ATLANTA — Angel Reese wants you to know she’s found exactly the home she was looking for.
Before facing the Sky on Sunday, Reese — recently named an All-Star for the third consecutive season — returned to a message she has repeated since Chicago traded her for two first-round draft picks.
“You can kind of see, honestly, this whole season I’ve been playing more free,” Reese said. “I don’t feel like I have a lot on my shoulders because they’ve helped me a lot — the coaches and everybody here with the organization.
“The sisterhood in the locker room has been amazing. It’s something that I really needed, so I’m really grateful for that. That’s why I wanted to come to Atlanta, for the sisterhood that I really needed in Year 3.”
That sisterhood got the better of the Sky on Sunday night, surviving a furious 18-point comeback and escaping with a buzzer-beating layup.
But the Dream’s season has not been quite as charmed as many expected.
And for a brief stretch, that offered the Sky some hope.
When the Sky traded Reese, it appeared the first-round picks they received from the Dream would land near the end of the draft. Those are the kinds of selections that often struggle to stick on WNBA rosters. The Sky, for example, selected Hailey Van Lith 11th in 2025, then cut her heading into this season.
That made the Angel Reese trade — which both sides described as mutual — look heavily lopsided against the Sky. Reese got her fresh start with a title contender. The Sky got picks that looked close to worthless.
Then came a twist.
The Dream hit a rough patch in June, struggling to shoot and, ironically enough, talking about many of the same problems as the Sky. They could not consistently put together a complete 40 minutes. They lost five consecutive games and fell as low as eighth in the standings.
Suddenly, the first-round pick headed to the Sky had some real value.
The Sky could use a middle-round selection to add a useful rotation player in the 2027 draft. Or the pick could become a more attractive trade asset for a team looking to move up — much like the Sky once did to acquire Reese.
None of those possibilities fully compensates for giving up a bona fide star like Reese. But they would certainly soften the blow.
The problem for the Sky is that the tide appears to be turning back in the Dream’s favor.
Atlanta recently got Brionna Jones back from injury, adding one of the league’s better post players and allowing Reese to spend more time at her natural position.
With their third consecutive victory Sunday, the Dream improved to 16-10 and moved into fifth place. Their slump might be over, with a clear path to climb back into the top four.
That would send the Sky’s return drifting back toward the bottom of the first round.
For the trade to look like anything other than a total dud, the Sky will have to make their post-Reese direction work.
Their second half comeback in Atlanta offered a glimpse of that possibility. Coach Tyler Marsh’s offense looked balanced, with five players scoring in double figures and contributions coming from throughout the rotation. Courtney Vandersloot — the veteran Reese once questioned as the centerpiece of the Sky’s plans — steered the fourth-quarter comeback with flashes of her younger self.
But once again, the Sky ended up on the wrong side of the final possession. They fell to 9-17 and remain 12th in the standings.
For now, no matter where the Dream’s draft pick lands, the scales remain heavily tilted toward Reese.