Former Gamecock Madina Okot making early WNBA impact with Atlanta Dream
Former Gamecock Madina Okot has been in the WNBA for less than a month, but her new head coach is happy with the early returns.
Okot was selected by the Atlanta Dream with the No. 13 overall pick in the first round of the 2026 WNBA Draft in April. Okot took her talents to the pros after an All-SEC senior season with Dawn Staley and South Carolina women’s basketball.
“I think Madina is a special talent,” Dream head coach Karl Smesko told reporters Monday. “I just think she has the ability to be exceptional.”
Okot made an immediate impact in her preseason debut versus the Chicago Sky on April 29. The 6-foot-6 forward notched a double-double and led the team with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Okot played 23 minutes off the bench and helped the Dream to an 87-78 win.
Okot’s solid play continued Sunday in Atlanta’s final preseason game against the Washington Mystics on Sunday. The Dream lost 83-72 but Okot recorded nine points, six rebounds and two blocks in 21 minutes off the bench.
“I just think she’s been fantastic so far,” Smesko said. “She wants to learn. She wants to get better. So we’re really excited. We think that she’s going to be able to make positive contributions this year. She’s one of the youngest college players in the draft class this year and she’s come in at practice, and she’s just competed every day, and she looks great.”
WNBA training camps will slowly wrap up this week with the regular season set to begin on Friday. Okot will make her official pro debut this Saturday when Atlanta opens its season on the road against the Minnesota Lynx.
Okot will likely run into a few speed bumps here and there throughout her rookie year. Still, Smesko believes she’s yet to scratch the surface of her potential. The key to developing Okot will be working out the kinks in her game, something that comes with time in the WNBA.
“Honestly, I don’t think she even realizes how good she is,” Smesko said. “Once she realizes how good she is, and then just understands some different situations that happen in the W over and over again. She’ll be able to understand when she has a post up advantage, when she can just bury somebody deep, or when she needs to come out a little bit and set a screen, just understanding the timing of those things.”
The Atlanta Dream — who are led by another former Gamecock in All-WNBA guard Allisha Gray — are expected to be a strong contender in the WNBA this season. The Dream finished No. 3 in the league standings and were bounced in the first round of the 2025 WNBA playoffs.
Atlanta added star forward Angel Reese to a strong core of Gray and All-Star Rhyne Howard. Smesko expects his young bench — which includes Okot and former Gamecock Te-Hina Paopao — to be a good complement to the stars in his starting lineup.
“There’s an awful lot of young talent there, so they just need to be developed. We’re excited about how they’re going to be able to help us this year and their futures are really off the charts.”
