her most productive outings of the season in Las Vegas. The veteran center did everything but make a three-pointer on Tuesday, with the 16 points being the most she’s scored in a game since Atlanta’s July 27 win over the league-leading Lynx. Griner has reached double figures in three of her last four games, but the bench role is one she had not been asked to assume at any point in her WNBA career. Naz Hillmon, who replaced Griner in the starting lineup, struggled mightily against the Aces. Missing all four of her field-goal attempts, Hillmon tallied one point with four rebounds and one steal. Hillmon has performed well as the starter and offers offensive spacing that’s lacking when Griner and Brionna Jones (6/5/0/2) are on the court together, so don’t expect Dream coach Karl Smesko to panic in the aftermath of Tuesday’s defeat.

Griner is back after missing three games with a neck injury. However, her minutes will be restricted, and the veteran center will come off the bench for the first time in her WNBA career. Naz Hillmon, who has meshed well with Brionna Jones, will remain in the starting lineup for at least one more game.

Griner has missed the Dream’s last three games, while Howard hasn’t played since the July 11 loss to the Fever. Atlanta has won four straight, including the most recent three that Griner has missed. Naz Hillmon has filled in for Griner in the starting lineup and produced 13.0 points, 11.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists over that span. Hillmon will likely start again if Griner is unavailable on Sunday, while either Maya Caldwell or Te-Hina Paopao will be candidates to start in Howard’s place.