Angel Reese knew what she wanted when she joined the Atlanta Dream: a championship. Gabby Williams had a similar ambition when she moved to the Golden State Valkyries, hoping to find a team where she could compete for a title. While both decisions attracted criticism, the two players have now given their doubters something to think about. With the WNBA Finals on the horizon, WNBA reporter Roberta F. Rodrigues thought to draw attention to the remarkable parallel between their journeys.

“Angel Reese about moving to the Dream: ‘I came here to win a championship.’ Gabby Williams about moving to the Valkyries: ‘I wanted to go somewhere I felt I could win.’ Both players got criticism for their decisions. Both players made it to the finals,” Roberta shared on X.

Exiting the playoffs in the first round for three consecutive years is hardly the strongest indication that a team could contend for a WNBA championship, let alone reach the Finals the following season. That was the position the Atlanta Dream found themselves in before Angel Reese joined the franchise. But despite the team’s recent playoff struggles, Reese sounded confident about her championship ambitions as the new season approached.

“Playoffs and championship, I don’t know about nothing else. I came here to win a championship,” Reese said in an interview.

A WNBA Finals appearance seemed even more unrealistic for Gabby Williams, who was joining a second-year expansion franchise. Of course, the Valkyries had already surpassed expectations in their inaugural season, becoming the first expansion team in WNBA history to make the playoffs in its debut year. However, even if they could repeat that feat in 2026, few would have expected them to go all the way to the Finals this time around.

But Williams also saw a winning opportunity in Golden State, believing the franchise had the right culture and competitive spirit to help her achieve her championship ambitions.

“There were two or three key factors in making my decision. And the number one was where am I going to win? Where am I going to be a part of somewhere that’s, going to have a winning culture? And even though this is a newer team, I strongly believe, and I feel the competitiveness and the want to win here,” Williams said in her introductory interview in April.

Both teams will now face off in the WNBA Finals, a best-of-seven series scheduled to begin on October 17. And with both players serving as key pieces for their respective teams this season, Reese and Williams will be crucial to their sides’ championship hopes. Their journeys have followed a strikingly similar path, but only one of them will ultimately get to live out that championship dream this season.

Angel Reese and Gabby Williams’ Impact on Their Teams This Season

Considering the performances both Gabby Williams and Angel Reese have delivered for their respective teams this season, it would be difficult to argue that either franchise would have reached the WNBA Finals without their contributions.

Williams, especially, has enjoyed a career-defining season with the Golden State Valkyries. During the regular season, she played and started in 39 games, serving as the lone All-Star on a deep Valkyries roster. She completely redefined her game under coach Natalie Nakase, taking on a far greater offensive responsibility than she had at her previous WNBA stops.

Williams finished the regular season with a career-high average of 14.4 points per game while shooting 40.4% from the field. Beyond her scoring, she also filled up the stat sheet consistently, averaging 3.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.6 steals per game. And her all-around contributions helped power the Valkyries to a 32–10 record and the second overall seed in the playoffs.

And so far in the playoffs, Williams has been in supernova mode, particularly during the recently concluded semifinal series against the defending champion Las Vegas Aces. She scored 45 total points across the first two games, helping put the Aces on the brink of elimination. And in Game 3, she finished with 16 points, three assists, and three steals, showcasing her ability to deliver in the clutch by scoring eight of her 16 points in overtime.

In the same vein, Angel Reese has also enjoyed an outstanding 2026 season with the Atlanta Dream. Acquired in an offseason trade from Chicago, she provided the identity shift, physical grit, and dominance on the boards that the franchise needed after its previous playoff disappointments.

Angel Reese started all 43 games she played, establishing herself as one of the league’s premier defensive forces and ultimately winning the WNBA Defensive Player of the Year award. Also, she finished the regular season with a career-high 16.4 points per game alongside an incredible 12.1 rebounds per game, breaking several rebounding records along the way.

And Reese has certainly continued that form in the playoffs. She elevated her game to average 17.0 points and 2.3 blocks per game, controlling the paint against elite opponents such as Breanna Stewart. In fact, during the tightly contested Game 3 semifinal clincher against the New York Liberty, Reese led the Dream with a team-high 22 points, nine rebounds, and two blocks in an 85–83 victory, helping secure Atlanta’s first Finals berth in 13 years.

Now, the two stars will face off on the biggest stage of the season, each hoping to turn her championship ambitions into reality. Their journeys have followed a remarkably similar script, making bold career moves, facing criticism, and ultimately reaching the Finals. But as their stories reach this defining chapter, only one will get the ultimate happy ending: a WNBA championship.