If Angel Reese’s roster move wasn’t shocking enough, WNBA analyst Rachel DeMita has an even more interesting take.

The Bayou Barbie will be pacing the floor for the Atlanta Dream in May, as per the trade that hasn’t been long announced. But an interesting thing has come to notice, which DeMita took to her Courtside Club podcast.

“A lot of Indiana Fever fans were noticing that the Indiana Fever play the Atlanta Dream 4 times this season, and that's more than they play any other team”, she said. “So, so many fans are saying, did Kathy know that Angel would be going to the Atlanta Dream?”

For the last 2 years, the Indiana Fever vs. the Chicago Sky games maxed out ticket sales, where the focus was on Caitlin Clark and Reese’s rivalry. The league set up so many games between these 2 teams and hyped those up excessively.

This year, the schedule came out before Reese’s roster move made headlines.

While the Fever did play Chicago and Atlanta four times last season, the proximity of the games is what has put fans on alert. Instead of games being spaced out, the Fever will play Atlanta thrice in little over a week.

So, it all boils down to one question. Did Engelbert set up the schedule to keep the CC vs AR5 intact? Or was it just a coincidence?

Atlanta Dream Needs Arena Upgradation

The new roster might be a good fit for Reese, but her last season’s frustration might return over the Dream’s arena. With a seat capacity as low as 3500, the Gateway Center Arena is no place to host big games.

So, if the league truly wants to keep reaping the benefits of bigger games, this is the perfect time for the Dream to get a better arena. And DeMita agreed that with Reese on the roster, the program might just do it.

“The Atlanta Dreams Arena is my least favourite arena in the WNBA. It only holds 3500 people… doesn't have good lighting”, she said. “Maybe with Angel Reese being in Atlanta, they will try to get themselves a better home arena.”

So, even if the schedule thing is unsolved, the franchise can just use it for their own benefit and bring forth the much-needed changes.

Read more at She Got Game!

Written by

Deblina Roy

Edited by

Siddharth Shirwadkar