NEW YORK — Unlike the WNBA’s other 12 head coaches, Atlanta Dream coach Karl Smesko doesn’t put together practice plans. He uses another phrase in referring to the Dream’s workouts. He crafts what he calls “progress plans.”

Despite the loss to the 2024 WNBA champion New York Liberty, there are reasons for optimism as Atlanta enters a three-game stretch against teams in the bottom five of the WNBA standings.