WNBA Finals MVP rankings: Angel Reese, Gabby Williams lead the way ahead of Game 5 in tied series

With the Dream and Valkyries tied 2-2, two players clearly stand out above the rest

Oct 26, 2026 at 10:55 am ET • 6 min read

The 2026 WNBA Finals are all square at 2-2 after the Golden State Valkyries held off the Atlanta Dream's comeback attempt in Game 4. Now, the second best-of-seven Finals series in WNBA history is effectively a best-of-three. 

The action will resume Monday at Ballhalla with a pivotal Game 5. Whichever team wins will be one win away from the first title in franchise history. This is the first Finals appearance for the Valkyries, who are only in their second season of existence, and the fourth Finals appearance for the Dream, who were swept in their first three trips. 

Ahead of Game 5, let's take a look at which player might take home some individual hardware when this series wraps up by ranking the top-five Finals MVP candidates. 

1. Angel Reese -- F, Dream

• 18.3 points, 12.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.8 steals, 1.5 blocks per game
• 47.1% FG, 60% 3FG, 75.9% FT, 57.2% TS

Despite a poor showing in Game 4, Reese has been the best player in the series by a wide margin. She put up 30 points and 16 rebounds in Game 2 to join Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones as the only players in Finals history with 30-point, 15-rebound games, then went for 21 points and 12 rebounds in Game 3 to join A'ja Wilson as the only players in Finals history with back-to-back 20-point, 10-rebound games. 

Reese leads all players in points and rebounds, is third in steals and second in blocks. And among the six players scoring in double figures, she has been by far the most efficient at 47.1% from the field overall, including 3 of 5 from 3-point range; none of the other players averaging at least 10 points per game are shooting better than 37% from the field. 

In 1969, Jerry West was named NBA Finals MVP even though the Los Angeles Lakers lost to the Boston Celtics, which is the only time in NBA or WNBA history that a player has won Finals MVP on a losing team. We could be in that territory here with Reese if she keeps playing as well as she has on both ends of the floor, but the Dream lose the series – especially if they lose it in seven and the remaining games are as competitive as the majority of the first four have been. 

'I need the ball': Inside what fueled Angel Reese to one of the best performances in WNBA Finals history

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2. Gabby Williams -- F, Valkyries

• 18 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.5 steals per game
• 30.3% FG, 22.6% 3FG, 90.5% FT, 42.2% TS

Can Williams really win Finals MVP after shooting 30.3% through the first four games? History would say no. There are only three instances of a player winning the award while shooting under 40% in the series, and Cynthia Cooper in 2000 is the only one to do so while shooting sub-35%. 

WNBA Finals MVPs to shoot under 40%

Player	Finals	FG%
Diana Taurasi	2009	37.2%
Cynthia Cooper	2000	34.1%
Cynthia Cooper	1999	36.8%

But this has been a bizarre series, and it's hard to dock Williams for shooting poorly when every other top scorer on both teams, aside from Reese, is doing the same. As ugly as it's been at times, Williams is only one point behind Reese for the series lead and is the only player on the Valkyries to score in double figures in every single game. She also had a game-high 26 points in Game 1 and hit the go-ahead free throws to secure the win for Golden State. 

Williams hasn't looked completely healthy since late in Game 1, when Jordin Canada crashed into her knee on a free throw box out, but she's tied for second among all players in assists and steals, and has been the protagonist for the Valkyries. If Golden State wins the title, she's the favorite to be named Finals MVP on their side. 

How Valkyries star Gabby Williams found a 'different kind of fire' and inspired her team to Game 4 win

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3. Rhyne Howard -- G, Dream

• 13 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, three steals, 1.3 blocks per game
• 32.6% FG, 25% 3FG, 76.2% FT, 47.1% TS

Scoring has been hard to come by for Howard in this series, and really all postseason. When she shot 6 of 14 in Game 4, it was her second-most efficient outing of the playoffs. And even then, she missed arguably the biggest shot of the game – a 3-pointer with 6:40 remaining that would have cut the deficit to three when the Dream had the Valkyries on the ropes. 

But as Karl Smesko said after Game 1, "she's contributing in a lot of ways to help us win games." Howard has been unbelievable on the defensive end through the first four games. She set a Finals record with six steals in Game 2, then followed that up with five steals in Game 3; Howard is the only player in WNBA history with five-plus steals in multiple Finals games. She leads all players in steals in the series, and has also blocked five shots. 

Reese has such a big lead over any other Dream player, and it's extremely difficult to win Finals MVP with a defense-based case. But Howard has been so good on that end that she deserves to be mentioned, especially when she's always capable of catching fire. If she figures out her shot and hits a bunch of 3s to lead the Dream to the title, perhaps things could get interesting. 

4. Kiah Stokes -- C, Valkyries

• 3.8 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.5 blocks per game
• 46.7% FG, 0% 3FG, 50% FT, 47.2% TS

Stokes didn't even take a shot in Game 2 and has scored 15 points all series, so why is she on this list? Well, she's putting together one of the best rim protection performances we've ever seen in the Finals, and has been a monster on the glass. 

Stokes is the first player with three-plus blocks in four consecutive Finals games, and her 14 blocks are already a record for a single Finals series. Her effort against Reese, in particular, has been incredible. As Nekias Duncan pointed out, Reese is 5 of 21 against Stokes and 19 of 30 against every other Valkyries defender. Plus, Stokes leads all players in offensive rebounds and is second in total rebounds. 

If Stokes was scoring even just a little bit more, she may be the favorite on the Valkyries side, but it's ultimately going to be nearly impossible to win Finals MVP when you're putting up 3.8 points per game, which is tied for 13th in the series among rotation players. And, unlike Howard, there's little chance for Stokes to suddenly become a big-time scorer. 

5. Tiffany Hayes -- G, Valkyries

• 11 points, four rebounds, two assists, 0.5 steals per game
• 37% FG, 14.3% 3FG, 72.7% FT, 43.3% TS

Hayes had a miserable Game 1. She shot 1 of 12 and left the game in the fourth quarter after slamming her face into the ground. Since then, however, she's scored in double figures in every game and had some huge buckets in the fourth quarter of Game 4 to ensure that the Valkyries' lead did not slip away. 

Natalie Nakase moved her into the starting lineup for Game 4, and you would expect her to remain there moving forward given that she's one of the only players on the Valkyries who can consistently create an advantage on offense. 

The Valkyries are a staggering minus-52 in Hayes' 97 minutes, which is a big blow to her case, but she's going to have every chance to put up some big scoring numbers the rest of the way. And with Golden State's half of the equation more open-ended than Atlanta's, there's a narrow path for Hayes if she can go off a few times – say, 20-25 points apiece in Games 5 and 7 – and lead the Valkyries to the title.