The Atlanta Dream had quite a shocker in the playoffs when they fell to the Indiana Fever. Considered heavy favorites owing to their incredible regular-season run, the loss has surely dented the team’s confidence. And while the likes of Caitlin Clark and Lexie Hull threw the ‘W’ at Dream fans, the ending to their season was quite somber. Meanwhile, the general manager and executive vice president of the team, Dan Padover, is having quite a contrasting time.
Surely, Padover is a well known name in the WNBA realm. His ability to run a team smoothly is held in high regard. Likewise, the recent award given to the Dream general manager once again proved his expertise in efficiently managing WNBA teams.
Dan Padover Stands Tall Amidst Atlanta Dream Playoff Exit
The WNBA recently announced Padover as the WNBA Executive of the Year. And a lot of the credit goes to Dream’s incredible win-loss record of 30-14. They also clinched the third seed in the playoffs, which is why the loss against the Fever came as a shocker for the team. Interestingly, this was not the first time that the WNBA had honored Padover with this award. In fact, this was the third time that the current Dream general manager has been awarded for his impressive work.
However, in the previous two instances, Padover won the award while managing the Las Vegas Aces back in 2020 and 2021. And while he has transitioned to Atlanta after his tenure with the Aces, Padover’s knack of striving for success hasn’t changed. In his initial four years running the team, Padover saw the Dream making it to the playoffs on three occasions.
Congratulations to Dan Padover of the @atlantadream for being named the 2025 Basketball Executive of the Year!
— WNBA (@WNBA) September 23, 2025
Padover is the first person in league history to be named WNBA Basketball Executive of the Year three-times, he earned the honor in both 2020 and 2021#WelcometotheW pic.twitter.com/jTebehZZQW
Well, that’s not all. Under Padover’s able leadership, the Dream topped the Eastern Conference this year. And this was a feat that Atlanta managed to achieve for the first time since 2018. Meanwhile, despite all the happy memories, their shock exit will surely come back to haunt them. Trae Young recently came up with some words of encouragement.
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Trae Young Encourages Atlanta Dream Following Playoff Exit
Analysts touted the Atlanta Dream as a probable championship contender. However, with Aliyah Boston and Lexie Hull powering the Fever to the semifinals, the spirits of the team naturally went down. Especially after the Dream almost had game three under their grasp. With just a couple of minutes left on the clock, the Fever was behind by five points. However, in one of the best plays from Fever, they notched up seven points in the dying minutes and clinched the victory.
Commenting on the hard loss, Atlanta Hawks star, Trae Young said, “Ughhh, I know this was a tough way to lose but We gonna bounce back!! @AtlantaDream.”
Surely, Young would be the perfect person to feel the grief of the Atlanta Dream. Back in 2021, he himself led the Hawks to the Eastern Conference finals. Unfortunately, Young could not make his team cross the line as they fell to the champion, the Milwaukee Bucks.