Atlanta Dream Coach Had Strong Words After Brittney Griner's Return
Atlanta Dream Coach Had Strong Words After Brittney Griner's Return originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
It was a big night for the Atlanta Dream on Friday as they rallied for a 94-87 win over the Seattle Storm, improving to 5-2 on the season. After trailing by eight after the first quarter and 11 at halftime, Atlanta outscored Seattle 60-42 in the second half to earn the victory.
Advertisement
Atlanta's head coach, Karl Smesko, continues to impress in his debut WNBA season after a long stint leading the Florida Gulf Coast women's basketball program from 2002-24.
Following the comeback win, Smesko praised his team's performance, especially the duo of Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray, who scored 33 and 28 points, respectively.
'It seems like I'm given a new career high every game," Smesko said. "(Allisha) had her career high again. ... How about my Rhyde or die (Howard) today?"
Atlanta needed that offensive production because Brittney Griner, in limited action, played just 14 minutes and went 1-for-7 from the field, finishing with only two points.
Advertisement
Griner had missed the previous game on Tuesday against the Los Angeles Sparks due to a knee injury. Though she was initially listed as probable, she was cleared to play just before tipoff.
Atlanta Dream center Brittney Griner (42).Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Even with Griner still working her way back, Smesko liked what he saw from the rest of his squad and ended his postgame comments with a motivating message.
"We can still get better, and I think you guys saw we didn't look very good, and then when we got locked in," Smesko said. "Suddenly we're one of the best teams in the league."
The Dream will play their third straight road game next Friday against the Connecticut Sun before hosting the Indiana Fever on June 10.
Advertisement
Related: Sheryl Swoopes Demands Referee From Angel Reese Game Never Officiates Again
Related: Brittney Griner's Clear Statement to Dream Teammate After Career Achievement
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on May 31, 2025, where it first appeared.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
29 minutes ago
- Fox News
Rep. Alford to introduce congressional stock trading ban mirroring Senate's 'PELOSI Act'
FIRST ON FOX: Rep. Mark Alford, R-Mo., on Wednesday will introduce legislation that would ban congressional stock trading, serving as the House companion bill to Sen. Josh Hawley's, R-Mo., "PELOSI Act" in the Senate. Alford's proposed bill would ban lawmakers and their spouses from holding, purchasing or selling individual stocks while in office, but it allows investments in diversified mutual funds, exchange-traded funds or U.S. Treasury bonds. If passed, current lawmakers would have 180 days to comply with the legislation. Likewise, newly elected lawmakers must achieve compliance within 180 days of entering office. "As public servants, we should hold ourselves to a higher standard and avoid the mere appearance of corruption," Alford said in a statement. "Unfortunately, too many members of Congress are engaging in suspicious stock trades based on non-public information to enrich themselves." "These gross violations of the public trust make clear: we must finally take action to ban members and their spouses from owning or selling individual stocks," he added. Under the proposed legislation, lawmakers who continue to make wrongful transactions would be required to hand over any profits they made to the U.S. Treasury Department. The House or Senate ethics committees could also impose a fine on such lawmakers amounting to 10% of each wrongful transaction. House Speaker Mike Johnson endorsed a stock trading ban on Wednesday, saying "a few bad actors" have ruined Americans' trust in lawmakers on the issue. "You want me to tell you my honest opinion on that? I'm in favor of that, because I don't think we should have any appearance of impropriety here," he told reporters during a press conference. President Donald Trump himself endorsed the same ban for members of Congress in an interview with Time magazine last month. "I watched Nancy Pelosi get rich through insider information, and I would be okay with it. If they send that to me, I would do it," he said of a trading ban. "You'll sign it?" the reporter pressed. "Absolutely," Trump responded. Democrats in the House of Representatives have also expressed support for a ban, with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., throwing his weight behind the proposal last week.
CBS News
30 minutes ago
- CBS News
Tarrant County citizens file lawsuit against new redistricting map
Less than a day after Tarrant County commissioners approved a controversial redistricting proposal, a group of citizens filed a lawsuit claiming intentional discrimination. According to the Lone Star Project, the lawsuit claims that Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare and his followers engaged in intentional racial discrimination in violation of the Voting Rights Act and the U.S. Constitution by drawing the new district lines. "Intentional discrimination is still against the law," said lead legal counsel for the citizen plaintiffs, Chad Dunn. "The map they drew, the process they used to draw it, and the animosity shown to the citizens of Tarrant County violate the Voting Rights Act and the Constitution." Hundreds of residents speak out for, against the redistricting More than 200 people spoke out about redrawing boundary lines during public comment Tuesday night. The majority who spoke were against redistricting, including the mayors of Arlington, Mansfield and Forest Hills. There were still several speakers who expressed their support. Several used the phrase "don't Dallas my Tarrant." Tarrant County "I want to say that I fully support deterring redistricting efforts. These lines haven't been updated since 2010," said Carlos Turcios, the community development committee chairman for the Tarrant Republican Party. Commissioners moved into executive session around 3 p.m. on Tuesday after some tense moments between the two Democrats and the three Republicans. As Commissioner Alisa Simmons expressed all the reasons she is against redistricting, Judge Tim O'Hare abruptly moved to executive session in an effort to limit her comments. O'Hare is spearheading this process and has been clear that it's about partisan politics. He wants another Republican seat on the court to ensure conservative leadership for the next decade. "It's a very divided country and the parties, I'm not sure, have never been further apart in their beliefs," O'Hare said. "I don't apologize for being a Republican. I don't apologize for being a conservative." "It's not partisan. It is racism." Critics believe the redistricting is racial gerrymandering, saying it goes beyond partisan politics and say it dilutes the voting power of minorities. "Absolutely, it's not partisan. It is racism," Simmons said during the meeting. The new map does appear to take areas with high Black and brown populations from precinct two and put them in precinct one. SMU political science professor Calvin Jillson said what the court did is not unusual, but the legality of the new lines comes down to intentions. "Oh, this absolutely gerrymandering – it is the redrawing of electoral boundaries for partisan purposes," Jillson said. "The question is whether the purposes behind the redrawing were actually political, in which case gerrymandering is legal, or racial discrimination, in which case it would not be legal." Check out more on the CBS News Texas YouTube page: contributed to this report.
Bloomberg
31 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
US Economic Data Showing Slowdown; Trump Reshapes DEI
"Bloomberg Markets" follows the market moves across every global asset class and discusses the biggest issues for Wall Street. On the show today, Tidalwave Solutions Senior Partner Cameron Johnson, Waystar Technologies CEO Matthew Hawkins, The Verna Myers Company Diversity Pioneer Vernā Myers. (Source: Bloomberg)
