It’s rare to get a first vs. worst matchup so early in the season. The Atlanta Dream are riding high atop the Eastern Conference after a busy offseason. The Connecticut Sun, riding out their last season before relocation, are stuck in a long rebuild and will be far from the playoffs when it’s all said and done. But that won’t change the competitive spirit of their players. Does Connecticut have the juice for a road upset, or will Atlanta hold its ground at home?
Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. The Dream are 14.5-point home favorites with -1200 Moneyline odds on DraftKings Sportsbook. A Sun upset is priced at +750. The game total is set at O/U 160.5 points.
Let’s get into a pick and prediction for this Sun-Dream game.
Sun vs. Dream Preview
No way around it: the Sun are bad. Their 2-8 record is dead last in the WNBA, they’re 15th out of 15 teams in offensive rating, and 13th out of 15 in defensive rating. This has the potential to be a historically bad season, a rough goodbye to Connecticut before they move to Houston and morph into a redux of the Comets.
But it’s not all bad. Leila Lacan is back from Europe and is Connecticut’s best guard prospect. An electric defender, driver and passer, she brings energy to the Sun on both ends of the floor. Aneesah Morrow has finally cracked the starting lineup, and her rebounding can swing the possession battle in any given game. Saniya Rivers has a ways to go offensively, but is one heck of a defender. The talent is here for a good team, and they’re in pole position for a talent-laden 2027 WNBA Draft. It’s just a shame that the fans in Connecticut won’t be able to reap the rewards of all this losing.
The Atlanta Dream were sneaky contenders last year but came up short in the playoffs. The Rhyne Howard-Allisha Gray duo is electric, but they needed something extra to take this team over the top. Enter Angel Reese, the best rebounder in the game and one of the best paint protectors around. So far in the young season, Reese is the only player in the WNBA to average 10+ rebounds, 1+ steals, and 1+ blocks per game. Head coach Karl Smesko is also building up her offensive game, finding ways to use her screening skills in the flow of the offense.
Atlanta has done a great job building up its role players around Howard and Gray. Reese has fit seamlessly, and the offense is only getting better with each passing game. The Dream may just be championship bound this year.
Now we have a good idea what to expect from these teams. Who is going to come out the winner?
Sun vs. Dream Pick, Best Bet
Now that Leila Lacan is back in the fold, things should be better for the Sun. But it doesn’t change much in terms of the gap between these two teams.
Atlanta has a vision it is executing on. Connecticut merely has the concept of a plan for this roster. In their eight defeats, the Sun have an average losing margin of 17.5 points. I expect one of the best teams in the WNBA to be able to match that number.
