Game 6 of the WNBA Finals between the Atlanta Dream and the Golden State Valkyries is set to take place at 12:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, and this is nothing less than a disastrous scenario. The Valkyries are just one win away from the championship, which means Thursday’s game might potentially be the final game of the 2026 season. So, for a league that has broken into the mainstream, holding the biggest game of this season during a workday in the afternoon has invited a lot of backlash. But Dan Wolken, an award-winning national columnist, has pointed to who exactly should be blamed for this mess.
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In his recent piece, the senior journalist blamed the league and the Dream for settling for the best of the worst options.
“It’s not happening because of misogyny. Or because the NBA is failing to support a league of which it owns 42%. Or because the Atlanta Hawks are being inflexible with their schedule or the arena whose dates they control,” he wrote. “It’s happening because the WNBA and the Atlanta Dream messed up, waited until the last minute for a fix and settled for what they believed the best of several bad options.”
The game will take place at State Farm Arena, and the unusual timing comes as the venue must also accommodate the Atlanta Hawks’ NBA matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers later that same evening.
The Atlanta Dream have traditionally played their home games at Gateway Center, a multipurpose venue near the Atlanta airport with a capacity of approximately 3,500. However, the franchise’s growing popularity, alongside the arrival of star forward Angel Reese, has increased the demand for a larger stage.
As a result, the Dream moved select marquee games and playoff contests to the Hawks’ home venue. So the complication this season is that potential WNBA Finals dates were not reserved at the arena, leaving the league and Atlanta to work around an existing NBA schedule.
The WNBA’s extended season has added another layer to the problem. With the league taking a midseason break for the 2026 FIBA Women’s World Cup, the Finals have stretched into the beginning of the NBA regular season, creating a scheduling overlap that was less of an issue last year when the WNBA wrapped its season on October 10.
Moving the Hawks-Cavaliers game or shifting the WNBA Finals to another venue would also present logistical challenges, particularly with limited notice.
However, while Wolken has pointed to the Dream waiting until the last minute to find a solution, the team’s ownership has offered a different account of how the scheduling conflict unfolded.
“Two months ago, when the WNBA finalized playoff dates and times, we raised concerns that the W Finals schedule conflicted with NBA games at State Farm Arena,” the Dream ownership said in an open letter to fans, as per an X post by Yahoo Sports. “As we moved through the playoffs, we reiterated those concerns. Our concerns did not receive the attention, nor the urgency that they deserved.”
Situations like these should be less complicated next season, when the Dream are expected to share State Farm Arena full-time with the Hawks. For now, though, the unusual timing of Game 6 has raised questions about how the league plans its biggest events as its popularity continues to grow.
Atlanta Dream head coach Karl Smesko disappointed as WNBA Finals Game 6 timing creates fan concerns
The biggest concern surrounding the schedule is what the unusual start time means for the fans who have helped make this Finals series such a success. State Farm Arena sold out Games 3 and 4, recording 17,099 fans at each contest. However, a 12:30 p.m. ET tip-off on a Thursday presents a different challenge, with many supporters having to work and juggle their weekday commitments.
Valkyries fans traveling from the West Coast face an even bigger hurdle, while those hoping to watch from home will have to tune in at 9:30 a.m. PT.
Moving the Hawks-Cavaliers game to an earlier time slot could have also opened up a primetime window for the WNBA Finals. However, both NBA teams are scheduled to play on Wednesday night, making an afternoon tip-off on Thursday difficult to accommodate.
So as many express their disappointment over the unusual scheduling, the Atlanta Dream head coach Karl Smesko acknowledged the concerns surrounding the timing.
“I hope everyone gets to see it somehow and I know for some people it’s not realistic — they have jobs and won’t be able to make it,” Smesko said, as per ESPN. “I’m disappointed for that, but I’m hopeful as many people can see the game as possible.”
The timing could create another unusual scene if Golden State clinches the championship. Arena workers would have only a few hours to accommodate the Valkyries’ celebrations before preparing State Farm Arena for the Hawks-Cavaliers matchup that evening.
Ultimately, the scheduling conflict risks taking attention away from what should be a defining moment for the WNBA. And with Golden State one win away from its first-ever title, the focus should be on the championship rather than whether fans can find the time to watch it.