Angel Reese has quickly risen as one of the most dominant young players in the WNBA but with success comes haters, and the Chicago Sky ace admits hers won’t go away – but she doesn’t care.
In only her second professional season, the Chicago Sky forward has already built a reputation as a relentless rebounder and double-double producer, drawing comparisons to league legends.
The 23-year-old is already a two-time WNBA All-Star and has been a fixture at the top of the rebounding charts since her arrival in the league, averaging 3.1 rebounds per game during her rookie campaign, leading all players.
She also broke Candace Parker‘s long-standing record with 15 consecutive double-doubles in her first year. This season, she has continued to dominate, posting 14.4 points and 12.3 rebounds per game while once again leading the league in rebounding.
On Thursday night, Reese showed her consistency against the defending champions, the New York Liberty. She powered the Sky to a 91-85 victory with 21 points and 10 rebounds, shooting an efficient 6-for-9 from the floor on August 21.
Yet despite her production, Reese has not been immune to criticism. Some detractors have questioned her offensive efficiency, claiming she misses too many layups or inflates her rebounding totals by recovering her own missed shots.
So, after a fan noted that Reese silenced her doubters by missing only three shots against New York, the forward addressed the ongoing debate directly. She accepted that negativity will remain, regardless of what she achieves.
“THEY GON COME UP WIT SOMETHING NEW. IT’S OK,” Reese wrote via social media, making it clear that the noise isn’t something that gets to her as she focuses on her performances for the Sky.
Interestingly, her statistical improvements tell a different story to the idea of her being wasteful as she has raised her field goal percentage from 39.1% in her rookie year to 46.2% this season.
Who do the Chicago Sky play next? Where to watch Angel Reese
Although Chicago’s win over the Liberty was impressive, it came too late for playoff implications as The Sky were eliminated from postseason contention earlier in the week when the Dallas Wings fell to the Los Angeles Sparks.
Still, with nine games left, Reese and her teammates have opportunities to close the season on a stronger note and improve on 2024’s 13-27 record, if they can get a few wins rolling in the dying embers.
They will next look to do so when they take on the Connecticut Sun on Saturday, August 23 at the Wintrust Arena from 16:00 ET/13:00 PT in Chicago, which can be watched via The U, WCIU, NBC SPORTS BOSTON.
The Sky hold a 9-26 record (.257) whilst the Sun are the only worse team in the league with just eight wins on the board (.229) so if Chicago wants to avoid being last in the Eastern Conference and WNBA, it could be a key game.
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