Dream owners pen letter to fans after Game 6 rescheduling: 'Our concerns did not receive the attention they deserved'

The owners of the Atlanta Dream penned an open letter to the team's fans on Tuesday.

Owners Larry and Robyn Gottesdiener, Suzanne Abair and Renee Montgomery sent the letter addressing the controversial scheduling of Game 6 of the 2026 WNBA Finals against the Golden State Valkyries. The game that could crown the Valkyries as champions won't be played in primetime, but instead will be in the middle of a workday at 12:30 p.m. ET on Thursday.

While the letter begins by thanking fans, it states that ownership has long been aware of potential scheduling conflicts. It goes on to state that ownership raised those concerns, but they weren't addressed.

"Two months ago, when the WNBA finalized playoff dates and times, we raised concerns that the W Finals schedule conflicted with NBA games at State Farm Arena. "As we moved through the playoffs, we reiterated those concerns. "Our concerns did not receive the attention, nor the urgency that they deserved."

"Two months ago, when the WNBA finalized playoff dates and times, we raised concerns that the W Finals schedule conflicted with NBA games at State Farm Arena.

"As we moved through the playoffs, we reiterated those concerns.

"Our concerns did not receive the attention, nor the urgency that they deserved."

The letter does not explicitly state who failed to address those concerns.

The scheduling problem stems from the fact that the Atlanta Dream play their regular-season games at Gateway Center Arena, which seats just 3,500 fans. In the playoffs, the Dream have been playing at State Farm Arena, the Atlanta Hawks' home venue that holds 17,000 fans.

The Dream already had to get creative with the scheduling of Games 3 and 4 because the Hawks had games at State Farm Arena on those dates. Atlanta moved Game 3 one day earlier, then played Game 4 as an early afternoon game on the weekend, leaving enough time to prepare for the Hawks' game later that night.

Game 6 is a similar situation. The Hawks have a game scheduled for Thursday night. State Farm Arena is open Friday night, but a potential Game 7, if needed, is scheduled for Saturday in San Francisco.

The WNBA didn't want its final two Finals games to be on back-to-back nights, so the only other option would have been to hold Game 7 eight days later, on Nov. 7.

To avoid that gap, a decision was made to hold Game 6 of the WNBA Finals on Thursday and tip off at 12:30 p.m. ET. The owners addressed this in the letter.

"Playing a midday game on a Thursday is not what we would have chosen and not what we fought for. And as much as we have great affection and nostalgia for Gateway Center Arena, we believed that our fans and the city wanted the opportunity to be a part of this historic series, and to see it played on a world-class stage. That meant State Farm Arena."

They also shouted out the partners who helped reschedule the game.

"We are grateful to everyone who helped make that possible, especially our partners - the Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena - who stepped up by adjusting their schedule on the fly, not once, but three times. And what a celebration it has been: a party, a concert and incredible Dream basketball all rolled into one."

Golden State leads the series 3-2 and can win the championship on Thursday.

The good news about this chaos is that, theoretically, it shouldn't happen again. The Dream have reached a deal with State Farm Arena, making it the team's home venue for all games beginning next year.

This likely means the schedule-makers will account for Hawks games when crafting the Dream schedule, and vice versa.