Dream selling out NBA arena for WNBA Finals shows how times have changed for the franchise

ATLANTA (AP) — With the Dream clicking in the WNBA Finals, so are the ticket turnstiles in Atlanta.

Three years after barely averaging 3,000 fans for the 2023 season — and ranking near the bottom of the league in home attendance numbers since then — the Dream are the hottest ticket in town.

They had a raucous, sellout crowd of 17,099 at State Farm Arena in a frenzy during Wednesday night’s 97-71 win over Golden State that gave Atlanta a 2-1 lead in the series. The Dream expect more of the same for Saturday’s Game 4.

Atlanta fans made a statement against Golden State, which led the league in attendance this season and is known as one of the toughest places to play after just two years in the league. But the Dream earned a split the first two games of the series at Chase Center, which the Valkyries call Ballhalla.

“Man, our fans showed up,” Dream foward Angel Reese said. “Like they showed up in every single possession. I thought Ballhalla was loud. Atlanta, you all came out, on Wednesday, on a school night, they have to work tomorrow. I appreciate y’all for coming out and supporting us and being loud on every single possession and cheering and being super consistent.”

Reese challenged the fans to “run it back” with another sellout on Saturday and added “I’m looking forward to it.”

The surge in popularity is a dramatic development for the Dream, who have played in several venues since making their debut as an expansion team in 2008:

— The team’s most recent home was Gateway Center Arena, which has a capacity of about 3,500.

— The Dream also have played home games at Georgia Tech’s McCamish Pavilion and Gas South Arena in Duluth, an Atlanta suburb.

The Dream hope that is all just past history.

On Oct. 6, the team announced it will play all its home games at State Farm Arena beginning next season after landing a multiyear agreement with the venue.

The momentum generated by the franchise’s first WNBA Finals wins is the perfect springboard to sharing the facility with the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks. By comparison, when playing at small Gateway Center Arena the Dream shared the facility with the Hawks’ G League affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks.

Dream guard Rhyne Howard, who has been with the team since 2022, can appreciate the significance of the sellout crowd and the 2027 full-time move to the downtown arena. Howard said the fans played a role in the runaway win.

“I think just the fact that we fought for this stadium,” Howard said. “The fact that people fought to get in here, sellout crowd, and they were on time and they showed out. There wasn’t a moment during the game except for free throws or something where they were quiet. I definitely think that helped us.

“It played a part because we just went and we had two tough games in their environment. Now to be able to come back and give them a taste of their own medicine, it was special. The city of Atlanta, I’m sure if the stadium was bigger it would still be a sellout crowd. Because that’s how much we mean to the city, that’s how much they support us and we’re going to continue to have their backs like they’ve got ours.”

The WNBA and the Dream have not announced how they will handle a scheduling conflict with the Atlanta Hawks if a Game 6 in Atlanta is necessary on Thursday. The Hawks have a home game scheduled on that night against Cleveland.

Saturday’s Game 4 of the WNBA Finals was moved to 1 p.m. to clear a conflict with the Hawks’ home opener against Houston on Saturday night.

Before this season, the primary reason for the Dream to move games from Gateway to State Farm Arena was to accommodate visits from Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever. It was Clark, not the Dream, who received primary credit for sellouts in those guest appearances at State Farm.

Now the enthusiasm is for the Dream instead of a visiting star. Valkyries guard Tiffany Hayes, who played for Atlanta from 2012-22, took note of the Dream drawing the support the Valkyries expect.

“It was cool,” Hayes said after Wednesday night’s game. “I mean, I’m used to it. We’re used to it. It was a nice atmosphere. We’re happy everyone came and showed love to women’s basketball.”

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