WNBA FINALS: DREAM VS. VALKYRIES

October 31, 2026

Angel Reese

Jordin Canada

Allisha Gray

Atlanta Dream

Game 7: Postgame

Golden State Valkyries 68, Atlanta Dream 63

Q. I know it just happened but how do you process the journey that you guys took here to get as close as you did but not quite finish the job?

ANGEL REESE: Yeah, it's tough. Especially with the good group, great group, that I've honestly had the honor to battle with all year. They changed my life, and I'm just so grateful for them and I'm so thankful for them. It is tough in the moment but we'll be back.

I always say, delayed, not denied and this is only year three. They have a lot move years left, too. I'm just really grateful that I got to go to war with this group and I would do it again, all over again.

Q. Angel, you talked about the development you made as a player over the course of the year and that winning is the end game, period. How much validation do you take from the gains you made this year and what validation is there left, do you think?

ANGEL REESE: Not trying to get too low but also not trying to get too high. I'm really proud of the year that I had. I mean, I've done a lot of great things this year but I wouldn't be able to do it without this group.

We've won a lot of great games, and to come all the way to the Finals with this group, I mean, it says a lot. And not a lot of people have this opportunity to do it, and like I said, I'd do it all over again with this same group and just battling with them every single day. I love these girls and I love these coaches.

I think it also sucks because our fan base back home poured into us so much this year. We really wanted to do it for them but we are forever grateful, and like I said, we'll be back.

Q. Jordin, again, I know this is -- first, congratulations to all of you guys on this season and this is a hard question to answer now but you have everyone coming back, and Bri Jones, and when you have a little time to reflect on this, how much excitement is there about everything you've learned this season as a group and having this group that's so tight-knit be coming back under contract for next season?

JORDIN CANADA: Before I answer that question, I just want to say, God is good all the time. All praise to Him. Give Him all the glory for getting us here.

Nobody wanted us here and we got here on our own, as a team, as a unit and everybody that's in that locker room, we have been saying that's all we need. Yeah, we didn't get the end result that we wanted but at the end of the day what's delayed is not denied, and I do believe this team will be back for years to come.

So to answer your question, I mean, yeah, this is -- we're going to reflect, obviously. Everybody is going to take their time to reflect on the game but at the end of the day, we battled. We fought and we did everything that we could. Going into next year, just have that mindset knowing that we can't take plays off. We can't take games off. We've got to come out and bring it every single night.

Adding Bri will also help as well, another body and another dominant force in the paint. I'm excited this group. We're going to be together for a couple years. So like I said, we'll be back. This is not the end of us.

And also congratulations to Golden State Valkyries. Seven-games series, first one in league history, even though this is only the second year, but congrats to them. They battled just as much as we battled, for the city, for San Francisco, I know this is very special to them. So congrats to them.

Q. You had a lot of success getting to the hole in the first half, not so much in the second half. Is there anything they did to make it harder on you?

JORDIN CANADA: No, just reading the game and reading the looks and trying to make the right decisions. I thought I did a good job of that. No matter what, I was still getting to the paint. I was just kicking it out this time. Just trying to make the right read and I thought I did a good job of that in the first half thought the whole game.

Q. You guys talk about that this team will be back and that you will be together for a few years. For all three of you, how will you use this loss to be motivated next year?

ANGEL REESE: I mean, just being able to see -- honestly, for me to come in in one year and seeing how much success we can have, and we've had. This is their second year under Karl, first year of being first round and now being in the Finals and Bri back.

Don't forget our bench. Madina is going to develop this off-season, trust me. Izzy had a hell of a year. Pao is going to continue to get better, Sika, Tori, Indy, all those people that poured into us and have just been great all year are going to continue to get better.

When individually you get better in the off-season, you get better collectively, and you can see that. Karl puts a lot of work in. I'm sure he's going to see all of us this off-season, and I'm honestly looking forward to it. I'm looking forward to another year under Karl and his development and his system and just still figuring it out and having Bri back will be great, too.

JORDIN CANADA: Everything that Angel said. Obviously, again, we are going to reflect on this.

