The Dream Ended the Liberty's Season in Brooklyn and Now Open the Finals as Underdogs to Golden State

The Liberty were eliminated by the Dream on Friday, October 9, 2026, losing Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals 85-83 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn and ending the season for a roster that had largely stayed together since the franchise's first championship in 2024. Atlanta swept the best-of-five series 3-0 and reached the WNBA Finals for the first time since 2013, according to the Associated Press.

The title board took the Liberty off within days. By October 12, 2026, Polymarket, the only exchange pricing the WNBA championship contract, listed two teams: the Golden State Valkyries at 53% and the Atlanta Dream at 46%. Under the contract's rules, a team that is eliminated resolves No, so the Liberty's line, which Polymarket had at 8% about 90 minutes before tip-off on October 9 and at 12% on October 5, has no further role in the market. New York's interest in the title ended with Breanna Stewart's missed layup in the final ten seconds.

How Game 3 ended

The last minute decided it. Atlanta led 83-79 with about a minute left before Jonquel Jones scored to make it a two-point game, and the Dream then turned the ball over with 17.7 seconds left, giving New York one more possession, the AP reported. Stewart missed a contested layup that would have tied it with nine seconds left, and DeWanna Bonner made two free throws with 6.2 seconds left to seal it.

"I missed a bunny to tie the game, which really stinks," Stewart said afterward. "Atlanta is a tough team."

The Liberty had worked their way back into the game from a 12-point hole. Atlanta scored the first seven points of the third quarter for a 51-39 lead, then New York answered with a 16-4 run and took a 68-66 lead into the fourth, its first lead since 2-0, according to the AP. The Dream scored eight straight early in the fourth for a 75-71 lead with 4:55 left and held the Liberty without a basket for more than six minutes.

Stewart and Jones each scored 26 points, and Jones added 14 rebounds on 11-of-17 shooting, according to ESPN's box score. Sabrina Ionescu scored 12 on 4-of-12 shooting, all four of her baskets from three, and Marine Fauthoux added 9. New York made 20 of 21 free throws but went 9 of 29 from three and committed 11 turnovers to Atlanta's eight.

For Atlanta, Angel Reese scored 22, Rhyne Howard 21 and Jordin Canada 19 with 11 assists. Bonner had 13 points and 13 rebounds. The Dream won without Allisha Gray, their leading scorer, who injured a finger in Game 1 and was ruled out about an hour before tip-off, the AP reported. Atlanta led for roughly three quarters of the game, per ESPN, and its largest lead was 12 points.

What the sweep took from New York

The series was close in two of three games and one-sided in the result. Atlanta won Game 1 92-82 on October 4 and Game 2 101-98 in overtime on October 7, both at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, according to ESPN, before taking Game 3 by two points in Brooklyn.

Turnovers carried the series. The Liberty committed 21 turnovers in Game 1, 17 in Game 2 and 11 in Game 3, against Atlanta's 13, 9 and 8, and the Dream scored 72 points off those giveaways across the three games to New York's 31, according to ESPN's box scores. The gap was widest in the first two games in Atlanta, 32-14 and 28-10, and the Liberty narrowed it in Brooklyn to 12-7, which is part of why Game 3 came down to one possession. In Game 2, New York shot 35 of 64 from the field to Atlanta's 34 of 84 and still lost, because the Dream took 20 more shots on the strength of 11 offensive rebounds and eight fewer turnovers.

The season was uneven from the start. New York finished the regular season 26-18 and entered the playoffs as the No. 8 seed, according to ESPN, then knocked off top-seeded Minnesota in the first round before meeting Atlanta, the AP reported. The roster that won the 2024 title had largely returned, and the AP described the year as a frustrating one for a team that struggled for consistency. Stewart called the series "a lost opportunity" after Game 3.

NYPrediction's Game 3 preview noted that the exchanges made the Liberty favorites to win at home that night while the title board treated three straight wins as a long shot. The second read held. The 8% Polymarket showed for the Liberty's title on October 9, 2026 meant the market saw a sweep as the more likely end to the series well before the last minute, and the Dream delivered it.

What the title board says now

The Finals board on October 12, 2026 makes Golden State a slight favorite, with Polymarket at 53% for the Valkyries and 46% for the Dream. That split means the market treats the Finals as close to even and gives Golden State a small edge, even though Atlanta has not lost a postseason game. Golden State has not lost one either: the Valkyries swept the defending champion Las Vegas Aces in the other semifinal, according to the AP, with an 87-77 win at Las Vegas in Game 3 on October 9, per ESPN. Golden State's three semifinal wins came by 11, two and ten points; Atlanta's came by ten, three in overtime and two. Polymarket is the only exchange on the board for the title, so the split between the two finalists on October 12, 2026 is one venue's read, not a consensus across books, and it leaves Atlanta as the underdog despite the sweep.

On Polymarket, Golden State's title price rose from 31% on October 5, 2026 to 53% on October 12, 2026, while Atlanta's rose from 34% to 46% over the same week. On October 5, Polymarket also had Las Vegas at 23% and the Liberty at 12%. About 90 minutes before Game 3 tipped off on October 9, Atlanta was at 44% and Golden State at 39%. Both sweeps pushed the survivors up, but Golden State gained more over the last three days, which means the market has moved from rating Atlanta the stronger semifinal winner to rating Golden State as the slight favorite once the matchup was set.

The schedule gives Golden State the first home game. Game 1 is at Chase Center in San Francisco, ESPN's schedule shows, where the Valkyries also won the first two games of their semifinal, 71-60 and 83-81. The open question on Atlanta's side is Gray's finger: she warmed up before Game 3 and was ruled out, which makes her availability the first thing to watch before October 17.

Where this leaves New York's markets

For New York, the title board is now someone else's market. The Liberty title market page followed the club's championship price through the playoffs and stays as the archive of how Polymarket's price for the Liberty fell from 12% on October 5, 2026 to 8% on October 9, 2026, and then to an elimination that night. The Liberty team page carries the club's markets when next season's boards open, and the sports hub lists the New York clubs still in season.

The WNBA Finals open with Game 1 at Chase Center in San Francisco at 3:30 pm ET on Saturday, October 17, 2026, the next dated event on the board, between the two teams that swept their way there.