Golden State Valkyries Expansion Draft Speculation Series: Atlanta Dream

The Atlanta Dream were hoping to take a big step forward this season after returning to the playoffs last season. They did manage to make the playoffs by doing just enough at the end of the campaign, but a quick exit and a worse record than the last season meant that the team dismissed Tanisha Wright after being eliminated. With her successor not decided yet, it is not clear how that appointment might affect their process in making protection decisions. Regardless of approach, the team will end up making some interesting names available and the Valkyries should be able to make a choice that excites them from this group.

Salary and contract status for 2025 from Her Hoop Stats as sourced by Richard Cohen:
https://herhoopstats.com/salary-cap-sheet/wnba/team/2024/atlanta-dream-11eaecc7-356c-1364-b611-2362f5011b0b/

Hypothetical Protection Priority Order

1. Rhyne Howard ($91,981 guaranteed, 4th year rookie scale)
2. Allisha Gray ($190,000 guaranteed)
3. Jordin Canada ($190,000 guaranteed)
4. Naz Hillmon ($80,823 guaranteed, 4th year rookie scale)
5. Nyadiew Puoch (draft rights)
6. Nia Coffey ($150,000 guaranteed)
7. Haley Jones ($79,999 3rd year rookie scale)
8. Maya Caldwell (reserved)
9. Iliana Rupert (exclusive rights)
10. Isobel Borlase (draft rights)
11. Lorela Cubaj (reserved)
12. Laeticia Amihere ($79,999, 3rd year rookie scale)
13. Matilde Villa (draft rights)
14. Cheyenne Parker-Tyus (unrestricted free agent)
15. Maite Cazorla (exclusive rights)
16. Aerial Powers (unrestricted free agent)
Unprotectable: Tina Charles (unrestricted free agent who has reached core limit), Ezinne Kalu (hardship contract)

Locks for Protection

Rhyne Howard is their young emerging star forward and her injury absence was felt by the team so protecting her is an obvious decision. Allisha Gray is their star wing in the prime of her career and should be next in line for protection. Jordin Canada was the player that they targeted in the offseason to be their starting point guard and she ended up missing half the season. They will want to protect her with the expectation that she will produce at the expected level given the chance at a full season. Naz Hillmon ended up providing valuable minutes in the post as either a backup or a spot starter and she should grab one of the protection spots as she approaches the end of her rookie contract.

Tough Team Decisions

The Dream opted to draft a pair of young Australian players with the plan that neither would join the team immediately so their rights exist in this draft as decisions that need to be made. Nyadiew Puoch was selected with the last pick of the first round and the forward has immense defensive potential with that pick price probably giving them some push to protect her and avoid not getting the chance to see her play for them. Isobel Borlase has been productive so far in her career as a scoring guard, but being picked later and not being viewed as having the same ceiling makes it less likely that she is protected.

The team has a pair of players who have completed two years with the team whose futures are at a major turning point between this draft and the deadline to pick up the option on the last year of their rookie contracts. Haley Jones has been given a number of different roles to try to grow into in the backcourt, but it is still not clear if she really has a long-term future at any of them. The Northern California native is often a popular choice for Valkyries fans and Atlanta could leave her available and be ready to move on from her. Laeticia Amihere has not been given many chances as a backup forward and the team is likely going to leave her unprotected without thinking too hard about it.

Different teams are going to be more or less aggressive with their protection picks and trying to figure out which of their players that Golden State will have no interest in and can be safely left unprotected. Nia Coffey has been a solid and reliable forward off the bench for the Dream and they would not mind having her there next year. Her contract is guaranteed for next season at above the minimum, which might make her less likely to be picked because the Valkyries might prefer to keep the salary cap space and guaranteed contract slot unused so that they have flexibility after the draft. The team also brought back Maya Caldwell partway through the season after she made her league debut with the Dream a couple of years ago. The team still has her rights as a reserved player, meaning they could bring her back at as little as the minimum salary as they seem comfortable with her work as a guard coming off the bench.

The team also has to make decisions about a pair of young post players for this process. Atlanta brought back Lorela Cubaj after she started the previous season with the team. She provides some defense coming off the bench at center, but is not necessarily the most exciting possible pick, especially with questions about her full availability next season with the expectation that she will suit up for Italy’s national team so her reserved rights are not likely to move. Iliana Rupert missed this season to get some rest before joining France’s national team for Olympic preparation, leaving her rights with the team since her contract was in suspended status when it expired. While she has tried to make it to the league when feasible, that continued likelihood of missing some time each summer and a slight stalling in her development probably leaves her on the unprotected side of the line despite still being young.

Likely Left Unprotected

The Dream made a third international pick in the last draft, selecting Italian point guard Matilde Villa. While she could rise to be a WNBA contributor in the future, especially since will still be 19 at the time of this draft, her rights are probably the least valuable of the three and likely not in consideration for a protection spot. Maite Cazorla spent one season as the backup point guard after she was drafted in 2019, but has been busy in recent seasons competing with the Spanish national team. While her rights still exist, there are no signs that she is returning anytime soon so she will also be unprotected.

Atlanta has two veterans who are unrestricted free agents after this season. Aerial Powers was brought in to provide bring scoring off the bench from the wing and that is pretty much what she provided when available, but she is not a candidate for the core designation so there will be no reason to protect her. At the beginning of the season, Cheyenne Parker-Tyus might have been considered to be needing protection as the highest paid player and the planned starting center. She ended up coming off the bench more often than starting when she was available so she is no longer a realistic core designation candidate.

After a year away from the league, the Dream brought Tina Charles in on an unguaranteed contract and she proved that she can still compile the counting stats as she continued to climb the career ranks. Whether or not there is mutual interest in her return, she has already been cored the maximum number of times and there is no reason to protect her since she cannot be selected. The team tried Ezinne Kalu, a New Jersey native who spent nearly a decade playing overseas for various teams, at the backup point guard spot at the end of the season. Since that was a hardship contract any team can sign her and she cannot be protected or selected in this draft.

The Valkyries Perspective

A lot of the decision will come down to who Atlanta ultimately protects with their last few spots, but the Valkyries are going to have a lot of younger players to choose from with Nia Coffey being the lone veteran who is likely be left available. Haley Jones is a popular choice as a local player from Santa Cruz and she and Laeticia Amihere may be ready for changes in scenery after a couple of years in the league. The Dream are also going to leave other young players unprotected who might be good choices even if they do not immediately contribute, including from their recent international draft selections. There is no obvious trade potential from this team, but depending on how many players that they want to make sure are protected from selection, they could make an offer to influence the choice.