The rap stars were in the building for the final home game for the Atlanta Dream this regular season. Among the celebrities in attendance were Latto and Mariah the Scientist.
The Atlanta music stars sat courtside to watch the Dream play the Chicago Sky in the home finale. The Sky’s roster features All-Star forward Angel Reese, but Reese is out with a season-ending left wrist injury. Earlier in the trip to the capital of the South, Reese shared a photo of herself hanging out with Latto and Mariah on social media. The stars were also guests on Reese’s podcast, “Unapologetically Angel.”
Latto, Angel Reese & Mariah The Scientist on set of Unapologetically Angel💝 pic.twitter.com/byq18dwP1m
— Wave Check🌊 (@thewavecheckk) September 17, 2024
Despite not playing in the game, Reese was there to support her teammates. She wore a light blue cropped sports jacket with a matching skirt and cornrows in her hair. The Sky also didn’t play standout rookie center Kamilla Cardoso, or star guard Chennedy Carter in the game.
The Dream, fighting for the eighth and final spot in this year’s playoff race, ran away with an 86-70 victory.
After the game, as fans in a sold-out Gateway Center Arena in College Park, GA, yelled her name, Reese approached the Dream’s DJ booth, gave Latto and Mariah hugs, and thanked them for coming out to support the WNBA.
“Anytime we can have celebrities come out and support, that’s great,” Atlanta Dream guard Jordin Canada told rolling out after the game. “I’m sure they were here for someone else. I’m not necessarily sure they were here for us, but anytime they can come and support women’s basketball in general, I think it’s important and great.
“I’m glad they were able to come out. We got the win; that’s all that matters … They came for a show, and we gave them one. I’m not sure if they were rooting for us, but at the end of the day, we got the dub.”
Canada finished with a team-leading 18 points and got the Dream going on both ends of the floor.
The game had real playoff implications, as both the Dream and Sky are in contention for the eighth and final playoff spot this year. With the win and a loss from the Washington Mystics, Atlanta cruised into sole possession of the eighth seed.
“We’re thankful to still have a chance to make the playoffs,” Canada said.
With one game left for all three teams, Atlanta only misses the playoffs if they lose the final game against the Liberty in New York, and Chicago wins, according to ESPN’s Ari Chambers.
“It feels great [to be in this position], but I’m not naive of the team we’re going up against,” Dream center Tina Charles said. “[It’s] the No. 1 team … We know what the nature of that team is going to be. I look forward to that match-up, and I also look forward to being home, so it’s going to be good.”
Here are the scenarios:
– ATL, WASH, SKY all win: ATL
– ATL win, WASH & CHI lose: ATL
– ATL & WASH win, CHI lose: ATL
– ATL & CHI win, WASH lose: ATL
– ATL, WASH & CHI lose: ATL
– WASH win, ATL & CHI lose: ATL– WASH & CHI win, ATL lose: WASH
– CHI win, ATL & WASH lose: CHI https://t.co/TFYbpkFsil
— Arielle (Ari) Chambers (@ariivory) September 18, 2024
Also noteworthy is that the Sky still has their first-round draft pick for the 2025 WNBA Draft. The Dream, on the other hand, do not. If the Sky don’t make the playoffs, they’ll be in the WNBA Draft lottery next year. This year’s draft features Paige Bueckers, Aneesah Morrow, Kiki Iriafen, Ayoka Lee, Olivia Miles and potentially Azzi Fudd and Flau’jae Johnson.
The eighth seed of this year’s playoffs will face the Liberty in a three-game series of the first round. The first two games of the series will be played in New York before the third and final game, if necessary, will be played on the lower seed’s court. This year’s Liberty team is led by Sabrina Ionescu, Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones, Betnijah Laney-Hamilton and Courtney Vandersloot.
