ATLANTA — Atlanta Dream’s Rhyne Howard has worked very hard to get to where she is.

The WNBA guard likes the award for all that work but says she was going for Gold.

“I’d like it better if it was gold,” Rhyne said.

Howard won the Bronze at the Olympic Games in Paris, France as a member of USA Basketball’s 3X3 Women’s National Team.

The team defeated Canada, 16-13.

“For the rest of her career, she’ll be recognized as an Olympian. A Bronze medal-winning Olympian at that,” said Atlanta Dream Head Coach Tanisha Wright.

The Dream selected Rhyne as the first overall pick of the 2022 WNBA Draft.

She has lived up to that selection and now wants to help take the team to the top of the league.

As for the last couple of weeks in France, she says she won’t forget it. As for the bronze medal, it is not on display just yet.

“It’s still in my backpack. I’ll probably give it to my mom, and let her do whatever with it. Maybe display it in a case,” she said.

Howard is the first Dream player to reach the Olympic podium since Angel McCoughtry in 2016.