After the Atlanta Dream cruised to a 30-14 record in 2025, good for a 13-game improvement over 2024, general manager Dan Padover has been rewarded with the WNBA Executive of the Year award, the league announced on Tuesday.
The third-seeded Dream fell in the first round of the WNBA Playoffs to the 6 seed Indiana Fever last week.
“None of this is possible without the support and leadership of our owners, Larry and Robyn Gottesdiener, Suzanne Abair, and Renee Montgomery,” Padover said in a release. “They’ve entrusted me to help shape the future of the Dream, and I’m grateful for their vision and partnership. I also want to thank our coaches, players, and staff — all extremely talented, hardworking, and selfless teammates who make this organization so special.”
Padover, who also won the award with the Las Vegas Aces in 2020 and 2021, becomes the first person in WNBA history to be named Executive of the Year for two different franchises and the first ever to win the award three times.
From 2024 to 2025, Padover transformed the Dream. He started at the top, plucking Karl Smesko away from Florida Gulf Coast University and naming him head coach. He also added Brionna Jones and Britney Griner in free agency, and drafted Te-Hina Paopao, who turned in a strong rookie year.
The team also returned Allisha Gray, Rhyne Howard, Jordin Canada, along with 2025 Sixth Woman of the Year Naz Hillmon.
“Dan and I shared a vision and philosophy from our first meeting: to create a values- based culture, to rebuild in a thoughtful and disciplined way, and to establish a perennial contender,” Atlanta Dream majority owner Larry Gottesdiener said. “Our performance this year proves that we are well on our way to achieving those goals.”
2025 represented the first winning season for the Dream since 2018 and the first 30-win season in franchise history.
