After two brutal losing seasons with the Chicago Sky, the organization finally did something good for Angel Reese. She was traded to the Atlanta Dream for two first-round picks. The Dream were fresh off their best regular season in years and a disappointing first-round exit.
They were looking for someone who could provide competitive energy, defensive tenacity, and extra possessions. Reese was the perfect answer to these needs and became even more invaluable due to Brionna Jones’s knee injury that kept her out of all but four games.
In many ways, Reese has been the missing piece for the Dream, but her Game 2 performance in the finals proved that she could be much more than an additive presence besides Rhyne Howard, Allisha Gray, and Jordin Canada. Reese didn’t just help the Dream win an important finals game in Ballhalla. She willed and carried her team to victory with a historic stat line of 30 points (on 62.5% shooting from the field), 16 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. Reese took the Dream’s Game 1 loss personally. She shared in the postgame media availability that she felt like she had let her team down. She was able to channel that frustration and hurt into the biggest game of her WNBA career, and that’s invaluable when you’re competing for a championship.
Reese is now the youngest player in WNBA history to record 30 points and 15 rebounds in the playoffs and just the fifth player to do it at all. The other four are Lisa Leslie, Candace Parker, Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones, and A’ja Wilson—all-time greats and MVPs.
No matter what some people may say, Reese is the first of the major names in the 2024 WNBA Draft to truly compete for a championship not because she was traded to a team that was already good, but because she has been able to take that team to the next level.
Reese has flourished in Atlanta
In Chicago, Reese was the face of the franchise and undisputed star. In Atlanta, she teamed up with two other All-Stars and high-level role players. Even though she now had to share the spotlight, Reese played her best regular season yet with career-highs in points, steals, and 3-point attempts per game.
Her field-goal percentage for the whole season may not reflect it, but Reese has notably improved her efficiency. She is shooting 46.8% from the field in the postseason. She was the most efficient scorer in Game 2 despite going up against Kiah Stokes, who has been one of the best defensive centers all season and recorded 4 blocks in both finals games.
Karl Smesko has also helped Reese become a more capable and confident 3-point shooter. She made six of her fifteen 3-point attempts in the playoffs so far. That’s 40%. With a full offseason under Smesko’s tutelage, Reese’s offense should take another leap for the 2027 season. Paired with her DPOY talent on the other end of the floor, that should set Reese up for a phenomenal season.
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