Ahead of the 12:30 p.m. ET tip-off for Game 6, the Golden State Valkyries were on cloud nine after finding their defensive identity against the Atlanta Dream in Games 4 and 5 to forge a 3-2 lead in the WNBA Finals. However, head coach Karl Smesko gave the Valkyries a reality check at State Farm Arena right from the get-go. In the first quarter, the Dream scored a massive 32 points to the Valkyries’ 15, removing all hope of a comeback. From watching their grip on the WNBA Finals slip away to having one hand on the trophy, and now finding themselves at a stalemate, the Valkyries have experienced the full spectrum of emotions in this series, as Veronica Burton shared her blunt takeaway on what went wrong for the Valkyries in Game 6.
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“They scored 32 points in the first quarter. That’s unacceptable on our end… Got to play better defense. Obviously, they’re hitting good shots and getting good looks. I think we were sped up a little bit, but we cleaned it up in the other quarters defensively. But can’t let that happen right out the gate. You need a sense of urgency. This is the WNBA Finals,” Veronica Burton told reporters in the postgame press conference, per the WNBA’s YouTube channel.
In the first quarter, the Dream shot 11-of-15 from the field and 6-of-8 from outside the arc. By the end of the first half, the Dream already put 46 points on the sheet. This is particularly disappointing for head coach Natalie Nakase’s side, which restricted the Dream to only 62 and 55 points in Games 4 and 5, respectively. The Valkyries entered the postseason with the best defensive rating (99.3), so losing to the Dream 80-69 in the Finals is as disappointing as it gets. To the Valkyries’ credit, they did outscore the Dream 21-17 and 22-17 after the break, but it was already too late.
It was a frustrating night for Burton individually too. The Valkyries guard finished with eight points on 2-of-13 shooting with six rebounds and four assists. She also received a flagrant foul midway through the third quarter after officials determined that Burton committed an unnecessary windup and made contact with Rhyne Howard’s face while she was driving to the basket. The Dream were awarded two free throws and possession, which just added to the Valkyries’ abysmal afternoon.
Simply put, the Valkyries did not look ready for the barrage of attacks the Dream unleashed from the start, as Nakase expressed disappointment with her team’s lack of urgency in Game 6.
“Just frustrated me really… Just unacceptable in our poor start. So just more frustration,” Nakase said when asked if she was surprised her team came out flat.
Even the 2025 WNBA Coach of the Year said she didn’t have an answer after a reporter asked why the Valkyries couldn’t execute on their urgency.
“I’m just trying to explain to you that we’re all right now not happy with how it started… And so I want to go back, give them their time right now to get their bodies right, get their mental right, get their nutrition right (and) let them just sit in it. And then when I get on the plane, I’ll start having these conversations. So I don’t have the answers for you guys right now, in a second. But for me, I need clarity. I need some information,” Nakase said.
Gabby Williams, who scored a game-high 26 points on 8-of-22 shooting, also expressed displeasure with the Valkyries’ showing and pointed out that their defensive performance would be key to start Game 7 brightly. Just like Burton, the French star had no excuses for the Valkyries’ disappointing afternoon. When asked by a reporter whether the early tip-off affected the team, the 30-year-old said, “They (the Dream) played at the same time as us, right? So it’s not an excuse; we have to be better,” Williams said.
The early tip-off was one of the biggest talking points ahead of Game 6, which put the WNBA’s planning under a microscope. But the Dream’s Allisha Gray did not care about it. “It’s the Finals. We just got to do what we’ve got to do. We are locked in on winning Game 6 whether it’s 8 a.m., 10 p.m., midnight. We got a championship to win,” Gray said ahead of Thursday afternoon.
Sure enough, Gray, along with Howard, fired on all cylinders. The Dream guard scored a team-high 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting and 5-of-7 from outside the arc, with six rebounds and three assists, while Howard recorded 21 points on 6-of-11 shooting and 4-of-6 from the three-point line. Meanwhile, Defensive Player of the Year Angel Reese surpassed former Minnesota Lynx star Sylvia Fowles’ 2017 Finals record of 75 rebounds. With her double-double of 15 points and 14 rebounds, Reese now leads this category with 78 rebounds.
“Every time we threw the first punch, we won the game. So, just being able to set the tone early. We ain’t have everybody come out at 12:30 for no reason. We appreciate the fans’ support on a weekday. They came out and supported us every single day, every single game. So, we wanted to make sure we ended this right here,” Reese said after the game.
The Atlanta Dream have now forced the first-ever Game 7 of the WNBA Finals on the Golden State Valkyries. With three wins each, it has been a topsy-turvy affair. Sometimes, the Valkyries’ defense has shone. Other times, the Dream’s overwhelming offense has provided the finishing touch. The two best words in sports are bound to bring out the best in both teams’ players, so it will be interesting to see which side lifts their first WNBA championship on Saturday.