Due to a wrist injury, Chicago Sky freshman Angel Reese—who leads the WNBA in both offensive and total rebounds per game this season—will be sidelined for the remainder of the campaign. The news was revealed on Saturday night by The Sky. With the Atlanta Dream, Washington Mystics, and Dallas Wings remaining in the running for playoff spots, it’s a major setback for Chicago, who are now in the eighth and last slot.
“What a year. I never would have imagined the last bucket of my rookie season would be a 3 but maybe that was God saying give them a taste of what they will be seeing more of in Year 2 lol🥲 Through it all, I have showed that I belong in this league even when no one else believed. All I have ever wanted was to come into the W and make an impact”.
“I can confidently say I have done that and will strive to keep doing so. I’m filled with emotions right now that I have a season ending injury, but also filled with so much gratitude for what is next. Although this is God’s timing and not mine, I am finally able to give myself a physical and mental break. “God gives his hardest battles to his strongest soldiers.”
“You’ll still see me being the biggest cheerleader on the sideline! And Unrivaled league, see you soon!”. Reese records an astounding amount of rebounds at the end of her debut campaign. Reese smashed the records for the most rebounds in a single WNBA season and the most rebounds per game with 13.1 in her debut season, without even playing the entire season.
In the Sky’s 79-74 loss to Minnesota on September 1, Reese broke the single-season record when she eclipsed Sylvia Fowles’ mark of 404, which was set in 2018. Just one year after Jonquel Jones set the record with 403, Fowles surpassed it by one. The feat was completed by Reese in just 23 games.
Reese was thought to be the strongest contender to win the WNBA Rookie of the Year title against fellow rookie sensation Caitlin Clark. Joakim Noah, a former NBA All-Star, even declared on Fox News Digital that he would vote for Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese over Clark for Rookie of the Year if he had a say.
In terms of points, assists, steals, blocks, and all significant shooting percentage categories, Clark has the higher averages. Clark broke the Fever’s single-season assist record on Friday during a defeat to Minnesota.
However, Reese did have a significant rebounding advantage. Reese more than quadrupled Clark’s current per game total of 5.8 rebounds with 13.1 rebounds per game. This season, the Fever have defeated the Sky three times out of four in head-to-head play. Reese outscored Clark in two of those encounters and outrebounded him in all four meetings in terms of rebounds. In each of the four encounters, Clark recorded more assists.
In the inaugural episode of her podcast on Thursday, Reese discussed her feud with Clark, which predated her season-ending injury. Even though the two had a fierce rivalry going back to their college days—Clark attended Iowa and Reese attended LSU—Reese said she had the utmost regard for Clark and that they are not at all hostile toward one another.
Reese, however, came out against Clark’s ardent supporters, alleging they had harassed her. “I believe it’s really just her admirers—the fans in Iowa and, more recently, the fans in Indiana—who are really kind and ride for her, and I appreciate that, very much. But occasionally, it’s quite offensive. Regarding that, I believe there’s a lot of racism,” Reese remarked.
