Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese was not the least fazed after being slapped with two technical fouls and a game ejection Tuesday night as her WNBA team lost to the New York Liberty.
And it seems she was right not to worry, because by Wednesday afternoon, one of technicals went away.
The second technical foul was rescinded, the league said Wednesday, according to ESPN.
The WNBA has rescinded the second technical assessed to Angel Reese in last night’s game against the Liberty, per a league source.
— Julia Poe (@byjuliapoe) June 5, 2024
Reese’s only public reaction to the fouls was to thank her supporters by writing “appreciate you gang!” in a post on X,
That came in response to a post from Lonzo Ball of the Chicago Bulls, who was at the game.
💞😭appreciate you gang! https://t.co/Aupf0jJU6N
— Angel Reese (@Reese10Angel) June 5, 2024
Ball offered to pay any fine Reese incurred. (Even after one foul was rescinded, Reese will still have a fine of $200, according to USA Today.)
“Ref that threw out @Reese10Angel is weak btw. You know who you are (Keep ya money Angel I got you),” Ball wrote.
Reese was called for her fifth personal foul in the final minutes of the fourth quarter as the Sky were on their way to an 88-75 loss to the Liberty.
Referee Charles Watson added two technical fouls and ejected her.
After the game, Sky coach Teresa Weatherspoon said publicly she was puzzled by the whole affair.
“I tried to get an explanation. I did not,” Weatherspoon said in in a post-game news conference. “I don’t know to this moment what has happened.”
Chicago Sky Head Coach Teresa Weatherspoon on the Angel Reese technical fouls:
“I tried to get an explanation, I did not. I don’t know to this moment what has happened.” #WNBA https://t.co/qU0gt62vdt pic.twitter.com/Q3WkGjPhfg
— Tyler DeLuca (@TylerDeLuca) June 5, 2024
Lead official Maj Forsberg said Reese’s technical fouls were for “disrespectfully addressing” the official and then for “waving her hand in dismissal,” according to ESPN.
Reese’s Sky teammate Marina Mabrey explained the situation from her perspective, with what sounded like a gentle reminder for the rookie Reese about composure on the court.
“She got two techs, she said something to the ref,” Mabrey said. “Whatever he felt like was the correct call is what he made. It’s more about composure for us in our young years in the WNBA. You’ve got to get to know refs and how they respond to things.”
Writing on USA Today, columnist Nancy Armour argued in the past few weeks, Reese and arch-rival Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever have been reduced to caricatures.
“Neither Clark nor Reese asked for the roles they’ve been assigned, Clark as the savior of the W and Reese the WWE-style anti-hero,” she wrote.
Did the referees make the right decision?
“Expecting the rest of the W to roll out the red carpet every time Clark steps on the floor erases the progress of the previous 27 years and the women responsible for it. Ignores the role Reese and other young players have in the skyrocketing interest, too. Demanding the league step in and protect Clark is patronizing, suggesting she’s not strong enough to hold her own,” she wrote.
“And painting Reese as the female Dennis Rodman disregards her considerable talent and hard work. She needed almost no time to prove wrong those who questioned whether her game would translate to the WNBA, coming into Tuesday night’s game leading the league in offensive rebounds and second to Clark among rookies in points per game,” she wrote.
