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In a season marred by damage and inconsistency, the Atlanta Dream (7-11) loved some uplifting information on Tuesday. Allisha Grey was named a 2024 WNBA All-Star; it’s her second-straight, and second total, honor.
The announcement got here after she scored 19 factors in Atlanta’s 87-77 dwelling loss to the Chicago Sky. Earlier than that, Grey turned in a robust offensive effort towards the New York Liberty on Sunday, though her 24 factors got here in one other loss because the Dream let what was as soon as a 16-point lead wither away right into a 81-75 defeat.
These performances, nonetheless, are outliers. For a lot of the season, a superb sport from Grey has resulted a win for Atlanta. Whereas most gamers are higher in wins than losses, Grey’s differential has been fairly pronounced by way of the primary half of the 2024 season. Within the Dream’s seven victories, she’s averaged 18.9 factors per sport on 50 % taking pictures, together with 59.0 % from 3. Within the crew’s 11 losses, she’s managing simply 13.8 factors per sport on 38.2 % taking pictures total and 26.4 % from 3. In complete, she’s scoring 15.8 factors per sport on 42.8 % taking pictures, together with 3.9 rebounds, 2.2 assists and a steal per sport. For Atlanta to flee their near-perpetual malaise, they want Grey to submit surefire All-Star numbers extra continuously.
Oh, Canada!
After lacking her first 14 video games as a member of the Dream resulting from a hand damage, Jordin Canada lastly made her debut on June 23 towards the Liberty. Three video games later, Canada once more is sidelined, having suffered a damaged finger in Sunday’s loss to New York. She is predicted to be out till after the Olympic break.
The damage stalls the slivers of optimistic momentum Atlanta had begun to generate with Canada on the court docket, particularly on the offensive finish. Whereas she struggled by way of rust and a scarcity rhythm in her first sport, she had begun to look extra like herself within the subsequent three contests, bringing zest, zip and group to the Atlanta offense. Canada’s on-court presence coincided with a team-wide emphasis on pushing the tempo. As scoring within the halfcourt has been a problem for Atlanta, creating, after which cashing in on, semi-transition alternatives is a should. Canada’s eagerness to fireside hit-ahead passes helped Atlanta put extra stress on opposing defenses. In halfcourt conditions, she additionally injected the Dream offense with extra juice, highlighted by her skill to interrupt the paint to get to the bucket or kick out to shooters. These traits gave the Dream offense an intentionality it had lacked in her absence, and with Rhyne Howard nonetheless out with an ankle damage, it’s arduous to think about offense persistently coming simple for Atlanta anytime quickly.
Welcome again, Maya?
A bit over every week in the past, Atlanta made their first in-season roster transfer, waiving Crystal Dangerfield and signing Maya Caldwell. Canada’s return obviated the necessity for Dangerfield; nonetheless, with Canada once more set to overlook a major chunk of time, the Dream could determine to maneuver on from Caldwell so as to add one other main ball handler.
Whereas comprehensible, that’d be unlucky, for, as she first proved in 2022 when taking part in 9 video games for the Dream, Caldwell is a viable, priceless WNBA participant. An athletic wing, she is an keen, attentive defender who additionally has some on the ball pop. Her 3-point taking pictures is her swing talent. In 2022, she shot an impressive, but unsustainable, 56.3 % from deep on 3.6 makes an attempt per sport. Final season with the Indiana Fever, her 3-point proportion sunk to the opposite excessive, as she transformed solely 13.8 % of her triples. To date, in 49 minutes throughout three video games, Caldwell is 3-for-8 from downtown, good for 37.5 %. If she will preserve that accuracy, all whereas firing away continuously and fearlessly, she can assist a Dream crew that presently is brief on aggressive, environment friendly perimeter scoring.
What’s subsequent for Atlanta?
On Friday, July 5, the Dream head to Texas to tackle the Dallas Wings (7:30 p.m. ET, ION). Will probably be the second assembly between the 2 groups; Atlanta defeated Dallas 83-78 on Could 21. From there, it’s on to the northeast, with the Dream visiting the Connecticut Solar on Sunday, July 7 (1 p.m. ET, League Go). Final Friday, the Dream took benefit of a Solar crew on the second evening of a back-to-back, getting the 78-74 win in Atlanta. Along with the absences of Canada and Howard, the Dream additionally stay with out Aerial Powers, who has been out since exiting final Friday’s victory with a calf damage.
