Three games Friday. Dallas travels to Atlanta in the most competitive game on the slate, a rematch of the teams' earlier meeting with both squads now carrying more data and more confidence than they had in Week 1. The Golden State Valkyries head to Indianapolis for their first taste of Gainbridge Fieldhouse and a Fever team that has been one of the more consistent offensive units in the league through the first two weeks. And Connecticut heads to Seattle for another chapter in the Sunset Season's difficult early road stretch, this time against a Storm team that is also looking for answers. Here's what to watch.

Dallas Wings @ Atlanta Dream | 7:30pm ET | Peachtree TV, KFAA

The Dallas Wings are 3-2 and a meaningfully different team than the one that lost to Atlanta 77-72 earlier this month. Arike Ogunbowale's return from the right ankle injury that sidelined her for the first two weeks has restored the offensive balance that Jose Fernandez's pace-and-space system was always designed to run. With Ogunbowale alongside Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd, the Wings now have three legitimate scoring threats on the floor simultaneously, and the spacing that Ogunbowale's movement creates is exactly what Bueckers's facilitation needs to be most dangerous. The Wings beat Chicago on Wednesday with a full roster for one of the first times this season, and that result should carry real confidence into Atlanta.

Atlanta is 2-1 and hosting the first true test of what this Dream roster looks like at home against a complete opponent. The Dream have been better than their record shows in some respects and worse in others. Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray give Atlanta the most disruptive two-way perimeter pairing in the East, and Angel Reese's rebounding has continued to redefine how this offense generates second-chance points. Karl Smesko's system is functioning, the ball is moving, and State Farm Arena has been the kind of home environment that gives the Dream a real structural advantage on a Friday night. The historical record in this building favors Atlanta: Dallas tends to start slowly in this venue, having lost the first quarter in six consecutive road games at State Farm Arena.

The individual matchup at the guard level is the game within this game. Ogunbowale's return gives Dallas a player who can create for herself in late-game isolation situations, something Bueckers has had to carry alone for two weeks. How Howard and Gray divide coverage responsibilities between Ogunbowale and Bueckers will define Atlanta's defensive approach, and whether the Dream can slow two legitimate creators simultaneously is the question Friday answers.

Dallas wins if Ogunbowale operates at the level her return implies, Bueckers facilitates with the vision that has made her one of the most promising second-year players in the league, and the Wings' pace-based attack generates the early transition opportunities that prevent Atlanta from getting into its halfcourt defensive sets.

Atlanta wins if Howard and Gray reproduce the defensive performance that held Dallas to 72 points in their first meeting, Reese dominates the glass for the continuation of what has been a consistent rebounding performance all season, and the Dream's home crowd generates the energy that has made State Farm Arena one of the trickier road environments in the Eastern Conference.

Prediction: Atlanta -2.5. The spread is tight and the market is right to keep it that way. Ogunbowale's return genuinely changes the Dallas ceiling, and the Wings are a more dangerous team than they were when Atlanta beat them by five in the first meeting. But the Dream are at home, Atlanta has covered in this building consistently, and Howard and Gray are capable of limiting even a full-strength Dallas backcourt. Computer models project Atlanta at approximately 59% win probability, consistent with the -145 moneyline, but this one feels like it will go to the Wings who win and cover.

Golden State Valkyries @ Indiana Fever | 7:00pm ET | Peacock, NBCSN

The Golden State Valkyries are 3-1 and one of the more layered early-season stories in the league. Their win Thursday at New York confirmed what the 2-1 record after the Chicago cold-shooting game had obscured: this is a team with a real defensive system, a deep and well-coached rotation, and Gabby Williams playing at the level that made her the preseason defensive player of the year consensus. Three wins in their last four games, including Thursday's road win at Barclays Center, gives Golden State the kind of credibility that changes how opponents prepare for them.

Indiana is 3-2 and navigating an early season that has been defined by Clark's return. The Fever beat Portland on Wednesday in the national window on USA Network, with Clark continuing to operate at the high-facilitating level that has characterized her best performances. Gainbridge Fieldhouse has been one of the WNBA's most engaged home environments since Clark arrived, and the Friday night crowd for a Peacock national game against one of the league's more interesting road teams will be among the louder settings of the early season. Kelsey Mitchell's perimeter scoring and Aliyah Boston's interior consistency give Indiana the supporting cast that makes Clark's facilitation most dangerous.

