What we learned from the Dream’s season-opening loss to Washington

On defense, the Dream made multiple mistakes, letting the Mystics’ guards get to the rim on dribble penetration for layups or allowing them to dump the ball to their bigs for points in the paint, a category that Washington dominated the Dream through three quarters (30-18). In the fourth quarter, Brittney Griner dominated in the paint, scoring 13 of her 18 overall points.

“Defensively, we just made too many mistakes,” Smesko said following the Dream’s loss. “That’s something that’s going to have to be cleaned up. … We’ve spent a lot more time on offense than defense, and it kind of showed today. We’re going to have to watch film and figure out how we can get better.”

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

But even beyond the Dream’s mishaps and the team surrendering a 12-point advantage in the contest, the Dream had a chance down the stretch in the final possessions of the game to pull out a victory. However, the Dream failed to get stops and maintain their efficiency, going 8-of-23 from the floor including 0-of-7 from beyond the arc, a lead pillar in Smesko’s blueprint for the team.

“I definitely want to give the Mystics credit,” Smesko said. “They’re playing great, moving the ball, making good decisions. … They shot lights out from three. … We’re hoping that at the end, we could have made one or two more plays and stole the game.”

Here are five takeaways from the Dream’s season-opening loss to the Mystics.

Turnovers hurt

While the Dream jumped to a strong start in the first half and held chances to win the game down the stretch, the Dream never trailed the Mystics in the amount of turnovers they produced throughout the contest. The Dream finished with 16 turnovers — including four in the fourth quarter — and Washington capitalized on the Dream’s miscues, securing 20 of its 94 points in the victory.

“… Anytime they moved the ball to the open person, they knocked down those shots,” Smesko said. “… We weren’t in gaps or destroying space. They (Mystics) were really motivated to get to the rim on some of these drives. … We really didn’t have much help or anybody to step over, take a charge or at least make it difficult (for Washington) to score.”

Offensive rebounds help

When the Dream acquired Brionna Jones from the Connecticut Sun during the offseason, they envisioned her meshing well alongside Griner in the paint as one of the WNBA’s elite offensive rebounders and efficient scorers. On Friday, the Dream outrebounded the Mystics on the offensive boards 15-5 with a team-high six of them coming from the three-time All-Star.

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Her performance created much-needed opportunities for the Dream to secure second-chance points, something that helped the Dream in both the first and second half, including a 6-1 advantage in offensive rebounds in the fourth quarter. However, Smesko’s squad struggled to score from those additional possessions as the Dream were limited to three second-chance points.

Allisha Gray delivers, despite loss

Gray, one of five Dream players who finished with double-figures point totals in Friday’s game, is no stranger to putting on an offensive clinic when her number is called. Although the Dream did not secure the victory, she served as the team’s best option on offense, finishing the first half with 19 points off 5-of-8 shots including 5-of-7 from beyond the arc. The two-time All-Star’s first half performance marked a record for the most points scored in a first half in her career in Atlanta.

“Teammates finding me (for good looks),” Gray said in the postgame news conference. “When you have (Brionna) and BG, they’re great post players, even greater passers. … When they get double teamed, they are able to get it out to the shooter. That helped me a lot to hit my (3-point shots).”

Gray finished the game with 25 points, which included six 3-pointers, tying her career high for 3-pointers made in a single game (May 31, 2024, for the Dream against the Las Vegas Aces).

Te-Hina Paopao starts in first regular-season game

Paopao left no doubt that she deserved a spot on the Dream’s roster this season following Atlanta’s exhibition game against the Indiana Fever on May 10. The rookie point guard led the team in points (14) while posting two assists, one steal and one block in 21 minutes off the bench.

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

More important, in that game and throughout training camp, Paopao showed she could run the offense next to a group of elite veteran players, resulting in Smesko giving her the starting nod Friday night versus going with the veteran floor general Shatori Walker-Kimbrough.

“We wanted to see how she’d do in that position,” Smesko said. “I thought she did some good things, and we’ll be able to learn from some of the other things. She’s earned an opportunity to be out there.”

Paopao finished with seven points, three rebounds and four assists in nearly 25 minutes.

Brittney Griner comes alive in final quarter

Though much of the anticipation and excitement about the Dream this season centered around Griner, the 10-time All-Star graced the floor for only 13 minutes in the first half and produced four points, six rebounds and one assist. In the third quarter, Griner scored one point in nearly seven minutes of action.

However, the 6-foot-9 star took flight in the fourth quarter, playing for more than eight minutes and finishing with 13 of her total 18 points that included a pullup jumper with 34 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the score at 90-90. Before Griner’s fourth-quarter explosion, the 34-year-old went 1-of-6 from the floor, including zero field-goal attempts in the third quarter.

“We made a concerted effort (to get Griner the ball),” Smesko said. “We actually put something (a play) in that we didn’t have in yet. … I wish we’d gone to it a little earlier because we were having so much success with it (Griner in the paint) and getting to the foul line. … That’s something we’ll watch, too.”