Aliyah Boston Reveals Indiana Fever's Path to Playoff Success vs Atlanta Dream

Indiana Fever star Aliyah Boston assessed her team's game plan against the Atlanta Dream.
Aug 31, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; Indiana Fever forward Aliyah Boston (7) before the game against the Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
Aug 31, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; Indiana Fever forward Aliyah Boston (7) before the game against the Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

It's no secret that the Indiana Fever have a tough task ahead of them in facing the Atlanta Dream in the first round of the 2025 WNBA playoffs.

Atlanta finished the season with a 30-14 record, which was enough to secure them the No. 3 seed in the playoffs (the No.2-seeded Las Vegas Aces finished with the same record but had the tie-breaker over Atlanta). And given that the Dream have two elite guards in Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray, combined with twin towers Brittney Griner and Brionna Jones in the post, this squad is a nightmare matchup for every WNBA team.

The Fever and the Dream faced each other four times during the 2025 WNBA regular season: on May 20, May 22, June 10, and July 11.

The two sides split the series evenly at 2-2, with the Dream winning 91-90 on May 20, the Fever winning 81-76 on May 22, the Dream winning 77-58 on June 10, and the Fever winning 99-82 on July 11.

Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) passes around Atlanta Dream playersRhyne Howard (10) and Brittney Griner on July 11
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) passes around Atlanta Dream guard Rhyne Howard (10) and Atlanta Dream center Brittney Griner (42) on Friday, July 11, 2025, during a game between the Indiana Fever and the Atlanta Dream at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. | Grace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Past games aside, this playoff matchup will look completely unique. Not only have these two teams not played each other in over two months, but the Fever's active roster looks a lot different than it did earlier in the year because of injuries.

Aliyah Boston Assesses Fever vs. Dream Matchup

The Fever will need to rely on three-time WNBA All-Star center Aliyah Boston to be a force in the post during this playoff series. And Boston addressed several aspects of this imminent matchup when speaking with the media on September 13.

"Just looking at Atlanta's roster top to bottom, they're just pretty big. And so I think for us, just making sure that we keep that ball movement and we hone in on our defensive principles that we've been emphasizing the entire year," Boston said when asked about how the Fever will adapt to the challenges that the Dream bring, per the Fever's YouTube channel.

Boston was then asked about what challenges Atlanta presents defensively, and said, "Honestly, I think for us, it's not even focusing on that part of it. It's just about keeping the ball moving. We know they're gonna be up in the pass lanes, they're gonna be super aggressive. So for us, just matching that physicality offensively as well, and getting to our spots."

It sounds like ball movement and matching Atlanta's aggression will be at the top of Indiana's game plan against a tough Dream team.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the Indiana Fever and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.

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