With nearly every centimeter of State Farm Arena packed, loud, and vibrant on a Wednesday night in Atlanta, the 27-year-old venue witnessed an unprecedented level of sporting noise—a decibel peak this veteran reporter has never experienced across decades of covering the arena. The crowd of 17,099 fans pushed the atmosphere to a deafening roar that seemed destined to echo indefinitely.

That deafening energy is expected to reverberate right back into the same venue by Saturday afternoon, largely thanks to the multifaceted phenom driving the franchise: Angel Reese, Angel Reese, and more Angel Reese.

The Dream Dominate Game 3

In this latest chapter, the Atlanta Dream dismantled a typically resilient yet profoundly overwhelmed Golden State Valkyries squad 97-71 during Game 3 of the WNBA Finals. With the victory, Atlanta captured a 2-1 advantage in the best-of-seven series—a lead that feels significantly larger given how deeply the city has embraced Reese and her teammates. The Dream franchise currently sits 13th on valuation lists at $250 million, trailing the heavily backed Valkyries at a league-leading $780 million.

The courtside and arena seats were a veritable galaxy of Atlanta royalty, featuring hip-hop legends T.I., Quavo, Ludacris, Lil Baby, Skooly, Lil Scrappy, and Dem Franchize Boyz. They were joined by cultural icons Speedy, Monica, Kerry Washington, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Dwight Howard, former NFL standout Cam Newton, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, and LSU women's basketball coach Kim Mulkey.

Mulkey is witnessing Reese replicate her collegiate magic on the professional stage in Georgia.

Man, our fans showed up, like in every single possession, said a smiling Reese, who backed up her words by posting game highs of 21 points, 12 rebounds, and an endless reel of highlight-reel moments.

Down the stretch of the Dream's second consecutive blowout victory, momentum carried Reese scrambling out of bounds beneath the basket. Without looking, she flipped a delicate, perfect pass over her shoulder to charging teammate Ryne Howard in the lane.

Stardom On and Off the Court

Reese offered her trademark shrug and infectious smile—features framed by her signature pink blush and eye black—that have fueled her astronomical rise far beyond the traditional confines of pick-and-rolls. Ranking 15th globally among female athletes with $9.4 million in earnings, her marketability spans high fashion and digital media.

Her resume includes walking the Victoria’s Secret fashion show runway, gracing the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, hosting a dedicated podcast, and securing high-profile endorsement deals with 2K Sports, Amazon, Beats by Dre, Coty, General Mills, LVMH, McDonald’s, Panini, Reebok, and The Hershey Company.

Yet, her hardwood credentials match her commercial acclaim. During her final collegiate season at LSU in 2022-2023, she commanded the second-most NIL deals across men's and women's college basketball, ultimately leading the Tigers to an April national championship against Caitlin Clark and Iowa.

That fierce rivalry carried seamlessly into the WNBA in the fall of 2024, with Reese landing on the Chicago Sky while Clark joined the Indiana Fever. While both athletes repeatedly denounced racism and emphasized that their dynamic remains strictly basketball-driven, Clark attracted a vocal contingent of bigoted followers, fueling the narrative of a league-wide attendance boom.

A Historic WNBA Season

The 2025 WNBA campaign witnessed total attendance surge 34% year-over-year to 3.15 million. Simultaneously, television viewership climbed 3% across ABC, ESPN, CBS, and ION to average 969,000 viewers—marking the league's strongest performance since 1998 and eclipsing average NHL viewership on national broadcasts.

Remarkably, this surge occurred despite Reese missing 31 of 44 regular-season games due to injuries. Furthermore, NBC reported that Game 1 of the current WNBA Finals at Golden State averaged 2.1 million viewers across the network and Peacock, establishing the most-watched league finals opener in history—a game played without Caitlin Clark on the floor.

After a quiet night in the opener where she managed just two points in a narrow 68-64 defeat, Reese bounced back emphatically. She exploded for 30 points and 16 rebounds in Game 2 to spark a 79-65 blowout win, setting the stage for Wednesday's triumphant return to Georgia.

Building a Contender in Atlanta

As a sports journalist covering Atlanta since 1985, I witnessed the opening of Philips Arena in 1999—built for $213 million to host the NBA Hawks and NHL Thrashers—and its subsequent $192.5 million renovation in 2018 before transforming into State Farm Arena under a $175 million naming rights agreement. Throughout countless postseason battles, wrestling cards, and major tournaments, this building had never experienced the cosmic energy unleashed Wednesday night.

Named in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s iconic 1963 speech in Washington, D.C., the Atlanta Dream franchise has evolved dramatically since its 2008 inception, culminating in a landmark 30th anniversary season for the WNBA.

We always hoped when I took this role that we would build something like this, Morgan Shaw Parker, President and Chief Operating Officer since September 2021, shared on Wednesday night. Hired by owners Larry Gottesdiener, Suzanne Abair, Renee Montgomery, and executive Dan Padover—who orchestrated key roster acquisitions including Allisha Gray, Jordin Canada, and coach Karl Smesko—Parker and the leadership group focused on high-return investment rather than tokenism.

The masterstroke came when Padover traded future draft picks to secure Reese from Chicago. Earning $350,692 this season under a rookie contract with a team option for 2027 at $396,282, Reese is positioned to command a maximum salary approaching $1.4 million next season if she secures All-WNBA honors.

Dubbed The Queen of the South by Hawks guard CJ McCollum, Reese basked in the adoration of the State Farm Arena crowd as they streamed toward the exits.

I thought Ballhalla was loud, but Atlanta? Y’all came out on a Wednesday... I appreciate y’all for coming out and supporting us and being loud on every single possession, Reese declared. Y’all ain’t got to work on Sunday. Y’all got church, maybe. But on Saturday, you got to run it back. I’m looking forward to it.