2015 Atlanta Dream Preview: The Dream Are Hoping To Learn From Last Season’s Early Playoff Exit

The Atlanta Dream head into the 2015 season with dreams of their first WNBA title.

The Dream, who are the most successful franchise in the Eastern Conference recently, went 19-15 and earned the No. 1 playoff seed last year. However, the Dream fell in the opening round of the playoffs to the Chicago Sky — blowing a 17-point fourth quarter lead in the decisive Game 3.

The East Oregonian is reporting that the Dream are looking to learn from last season’s early playoff series loss as they prepare for the upcoming season.

“I thought we lost it in the rebounding. That is something we are going to work extremely hard on.” Atlanta coach Michael Cooper said when talking about the series loss to the Sky.

The Dream return four of their five starters from last year — second year pro Shoni Schimmel is the only new starter, as she replaces Jasmine Thomas at point guard. The other returning starters include Angel McCoughtry, Erika de Souza, Sancho Lyttle, and Tiffany Hayes.

McCoughtry, the greatest player in franchise history, finished with her worst season statistically since her rookie year in 2009. The seventh-year pro still paced the team with 18.5 points a game to go along with 5.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 2.3 steals. Cooper said that fans should expect McCoughtry’s numbers to go down this year.

“I’m going to take the Gregg Popovich approach with her during the season and make sure she gets her rest. She didn’t play a full season overseas, so that really has helped. With the people coming in, it can take a heavy burden off her in terms of scoring. Look for her scoring average to go down. If we can get her rest during the season, she will be a better player when we really, really need her.”

De Souza and Schimmel were all-star selections last year. De Souza, who had one of her best seasons in her 9-year WNBA career, was second on the team in scoring (13.4 ppg) and second in rebounding (8.7 rpg), while Schimmel produced 8.3 points and 3.6 assists in 21.6 minutes of action. Hayes was third on the team, with 12.9 points per contest, and Lyttle chipped in with 12.2 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.

Veterans Roneeka Hodges, a 11-year veteran who started all 34 games for Tulsa last season, and DeLisha Milton-Jones will likely be key components off the bench for the Dream. Milton-Jones, 40, re-signed with the squad on May 21. She is one of just five players in WNBA history with more than 5,000 career points and 2,500 career rebounds, according to the team’s website. Milton-Jones, who is coming off a right Achilles injury, is 16 games short of becoming the league’s all-time leader in games played.

“We’re very excited to have DeLisha back,” said Dream President and General Manager Angela Taylor said on the day of Milton-Jones signing.

“She not only is an asset to our team due to her exceptional leadership, but she still can contribute valuable minutes on the court as well. She is a coach on the floor with championship experience that will benefit our squad.”

Veterans Aneika Henry, Celine Dumerc, Matee Ajavon, Sequoia Holmes, and Nadia Colhado are battling rookies Samantha Logic, Brittany Hrynko, Lauren Okafor, and Martha Alwal for the final five roster spots. Ify Ibekwe and Chucky Jeffery are also in training camp. Third round draft choice Ariel Massengale and veteran Amanda Thompson will sit out the season due to injuries, the team announced.

Final score: 79-55 @WashMystics with the win over the @AtlantaDream . #AtlantaDreamClassic

— Atlanta Dream (@AtlantaDream) May 24, 2015

Atlanta opened their preseason slate of games with a 79-55 loss to the Washington Mystics on May 23. The Dream will play the New York Liberty on May 27 and the Chinese National Team on May 31 before opening the season at Madison Square Garden against the Liberty on June 5.

The Dream will have all 16 home games and two road games televised by Fox Sports South and SportSouth.

The Dream have made six straight postseason appearances and have reached the WNBA Finals three times since 2010, but have no titles to show for it.

[Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images]