As an athlete, is it better to go down in history for your playing prowess or for your ability to cause trouble?
One would think this would be a rhetorical question, but don’t tell that to Angel Reese. In the aftermath of more controversy for the former Louisiana State University star, Reese doubled down on “tak[ing] the ‘bad guy’ role,” telling people that she would “go down in history” for it.
Reese, the No. 7 pick in this year’s WNBA Draft and now a power forward with the Chicago Sky, was best known for her collegiate showdowns with No. 1 pick Caitlin Clark, formerly of the University of Iowa.
While Clark has set new benchmarks for ratings and attention in her rookie year with the Indiana Fever, Reese has managed to find herself in the midst of another Clark-related kerfuffle after she was seen celebrating with a teammate, Chennedy Carter, after Carter delivered a hard foul to Clark in the Sky’s 71-70 loss to the Fever on Saturday.
VIDEO: Watch as Angel Reese celebrate on the sideline, while teammate Chennedy Carter delivers a cheap shot to star player Caitlin Clark. #caitlinclark #angelreese #WNBA pic.twitter.com/GpWs4ZEXwu
— Prince Carlton 🇺🇸 (@_PrinceCarlton_) June 1, 2024
According to Bleacher Report, Reese was also fined $1,000 after not talking to the media after the game. The team was fined $5,000 for not ensuring that team members followed availability guidelines.
However, at Monday’s practice, Reese and Carter were willing to talk with the media. If only this were a good thing.
“At the end of the day, it’s all love outside of basketball,” Carter said when asked about the foul, according to NBC Sports.
Do you watch the WNBA?
“When we’re in those four lines, it’s smoke. After, it’s all love, I promise. We’re a genuine team, we’re genuine [people]. We didn’t hit her [Clark] like she was out on the streets, it’s just basketball.”
Reese was also unapologetic.
“Coming into a league that is super competitive with amazing talent here, I wasn’t coming in here expecting it to be easy because of the name I have,” Reese said.
“I’m playing for the name in front of me. I play with the letters across my chest. So understanding that, and understanding what that comes with. We all we got, we all we need. Understanding that we have each other’s back through whatever.”
As for her place in the WNBA hierarchy, Reese had an interesting response.
“I think so many people are watching women’s basketball right now,” Reese said.
“It all started from the National Championship Game [in 2023], and I’ve been dealing with this for two years now. And understanding, yeah, negative things have probably been said about me, but honestly, I’ll take that because look where women’s basketball is.
“People are talking about women’s basketball, but you never would think that people would be talking about women’s basketball. People are pulling up to games, we got celebrities coming to games, sold out arenas, just because of one single game,” Reese said, referencing the 2023 women’s NCAA National Championship final between LSU and Iowa.
“And just looking at that, I’ll take that role. I’ll take the ‘bad guy’ role, and I’ll continue to take that on and be that for my teammates. And I know I’ll go down in history,” she added. “I’ll look back in 20 years and be like, ‘the reason why we watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person, it’s because of me, too,’ and I want y’all to realize that.”
Angel Reese believes the physical play that Caitlin Clark has experienced isn’t new to the WNBA
Just more 👀
“The reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of 1 person. It’s because of me, too. I want y’all to realize that”
More: https://t.co/3fNUxipTTD pic.twitter.com/1YbGG4mWuL
— GNSportsTV (@GNSportsTV) June 3, 2024
OK, so this is half true and half bluster — not to mention the jab about “one person,” clearly referring to Clark. Yes, the 2023 Women’s NCAA basketball final was indeed where the women’s game seems to have come of age, but a lot has changed since then.
Notably, Clark was the first overall pick in this year’s packed WNBA Draft, whereas Reese wasn’t even the first pick by her team. (That would be University of South Carolina star Kamilla Cardoso, who has only played in one game thus far this season for the Sky due to injury.)
And, while early returns aren’t necessarily a guarantee of future success, Clark has outplayed Reese by a rather substantial margin, having racked up 15.6 points per game, 5.1 rebounds and 6.4 assists. Reese has scored 10.6 points per game and has 8.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists. ‘
While comparing the two isn’t necessarily apples to apples, given that one is a forward and the other is a guard, it’s safe to say that Clark has better all-around statistics while Reese tends to be better in the paint than Clark is. In other words, we’ve all moved on from that 2023 National Championship.
However, Reese seems to believe she’s going to go down in history as a kind of nasty “bad guy” enforcer, the Charles Oakley of the WNBA. If you’re asking, “Wait, who?”, you’re probably either under 40 or weren’t into the NBA back during the Michael Jordan era.
Of course, you’re not asking who Michael Jordan is. That might be a point that’s lost on Angel Reese and her teammates, but rest assured it won’t be lost on history.