And then going into next year, like I said before, etc. An opportunity for us. It's very hard to get to the Finals, but we understand what it takes to get here. Now we have to realize, you know, as we mature as players, we develop as players, we have to stay together as a unit throughout the whole season. We can't get games go. We have to value possessions. We can't take plays off, the little things that come down to winning the Finals.

So again, we are just going to assess, take some time to reflect on our season. We have all had tremendous seasons. But yeah, we are just going to move forward. Next season is a new season. Can't harp on it. So you've just got to make sure things that you learn this season, you've got to take into next season and improve.

ALLISHA GRAY: They said it all. It was nice to get a taste of what the Finals feel like, and next season, we come back together, same group, same core, won't be short.

Q. Congratulations on your season. I know that you guys worked really hard to get here. I wanted to ask you, what are the moments that you're most proud of that we did not see?

ANGEL REESE: Honestly, I really enjoyed just being around a group of girls that just come to work every day and want to work and want to get better, and they pushed me to be better.

I'm a young player and I'm very vocal, but I think they really helped me a lot mature, in different ways that I haven't really been challenged, and they really challenged me to be better every single day. I'm really, really grateful for that.

I don't have any sisters, and these are just all my sisters. Like I can go to them for anything. They know I will always have their back and I will always have their back. But I'm just really grateful for this group.

We had a lot of fun, a lot of laughs. I think we're upset about the loss, obviously. But I think it more hurts because we just know how much we wanted to do it for each other. Like we wanted it so much for each other because we've been through so much together.

Q. For Jordin and Allisha, you all decided to re-sign with Atlanta in the off-season. Just wondering what your thoughts and your evaluation of the season that you had, and if you can kind of look back at that decision and just kind of grade what it meant to have the year that you did after you guys decided to come back.

ALLISHA GRAY: I don't regret signing back with this organization one bit. I knew from the jump that I didn't even want to entertain free agency because I knew that I wanted to come back. I believe in this organization and they believe in me.

Great organization. They treat us like pros. Give us anything that we want. So I mean, I'm very excited for the future, and I don't plan on going anywhere.

JORDIN CANADA: Yeah, I don't regret signing here. Everything happens for a reason. God brought me here, and there was a reason why I decided to re-sign.

The year that I've had, again, I don't think I would have had it anywhere else. Just the love from this organization and from my teammates to just pouring into me, giving me that confidence to be the player that I am today.

Yeah, I don't regret it at all and I said it last year that we were going to be back and I meant it. We got to this point, and again I'm going to say it again, we will be back. This is not the end of us. So yeah, I'm super excited and grateful to be part of this organization. They have saved my career, honestly. So I'm very thankful for Atlanta.

Q. Angel, you've poured into your teammates all season long, especially when you talk to us. What's the most important thing that you want them to remember about the season you guys have put together?

ANGEL REESE: Maybe probably just about the joy that we've had, just being around each other. This is my third year; this is the most fun I've ever had with a group. It's the most competitive team I've ever been a part of where everybody just wants to see each other get better. Everybody supports each other when somebody gets something or when somebody wins, something happens, everybody is just cheering for the next person, and you love that about a group.

There's no egos in the locker room and nobody is selfish. Everybody just want to see each other succeed. When you have a team like that, I've been a part of some teams and I know what takes to win a championship. That's the winning mindset. And just because we didn't win today doesn't mean that we won't be champions in the future.

Q. More specific to the game, if you can think back to those 40 minutes, what do you think ended up being the biggest difference in such a really tight game?

JORDIN CANADA: Yeah, I think in the -- I'm not sure whether it was the third, end of the third or somewhere in the fourth quarter, Gabby started getting -- got going from the three-point line. I think she hit like a couple of threes back to back. And I think that's what got them going. I thought we were getting excellent looks. I wouldn't say we were forcing a lot. We were doing what we did in Game 6. We were pushing the pace. We were getting open shots. We were executing our game plan.

I just think Gabby started to get going a little bit, and I think this made everybody on the Valkyries start to get their confidence and started making the hustle plays. We were losing the 50/50 battles and not boxing out. I thought we were getting the looks that we should have been getting. We just didn't knock it down. But I think that was the shift in the energy of Gabby getting going from the three-point line.