‘So Many People Doubted Me’
GettyAngel Reese
Angel Reese is a 2024 WNBA All-Star.
The Chicago Sky rookie told reporters she didn’t expect to earn the honor in her first season, but after the Sky beat the Atlanta Dream on Tuesday night, July 2, she learned the news. Reese was quickly overcome with emotion.
Entering the postgame press conference after yet another double-double (12 points, 19 rebounds), Reese had tears in her eyes.
“We won today but they just told me I’m an All-Star and, I mean, I’m just so happy,” Reese said. “Coming into this league, so many people doubted me and didn’t think my game would translate and I wouldn’t be the player that I was in college… or would be worse or wouldn’t be where I am right now, but I trusted the process and I believed.”
Reese, the WNBA Rookie of the Month for June, has thrust herself directly into the Rookie of the Year discussion — an honor many may have assumed was destined for Caitlin Clark.
Now, Reese and Clark are both All-Stars and will compete together later this month against Team USA in Phoenix.
Reese went on to thank her coaches and teammates for their support. While she is already establishing herself as one of the best post players in the WNBA, it’s come with its share of troubles, particularly on offense where she is shooting less than 40%.
She reiterated what she’s said before about landing in Chicago.
“I’m thankful that I dropped to seven and was able to come to Chicago,” she said. “It’s just a blessing. I can’t thank my teammates and my coaches enough for just believing in me and trusting me.”
Teresa Weatherspoon Says Angel Reese ‘Hears A Lot’
Perhaps no one sees what Reese goes through daily more than her head coach, Teresa Weatherspoon. That’s why, to Weatherspoon, Reese being voted an All-Star carries some extra significance.
“We’re all incredibly proud of her and the accomplishment is big. It’s huge for all of us because she’s a team player,” the Sky coach said. “She recognizes this honor is bestowed upon her with the work that she’s put in but also with what she’s done with her teammates. The emotions are just starting to come out because she’s been through a lot. She hears a lot. She has to battle through a lot.”
What Reese has endured has uncovered the ugly side to WNBA fandom and media. The manufactured rivalry between her and Clark has made her the target of both racist innuendo and outright racist harassment. Through it all, Reese has remained unapologetically herself.
Angel Reese Plays for those Coming Behind Her
Just hours before Reese learned she would be a WNBA All-Star, a young girl at the Sky’s game asked Reese what motivates her.
“Girls like you,” Reese responded in a video that has since gone viral. “Little girls that look up to me. Being able to wake up every day and know that little eyes are watching me.
Meghan L. Hall@ItsMeghanLHall·Follow
An absolutely adorable Angel Reese fan came up to her during availability and asked her “What motivates you?”.
Angel: “Girls like you….little girls that look up to me. Being able to wake up every day and know that little eyes are watching me.”
#WNBA #SkyTown
Watch on X5:47 pm · 2 Jul 202420243ReplyRead 96 replies
“I hope that one day, you can do what I’m doing,” she added. “Just being able to be hands on with you…and just being there for you guys and being a good example.”
The example Reese has set will send her to Phoenix for the WNBA All-Star Game on July 20.
Russell Steinberg covers MLB and WNBA for Heavy.com. He is a sports journalist and reporter with work featured at Boardroom, SLAM, The Next, and SB Nation. More about Russell Steinberg
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