Hillmon Becomes First Player in Franchise History to Win AP Honor; Gray Becomes Just the Second Dream Player to Earn First Team Recognition

ATLANTA (September 12, 2025) – The Associated Press today announced its 2025 WNBA awards and All-WNBA Teams, with two Atlanta Dream standouts receiving national recognition. Forward Naz Hillmon was named the 2025 AP Sixth Player of the Year, marking the first time in franchise history a Dream player has won the honor, while guard Allisha Gray earned a spot on the prestigious AP First Team, becoming just the second player in team history to receive the accolade.

Hillmon’s award caps a season defined by remarkable growth, durability, and impact off the bench. After averaging 5.4 points and 4.8 rebounds in 2024, she elevated her production to 8.7 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in 2025, while adding 53 made three-pointers after hitting just one across her first three WNBA seasons. Her consistency was unmatched, playing in every game and setting a new Dream record with 151 consecutive appearances, the third-longest active streak in the WNBA. She proved to be a difference-maker in Atlanta’s success, leading the team in net rating swing (+13.4) and finishing No. 2 in the league in plus-minus (+7.6 per game, +335 total). Hillmon also delivered clutch performances, highlighted by a career-best 21 points with five threes and the game-winner at Dallas on July 30, a 15-rebound outing against Las Vegas, and multiple double-doubles.

Gray’s First Team recognition comes during a career-best campaign in which she averaged 18.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game on 45.1 percent shooting from the field and 38.4 percent from beyond the arc. One of the league’s most consistent offensive threats, she ranked fourth in the WNBA in three-pointers made (98), sixth in total points (773), and third in win shares (7.7). She posted nine games of 25 or more points and 15 games with at least 20, highlighted by a career-high 32-point performance at Washington on June 15. Gray’s breakout season also included being named a 2025 WNBA All-Star Starter and becoming the first guard in league history to win three Conference Player of the Month awards in a single season. She set the Dream’s single-season scoring record, surpassed 4,000 career points and 400 career three-pointers, and climbed into the franchise’s top six all-time in both scoring and assists.

Hillmon, Gray, and the Atlanta Dream will tip off their 2025 playoff campaign in a best-of-three First Round series against the Indiana Fever, with Game 1 scheduled for Sunday, September 14 at 3 p.m. ET on ABC at Gateway Center Arena.

About the Atlanta Dream
Established in Atlanta in 2008, the Atlanta Dream is the Southeast’s only WNBA franchise, playing its home games at the Gateway Center Arena @ College Park. Dream games are telecast locally on Atlanta News First (WANF-TV). Since 2009, the Dream has produced 12 WNBA All-Stars, earned 11 playoff bids and made three WNBA finals appearances. For more information about the Dream, visit dream.wnba.com and follow @AtlantaDream on Facebook, Instagram, X and TikTok.

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