The matchup that will define this game is Williams against whoever carries the ball for Indiana's primary ball-handling possessions. Williams's ability to pressure the initial pass and disrupt the facilitation rhythm of opposing offenses is the specific skill that makes her defensively unique. Clark has not faced a defender of Williams's caliber in a home environment yet this season, and how Clark responds to that pressure is the most interesting individual storyline on Friday's slate.

Golden State wins if Williams disrupts Clark's facilitation early enough to prevent Indiana from establishing its ball-movement rhythm, Hayes and Burton provide the perimeter scoring that keeps Golden State competitive in a building that has historically been difficult for road teams, and the Valkyries' defensive execution holds Indiana under 80 points in the way their scheme is designed to function.

Indiana wins if Clark operates at the level that has defined her best performances and finds the open looks for Mitchell, Boston, and the shooters around her before Williams can recover, the Gainbridge crowd provides the sustained energy that has been a consistent factor in the Fever's home wins, and Indiana's depth allows Stephanie White to manage the matchup problems Williams creates without sacrificing overall offensive output.

Prediction: Indiana -3.5. Gainbridge Fieldhouse on a national broadcast, with Clark healthy and the Fever at 3-2, is a strong position for the home favorite. Golden State is legitimately good and the spread reflects the respect the market has developed for this team after Thursday's result. Computer models project Indiana at approximately 63% win probability. Clark at home against a defense this organized is the test the Fever's offensive system needs to pass. Fever win and cover.

Connecticut Sun @ Seattle Storm | 10:00pm ET | WNBA League Pass

Connecticut is 1-5 and carrying the weight of an opening stretch that has been harder than even the most pessimistic Sunset Season preview suggested. The Sun's one win represents a genuine result, but the five losses have come against a variety of opponents and in a variety of ways, and the defensive identity that the Sun need to be competitive is still not present in the road environment. Hailey Van Lith has continued to show encouraging individual flashes, and Brittney Griner gives Connecticut the interior presence that demands attention. But at 1-5 and with a travel-heavy schedule, the structural gaps are becoming harder to paper over.

Seattle is 1-4 and in a similar place of early-season soul-searching. The Storm's only win came against Connecticut earlier this month, a result that has taken on a different significance now that the Sun's 1-5 record contextualizes it. The interior defensive gaps that Ezi Magbegor's foot injury has created remain the central problem for a team that is younger and more athletic than most of its opponents but unable to protect the paint without its rim protector. Flau'jae Johnson and Dominique Malonga have produced enough individually to keep Seattle competitive in games they have ultimately lost, and Natasha Howard's interior work in recent games has given the Storm a second scoring option that changes how opponents defend the paint.

Friday night at Climate Pledge Arena is the second meeting between these teams this season, and the first was not close. Seattle has the home crowd, the athletic advantages, and the specific interior matchup edge that Malonga creates against a Connecticut frontcourt that is aging and road-weary. The Sun's back-to-back road stretch has been physically demanding for a veteran-heavy roster, and Climate Pledge Arena at 10pm ET on a Friday is not where Connecticut finds its best defensive energy.

Connecticut wins if Van Lith produces at the offensive level that her profile demands, Griner dominates the interior and generates enough foul trouble on Seattle's forwards to change the defensive rotation structure, and the Sun bring the desperation that 1-5 should produce into a building where they have been competitive in other road environments this season.

Seattle wins if Malonga continues her recent interior production and physically punishes a Connecticut frontcourt that has struggled on the road against athletic opponents, Johnson provides enough perimeter scoring to prevent the Sun from focusing their defensive attention entirely on the paint, and Climate Pledge Arena gives the Storm the home energy that has been inconsistently present this season.

Prediction: Seattle -5.5. The Storm are at home with the athletic advantages and the interior matchup edge that their first meeting confirmed. Connecticut is 1-5, on a stretch of road games, and facing a team that beat them earlier this season in a result that wasn't close. Computer models project Seattle at approximately 71% win probability. The Sun beat the Storm recently, but the structure of Friday night's game does not provide the setting for another one. Storm win and cover.

Wings-Dream is the game the early standings will remember. Ogunbowale's return gives Dallas a genuine argument for beating Atlanta in their building for the first time this season, and whether Howard and Gray can slow a fully-assembled Wings backcourt is the defensive question of the night. Valkyries-Fever is the individual story worth watching: Williams against Clark in a Gainbridge Fieldhouse national window is the kind of matchup that defines early-season narratives and gives us information about both teams that no other game has provided yet. And Connecticut-Seattle is the Sunset Season at its most difficult, a 1-5 team on the road against the team that beat them the first time they met.