Dream and Valkyries Left Court Before WNBA Finals Anthem. League Has Not Explained.

The Atlanta Dream and Golden State Valkyries both left the court just before the national anthem at Game 1 of the WNBA Finals on Saturday, Oct. 17, at Chase Center in San Francisco. Both teams jogged back out within seconds of the final note.

Singer Goapele performed "The Star-Spangled Banner." The teams were off the floor for roughly two minutes. The Valkyries went on to win the opener, with Gabby Williams delivering late.

What the rulebook says

The WNBA's 2026 official rulebook includes an anthem provision covering players, coaches and trainers. It calls for them to form a standing line along a sideline or foul line while the anthem plays.

OutKick's Dan Zaksheske contacted the league and both teams Saturday and followed up Sunday. His questions: why the players were off the court, whether they would be there for Game 2, whether the league had given any instructions, and whether any discipline is under consideration.

None of the three answered. Zaksheske also said he attended all five of Saturday's pregame and postgame press conferences and was not called on.

A separate request for comment from Sport & State columnist Karen Crouse to both clubs also went unanswered, according to her column.

What is and is not known about the absence

No player, coach or team official has said why the teams left. Nobody has called it a protest, and nobody has called it routine.

The available footage does not show whether the exit was planned. Leaving the floor at a set time before tipoff is not unusual in basketball. Yahoo Sports noted that LSU coach Kim Mulkey gave a similar explanation in 2024, when her team, which included current Dream star Angel Reese, was off the court for the anthem before an Elite Eight game against Iowa.

The Mirror reported that this is not the first time the Dream have left the floor before the anthem.

Crouse's column traces the broader practice of WNBA teams skipping the anthem to the 2020 season, which was played amid the aftermath of George Floyd's death. She wrote that such absences were described at the time as silent protests for social justice.

Crouse also asks why players did not push for an optional-anthem rule in this year's new collective bargaining agreement if the practice is deliberate. That is her argument, not a finding. She dismisses the idea that the rule is moot if players are not on the court, calling it akin to telling a police officer "my car is self-driving."

Whether the provision, as written, reaches players who are not on the floor when the anthem begins is a question the league has not addressed.

Fan and commentator reaction

Social media reaction was harsh. One X user wrote that the commissioner "needs to fix this BS - either don't play it or respect it." Others called for fines, and some said players who leave the floor should be barred from Team USA.

That last demand has a concrete hook. Dream players Rhyne Howard and Angel Reese played for the U.S. at the 2026 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup, and Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase was an assistant on that staff. No one with authority over USA Basketball has weighed in on the idea.

Broadcaster Emily Austin wrote on X that the WNBA "has incredible talent and somehow manages to make everything BUT basketball the headline."

The league could settle this with a two-sentence statement. It could say the teams were following a standard pregame schedule, or that the rule was not followed and will be enforced. Instead it has said nothing, while its rulebook says one thing and the Finals teams did another.

Game 2 was scheduled for 8 p.m. ET tonight, Oct. 19, at Chase Center. The league and both teams have not said whether players would be on the floor for the anthem, and no discipline or instruction to either club has been announced.