No. 4 Atlanta’s Angel Reese rules the paint, earning 2026 Defensive Player of the Year on Thursday to bring home the Dream’s first-ever WNBA DPOY award.
Reese tallied 46 of 74 votes, beating out Golden State’s Gabby Williams (20), Las Vegas’s A’ja Wilson (4), and Washington’s Shakira Austin (2).
“She’s not afraid of any challenge,” said head coach Karl Smesko. “She relishes these opportunities and steps up in big moments.”
Atlanta will lean on its defensive centerpiece on Sunday, as the Dream tips off its best-of-five semifinal series with No. 8 New York — aiming to reach the WNBA finals for the first time since 2013.
Atlanta took the pair’s regular-season series 2-1, but the Liberty’s recent surge — including this week’s first-round upset of No. 1 Minnesota — underlined its depth and physicality when healthy.
“We are an eight-seed even though we don’t feel like it,” forward Breanna Stewart said. “We need to be that... have that chip on our shoulder.”
Atlanta hosts New York on Sunday (details TBD).
