The Atlanta Dream have come close to a WNBA championship before, but the final step has always eluded them. The Golden State Valkyries, meanwhile, are chasing history in just their second season after joining the league as an expansion team in 2025. So with both franchises eyeing their first-ever title, the 2026 WNBA Finals were always going to be historic. Yet, even before the series began, ticket prices had already made history, climbing to unprecedented levels.

With Games 3 and 4 set to take place at State Farm Arena, which holds more than 17,000 fans, Atlanta is already seeing demand like never before. According to TickPick, the current get-in price for Game 3 stands at $201, making it the most expensive WNBA Finals game on record.

“The Angel effect is real 😳 Game 3 in Atlanta is the most expensive WNBA Finals game on record, with the current get-in price at $201. For perspective, tickets to Game 1 of last year’s Finals sold for just $23. Nearly NINE TIMES the price 👀,” NBA Central wrote on X.

However, while ticket prices have made history, can the Atlanta Dream achieve an extraordinary feat of their own? Before they return to Atlanta for Games 3 and 4, Angel Reese and Co. will have to navigate the first two games on the road at Chase Center, where the Golden State Valkyries will look to defend their home court and seize control of the series.

Both teams have made a compelling case for why they belong here. Led by Reese and Rhyne Howard, the Dream finished the regular season with a 30-14 record, the fourth-best mark in the league, before sweeping the New York Liberty in the semifinals. Golden State, meanwhile, went 32-12 to secure the second-best record and followed that up by sweeping the defending champion Las Vegas Aces. So neither team has left much room for doubt during its playoff run, setting the stage for a Finals matchup between two sides with very different strengths.

The Atlanta Dream’s biggest weapon has been its defense. With Reese, the 2026 Defensive Player of the Year, anchoring the paint, the Dream have made life difficult for opposing offenses throughout the postseason. Three of the league’s top four players in steals per game during the playoffs are from Atlanta, with Rhyne Howard and Jordin Canada averaging 2.2 steals each and Allisha Gray close behind at 2.0. Their relentless pressure on the perimeter disrupts passing lanes and forces opponents out of their rhythm.

Even when teams manage to penetrate the defense, Reese remains a formidable presence inside, averaging 2.2 blocks per game in the postseason, tied for the second-highest mark with Breanna Stewart. But the Dream have been just as dangerous at the other end of the floor too.

Averaging 92.6 points per game, Atlanta enters the Finals as the highest-scoring team in the playoffs, having won all five of its postseason games without a single loss. That balance between defensive pressure and offensive firepower has made the Dream one of the toughest teams to overcome. Still, Reese knows the job is far from finished.

“The job is not done. We’re definitely happy about where we are right now, but we’re not satisfied. I think we just continue to push every single day, get back to work,” she said during her postgame interview after Atlanta’s series-clinching win over New York.

Now, that hunger for a championship will be put to the test. Despite the Atlanta Dream’s dominant postseason, the team enters the Finals having lost all three of their regular-season matchups against Golden State. Yet it’s the Valkyries’ depth that could prove particularly important over a seven-game series.

Golden State’s bench averaged 35.9 points per game during the regular season to surpass the previous WNBA record of 35.0 set by the 2020 Las Vegas Aces. And against a team that thrives on defensive intensity, the ability to generate offense from multiple sources could become a decisive factor.

Game 1 tips off Saturday, October 17, at Chase Center. The Valkyries will look to carry their regular-season success against Atlanta into the biggest series in franchise history. The Dream, meanwhile, will aim to keep their unbeaten playoff run alive and move a step closer to a championship that has eluded the franchise for years. So with both teams chasing their first WNBA title, the battle for control begins in San Francisco.