1x WNBA Champ Explains How Angel Reese Inspired Her

Cameron Brink was recently discussing how crucial offensive rebounding is on her podcast. She talked about how it makes you more valuable to a team and how it can extend careers. That’s when her guest, Dearica Hamby, brought up Angel Reese and how she inspired her to become better on the offensive glass. It was a good discussion that encapsulated how good Reese really is. 

Hamby is a two-time Sixth Woman of the Year and all-star, as well as a former WNBA Champion. She recently joined Brink’s podcast to talk about the WNBA Draft and an assortment of other topics. During the pod, Hamby shared some of her secrets on how she’s hung around in the league for 10 seasons. One of those things was rebounding.

Brink then mentioned how crucial offensive rebounding can be in games. Then Hamby brought up Reese when she heard her talking about the offensive glass.

“I think Angel [Reese] inspired me a little bit,” Hamby stated. “I’ve always been a good rebounder, but I think there were times where I was leaning more in my legs. I’m like, ‘I’m going to have to watch some clips.’”

Hamby has indeed always been quite the solid rebounder in the WNBA. She’s averaged over 6 per game in her career, and last year she averaged a career high with 9.2. Maybe Hamby’s averages improved this past season because she was watching clips of Reese and getting pointers on how to improve her rebounding game.

Cameron chimed in with some praise for Reese as well.

“She can move people,” Brink claimed. “Angel honestly needs to come out with a masterclass on offensive rebounding… She’s just always head-hunting. She’s like, ‘Who can I hit first before they see me?’”

Reese often gets a lot of criticism for her rebounding skills because of the low shooting percentages that accompany them. But when you hear great players like Brink and Hamby singing her praises, you start to understand how good she truly is at the skill. 

Reese averaged 13 rebounds per game last season, including 5 offensive ones. It was an incredible display of her drive and motor. Sure, maybe she shot a porous 39% to go with it. But Reese is still a rookie with plenty of time to work out her shooting struggles. 

All in all, it was eye-opening to hear a veteran like Hamby say she studied from a youngin like Reese to improve her rebounding. However, it seemed to have worked. And it could help her hang around in the league for another five or six seasons. It makes you think how long a player like Reese could hang around since she’s already mastered the skill. After all, 13 rebounds per game in a rookie season is a ton.