Dream, de Souza, Ready to Return
by David Cohen, Dream Communications Intern
This Friday, the Atlanta Dream will travel to Chicago to take on the Sky, and for the first time all season, the team will be complete.
Erika de Souza will be making her return to the Dream after missing the first half of the season due to her commitment to play for Brazil in the Olympics.
For de Souza, who averaged over 16 points per game in Olympic pool play for Brazil which finished in fifth place in group B, it comes at a good time.
�I had a great experience in the Olympics,� said de Souza on Wednesday after returning to Atlanta. �But in the end it was not a positive result. It was tough for us because we practiced together very hard for three months, but it was really nice to be in the Olympics.�
In de Souza�s absence the Dream lacked an experienced low post threat. Atlanta tried many players in the position including Courtney Paris and Jessica Moore, but only rookie Aneika Henry had much success.
In the first half of the season without de Souza, Atlanta went 9-10 and now sits at third place in the Eastern Conference behind Connecticut and Indiana.
�I�m really excited to come back,� said de Souza. �It was tough in Brazil, we were working so hard. I�m sure we are going to work hard here too and we are going to get the results. I didn�t come back here to just be the conference champion; I came here to be the champion of the WNBA.�
For de Souza and the rest of the Dream, Friday is a fresh start to the second half of the season.
�The team has changed from last season,� said de Souza. �So it was a little different for me when I saw those new faces but the girls are really good and we cannot think anything else but championship.�
This Friday, the Atlanta Dream will travel to Chicago to take on the Sky, and for the first time all season, the team will be complete.
Erika de Souza will be making her return to the Dream after missing the first half of the season due to her commitment to play for Brazil in the Olympics.
For de Souza, who averaged over 16 points per game in Olympic pool play for Brazil which finished in fifth place in group B, it comes at a good time.
�I had a great experience in the Olympics,� said de Souza on Wednesday after returning to Atlanta. �But in the end it was not a positive result. It was tough for us because we practiced together very hard for three months, but it was really nice to be in the Olympics.�
In de Souza�s absence the Dream lacked an experienced low post threat. Atlanta tried many players in the position including Courtney Paris and Jessica Moore, but only rookie Aneika Henry had much success.
In the first half of the season without de Souza, Atlanta went 9-10 and now sits at third place in the Eastern Conference behind Connecticut and Indiana.
�I�m really excited to come back,� said de Souza. �It was tough in Brazil, we were working so hard. I�m sure we are going to work hard here too and we are going to get the results. I didn�t come back here to just be the conference champion; I came here to be the champion of the WNBA.�
For de Souza and the rest of the Dream, Friday is a fresh start to the second half of the season.
�The team has changed from last season,� said de Souza. �So it was a little different for me when I saw those new faces but the girls are really good and we cannot think anything else but championship.