Angel Reese has been balling. The second-year forward has really blossomed in the last month, averaging 19.1 points and 14.4 rebounds per game over her last eight contests, which has significantly helped the Chicago Sky, who began the season 3-10 but went 4-4 during that stretch.
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Reese missed last night’s game against the Atlanta Dream with a leg injury, and unsurprisingly, the Sky really struggled without her, consequently blowing out at home 86-49.
For the season, Reese is averaging 14 points and a league-leading 12.6 rebounds, and her assists and field goal percentage are both up from her rookie year, which is precisely why she is already a two-time All-Star.
NBA legend Dwyane Wade, who became a Sky minority owner two years ago, likes what he’s seeing from Reese and is happy to praise her on his platform. On the latest episode of Time Out with Dwyane Wade, he said, “Angel Reese is hoopin’, dawg. Her game is opening up, her bag is opening up, her confidence is getting even higher.”
“She is in that bag now. And she’s playing the game like a more aggressive Draymond Green in a sense, when it comes to how they’re giving her the ball, how they’re allowing her to run the offense, how she’s making passes, how she’s coming down the court rebounding the ball, running the PG, but attacking, scoring.”
Reese is a good defender, not at Draymond’s level, not at least at the moment, but then again, few are. Wade makes a great point about how she’s playing on offense, though. Draymond often has the ball in his hands when the Warriors get into their sets, and he’s adept at finding Steph Curry coming around a screen or exploiting a 3-on-2 going downhill.
Reese has a similar role in the Sky’s offense, as she often has the ball in her hands. Like Draymond, she’s a great passer, especially for a non-guard but she’s asked to do much more scoring than Green ever has been. Green is one of the NBA’s ultimate glue guys. Reese is like if a star were asked to do glue guy things.
There’s obviously a lot of work to do in Chicago, as the Sky still have the third-worst record in the league. This recent stretch should give their fans a reason to be hopeful, though, especially as one of those wins came against the league-leading Minnesota Lynx. In that one, Reese scored 11 in the first quarter to stake the Sky to an early lead that they never relinquished.
Wade is pleased with the progress the team has made. “It’s been fun to watch them grow this year … You like to see a team go through the ebbs and flow but then figure it out, and so you see moments where they’re starting to find what the system is gonna be, who’s the leaders of the team, where the ball’s gonna go, who can you depend on to do this and that. And so it’s really cool to see what Angel is just kinda taking the lead.”
The season is exactly halfway done for the Sky, and they’ll need to make even more progress if they hope to challenge for a playoff spot. That may be unlikely, but if Reese continues her growth, then the foundation will be there to compete well into the future.
