- Some key elements
Players under contract: Jessica Breland ; Nia Coffey ; Monique Billings ; Tiffany Hayes ; Renee Montgomery ; Brittney Sykes ; Maite Cazorla ; Elizabeth Williams ; Marie Gülich
Cap space: about $ 520,000
Free agent notable: Angel McCoughtry (Unrestricted Free Agent)
- What are the team’s ambitions?
Where is the Dream going? This is the question everyone is asking. The Atlanta team had a promising 2018 season with the added bonus of the title of coach of the year for Nicki Collen, and a catastrophic 2019 season to finish in last place in the standings and “only” the fourth choice of the next draft. So on what foot should we dance? Should we think that the 2019 season was a season without? Or on the contrary that that of 2018 was an exceptional one? There is no doubt that Angel McCoughtry’s big injury will have hurt the team a lot and that is probably a major factor in the difference seen between the two seasons, but that does not explain everything. With a fairly high draft pick anyway and plenty of contracted players, which are relatively low in value when looking at the new CBA, the Dream will have enough heading and arguments to attract a big fish in the game. free agency. And if that happens, Atlanta can start dreaming again.
- The priority: What about the Angel McCoughtry case?
Nothing is easy in Georgia. After being sidelined for a year with a knee injury Angel McCoughtry, 33, is unrestricted free agent. The big question is therefore whether it is possible to return to a good level after such an injury at his age. The one who was still running at 16.5 points and 6 rebounds per game in 2018 had stood out as one of the key elements of the Dream, his absence during the 2019 season only confirming this.
Big shadow on the table of Dream concerning this file, a rather enigmatic tweet which could say anything and everything. Is it a farewell to Atlanta following the change of venue where the Dream will play in 2020? Or is it a farewell to the franchise? At 33, McCoughtry has won everything but a WNBA title and it is unlikely that a contender will offer a multi-year contract to a player over 30 who emerges from such a long outage. In this case, what will she do? Take advantage of the new CBA to get a good contract over a few years to finish his career well, even if it means leaving aside his chances of winning a title? Or accept a less juicy contract but give yourself the chance to get a title and prove that she still has some in the tank?
Atlanta! I’m grateful, thank you for allowing me to grow as a woman here! ❤️ pic.twitter.com/2og46GF6kI
— Angel McCoughtry (@angel_35) October 21, 2019
The advantage of Atlanta in this story is that the franchise has overseen the re-education of its player and therefore she is best able to judge how McCoughtry will come back. The second advantage is that the Dream has plenty to spare. We do not yet know the terms of the new CBA, but we can speculate and imagine that the new rookie contracts of the top draft picks will be held around $ 75,000 (the current rookie contract amounting to $ 50,000 for the first draft pick). With 9 players already under contract and a tenth spot that will be taken by a drafted rookie, in a team that will have proven itself in the past, the Dream will have more or less $ 400,000 in stock to fill two spots, which leaves plenty enough to be attractive in the free agent and transfer market. In the end, Atlanta has the ball in their court, but no matter what decision the franchise will take on the Mc Coughtry case, it will not be late because it would be a shame to miss such an opportunity to sign a big player.
Since many players are still under contract, the Dream probably does not want to part with their contracts acquired under the old CBA. Atlanta will want to attract people and depending on the players who sign there (or not), the Dream will have all the luxury of making the adjustments they want in the transfer market. We can therefore expect that the Dream will be on all fronts, which promises a very interesting offseason for Georgia.
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