Maryland Professional Athletes

Maryland basketball has always produced winners. This October, it's producing a WNBA Finals storyline that no screenwriter could have drafted better: two former Terps, on opposite sidelines, battling for a championship.

Kaila Charles (Golden State Valkyries) and Angel Reese (Atlanta Dream) — both products of College Park — are at the center of a WNBA Finals that has captured the league's biggest stage. The shared Maryland connection hasn't softened the competition one bit.

Charles Earns Her Moment

The most significant development of the week came ahead of Game 6, when Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase adjusted her starting lineup and inserted Charles alongside Tiffany Hayes. It was a high-leverage call with the series on the line, and a statement of trust in a player who has been building toward exactly this kind of moment.

Charles delivered when it counted. In Game 5 (Tuesday, Oct. 27), she posted 2 points, 4 assists, 4 rebounds, a steal, and a block — finishing a series-best +8 in a 64–55 Golden State win. Then in Game 6 on Thursday, she followed up with 6 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists in a 69–80 loss that kept the Dream alive, though Golden State still holds the series edge heading into what could be a decisive finish.

Off the court, Charles also made noise in the tunnel — arriving to Game 6 in a head-to-toe denim fit that drew attention well beyond the basketball world.

Reese and the Dream Push Back

Angel Reese and the Dream weren't going quietly. Atlanta rode crowd energy and momentum to take Game 6, with Reese at the center of a team that refused to let the series close early. Brionna Jones and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough — two more Maryland alumni on the Dream's roster — have also been part of Atlanta's push, giving the Terps' presence on that sideline a genuine depth chart.

Walker-Kimbrough appeared in both Games 5 and 6 as Atlanta worked to extend the series.

The Maryland Thread

Sports Illustrated noted the shared Maryland roots between Reese and Charles earlier in the series, and a WNBA broadcaster amplified the connection mid-Finals after a heated on-court exchange between the two. It's the kind of subplot that adds texture to an already compelling series — former teammates, same program, now pushing each other toward or away from a title.

With at least one game still to play and four Maryland alumni on the floor between the two rosters, College Park's fingerprints are all over the 2025 WNBA Finals. Whether it ends with Charles hoisting a trophy or Reese completing the comeback, the Terps win the narrative either way.

The WNBA Finals have a distinctly Maryland flavor — and not just because of the basketball.

Kaila Charles and the Golden State Valkyries hold a series lead on the Atlanta Dream, a team that features two more Terps in Brionna Jones and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough. For Maryland fans, there's no neutral rooting interest here. Pick your side.

Charles Anchors a Valkyries Win in Game 3

Charles was one of the steadiest presences on the floor in Game 3 as Golden State topped Atlanta 67–62, finishing with 5 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, and a team-defining +14 plus/minus — the kind of number that tells the story box scores can't always capture. When Charles was on the court, the Valkyries were the better team. That's what a Finals rotation player looks like.

The night wasn't without drama, though. Earlier in the series, it was a Charles turnover — Angel Reese ripping the ball away and igniting Atlanta's sideline — that encapsulated the Valkyries' ball-security struggles in their Game 2 loss. Golden State's own players acknowledged the lapses, and Charles was at the center of one of the most visible moments. The Valkyries evened the series before Charles and company responded with a Game 3 victory to retake the edge.

The Terps on the Other Side

Jones and Walker-Kimbrough are fighting for the Dream's title hopes on the opposite bench. Neither posted counting stats that appeared in the box score summary for Game 3, but their presence deepens what is already a remarkable Maryland subplot: at least three College Park alumnae are playing meaningful minutes in the WNBA championship round.

Walker-Kimbrough, a veteran guard, and Jones bring experience to an Atlanta team that has shown it can compete — the Dream evened things up with that Game 2 victory before falling in Game 3. If Atlanta is going to claw back into this series, both Terps will need to contribute.

Off the Court, Charles Is Also Winning

It wouldn't be a complete Kaila Charles dispatch without noting that she's been one of the most talked-about arrivals at the Finals — literally. Ahead of Game 3, Charles showed up in a rich red top, patterned skirt, and knee-high boots. It followed a Game 2 tunnel look featuring a Kente crop top that drew widespread attention. The fashion moments haven't overshadowed her play; if anything, they've underscored her standing as one of Golden State's marquee personalities in the franchise's inaugural Finals run.

The Bigger Picture

Maryland doesn't always get to watch its WNBA alumni converge on the sport's biggest stage. This week, Terps fans have front-row seats to a Finals series where their former players aren't just participants — they're principals. Charles is making winning plays in crunch time. Jones and Walker-Kimbrough are trying to stop her.

However this series ends, College Park is guaranteed a champion.