The 2026 WNBA Finals begin Saturday, and plenty of attention is focused on Atlanta Dream star Angel Reese. The former No. 7 overall pick was named WNBA Defensive Player of the Year in her first season with Atlanta and will look to keep up her elite ways in the Finals against the Golden State Valkyries.

Reese has been a polarizing figure, alongside Caitlin Clark, since entering the league in 2024. Her play is under a microscope at all times and some fans may be surprised to find out she has made the All-Star Game in all of her three career seasons.

This polarization was summed up well by WNBA legend Sheryl Swoopes during an appearance on “The Draymond Green Show” with the Golden State Warriors star.

Sheryl Swoopes Hypes up Angel Reese Before WNBA Finals

Swoopes made a strong case for why all fans of the game should be tuning in to this Dream vs. Valkyries Finals matchup.

“You should tune in to the Finals because of Angel Reese,” Swoopes began.

“All the (expletive) that Angel Reese has taken since she got into this league, and for her to be playing in the Finals, tune in and watch,” Swoopes continued. “She alone is worth the price of the ticket.”

Green jumped in on the conversation as well, joining Swoopes in making it clear how Reese is the star to watch in this Finals series against his hometown Valkyries.

“Angel is gonna have people watching this because there’s a large consortium of people who wants to see her succeed, there’s an even larger group of people who wants to see her fail, and they’re gonna watch to see her fail,” he said.

Swoopes responded to that by saying: “These Finals are going to be one of the best that we’ve seen.”

These are major endorsements from both Green and Swoopes, and Reese will now look to live up to all the hype. The series begins Saturday afternoon in Golden State, where the Dream lost twice this season.

Both teams are rolling, as the Dream have not lost a game in the postseason, while the Valkyries have only one loss so far. That trend will, of course, change as the series progresses.

Reese will be in the spotlight, and if Green and Swoopes are correct, the ratings for these Finals should be very high as everyone tunes in to watch and react to the polarizing former LSU Tiger.