During a key game, Flau'jae Johnson put up 22 points and 10 rebounds on July 6 in a prime slot to help Seattle beat Las Vegas convincingly 82-64.
The win snapped at last Seattle’s three-game losing streak that haunted the team.
The seasoned leader Kim Mulkey criticized vigorously Johnson during the July 9 pregame talk that sparked debate.
That same night in Atlanta the night of the showdown, the Dream faced the Seattle Storm on USA Network in prime time at 10 p.m. ET for the east coast audience.
The broadcast also featured Caitlin Clark, Natasha Howard, and Nneka Ogwumike among others.
The league called clearly the matchup a main event for the week that highlighted the league.