Angel Reese Directly Addresses Major Criticism About Her Game
Angel Reese Directly Addresses Major Criticism About Her Game originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Barely over one year into her professional basketball career, Angel Reese has clearly established herself as one of the most dominant rebounders in the WNBA.
Advertisement
Still, there are critics, but Reese is not afraid to address them directly.
After being drafted as the No. 7 overall pick out of LSU, she was selected to the WNBA All-Star Game as a rookie. Her case was strengthened her immediate impact on the glass for the Chicago Sky, averaging a league-leading 13.1 rebounds per game mark at the end of the 2024 season.
On Tuesday against the Connecticut Sun, Reese became the fastest player to reach 30 career double-doubles (42 games) in WNBA history. She is also the fastest player in league history to reach 500 rebounds and 500 points in a career (38 games).
Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese (5).Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images
In total, 217 of the 552 rebounds in Reese's career have come on the offensive glass.
Advertisement
Some critical fans created the term "Mebounds" to describe the way that Reese, who sports a career field goal percentage of 38.6 percent, often inflates her rebounding totals by grabbing her own missed layups at the rim.
The 23-year-old, who had to fight tears this week when teammate Ariel Atkins acknowledged the "heavy crown" she wears, has heard the term. Her reaction might surprise you.
"Whoever came up with the 'mebounds' thing, y'all ate that up," she said in a video to her 5.6 million followers on TikTok. "Anything that comes off that board, it's mine.'
She took the slanderous term in stride, calling it a "six-figure" idea while talking confidently about her rebounding abilities.
Advertisement
"The trolling, I love when y'all do it," she admitted. "The ideas be good!"
Reese continues to show strength on and off the court despite being one of the most heavily-criticized players in the WNBA.
Though the Sky are off to a 2-7 start to the season, she is averaging 10.3 points, 11.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.6 steals per game.
Chicago will look for its third win of the season against the 2-7 Connecticut Sun on Sunday at noon ET on CBS.
Related: Angel Reese Fights Back Tears After Chicago Sky's Loss to New York Liberty
Related: Caitlin Clark's Teammate Had No Words After Being Released By Indiana Fever
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 14, 2025, where it first appeared.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBS News
23 minutes ago
- CBS News
Wisconsin and NIL collective sue Miami, allege tampering and NIL inducements to land football player
The University of Wisconsin and its NIL collective VC Connect filed a joint lawsuit on Friday against the University of Miami, alleging it knowingly induced one of the Badgers' football players to abandon a lucrative name, image and likeness contract to play for the Florida this upcoming season. Allegations of tampering rarely get to this level and the 23-page lawsuit, which was filed in state court in Wisconsin and obtained by The Associated Press, is unusual. Depending on its resolution, it could have a a wider impact on future NIL deals across college athletics. The player in question in the filing is referred to only as "Student-Athlete A." But the case summary describes facts that line up with the situation involving cornerback Xavier Lucas, who last December announced his plans to enter the transfer portal. Shortly afterward, Darren Heitner, who has been representing Lucas, indicated that Wisconsin was refusing to put Lucas' name in the portal and that it was hindering his ability to talk with other schools. In January, Heitner announced that Lucas would be playing for Miami this fall. The situation is fallout from the rapid changes engulfing college athletics, specifically a combination of two things: Athletes went to court and won the ability to transfer with much more freedom and the 2021 NCAA decision clearing the way for them to strike NIL endorsement deals now worth millions of dollars. That has changed the recruiting landscape and forced the issue of contracts and signed commitments to the fore. "Indeed, student-athletes' newfound NIL rights will be rendered meaningless if third parties are allowed to induce student-athletes to abandon their contractual commitments," a portion of the lawsuit reads. Miami and Lucas were in talks before transfer decision, Wisconsin says Wisconsin said in January that it had credible information that Miami and Lucas made impermissible contact with each other before the former Badgers cornerback decided to transfer. Wisconsin and VC Connect allege that the inducement for Lucas to attend Miami happened within days of him entering his NIL agreement to play for the Badgers, and that they incurred substantial monetary and reputational harm. The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages and "a declaration that Miami's conduct directed towards Student-Athlete A constituted tampering." A message left with the University of Miami seeking comment was not immediately returned. In a text message Friday, Heitner declined to comment on the lawsuit but he said that Lucas still plans to attend Miami and play football. Wisconsin said it had the support of its leadership and the Big Ten Conference in filing the lawsuit, noting its commitment to "ensuring integrity and fundamental fairness in the evolving landscape of college athletics." "While we reluctantly bring this case, we stand by our position that respecting and enforcing contractual obligations is essential to maintaining a level playing field," the statement said. "In addition to our legal action, we will continue to be proactive to protect the interests of our student-athletes, our program and the broader collegiate athletics community. Lucas, who is from Pompano Beach, Florida, had 12 tackles, an interception and a sack as a freshman for Wisconsin last season. Heitner said that Lucas hasn't received any money from Wisconsin and therefore owes no money to the school. Heitner also argued that Wisconsin had violated an NCAA bylaw by not entering Lucas into the transfer database within two business days of the player's request. Wisconsin issued a statement at the time saying it hadn't put Lucas' name in the portal because he had entered a two-year binding NIL agreement. In April, the surprise transfers of brothers Nico and Madden Iamaleava from Tennessee to UCLA prompted fresh questions about contracts and buyouts. Nico Iamaleava, who led Tennessee to the College Football Playoff last season, walked away from a reported $2.4 million NIL contract. Arkansas freshman quarterback Madden Iamaleava entered the portal after spring practices wrapped up. Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek released a statement indicating he would support efforts by the Razorbacks' NIL collective to enforce buyout clauses in athlete contracts. Iamaleava reportedly had a contract valued at $500,000 upon signing with Arkansas.
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton Opens Up on Calf Injury Before NBA Finals Game 7
Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton Opens Up on Calf Injury Before NBA Finals Game 7 originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton entered the team's first elimination game of these NBA Finals at home at Gainbridge Fieldhouse as a great question mark. He had injured his calf in Game 5, and did not look healthy in closing out that game, walking with a notable limp. Advertisement The question going into the win-or-go-home Game 6 for Indiana was two-fold: Would Haliburton play, and if so, would he be effective? We learned early on Thursday that the intention was that Haliburton would be on the floor. And we learned early in the game that he would, indeed, be effective. Haliburton led the Pacers to a laugher in the game, a 108-91 win that will now send the series to a Game 7 finale. Haliburton had 14 points and five assists, but was a plus-25 on the floor, as his presence was what really mattered for Indiana. After the game, he explained what went into him playing in Game 6--and what he'll carry into Game 7, injury-wise. Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) drives to the basket against Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) in the first quarter during game six of the 2025 NBA Finals at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images "I just look at it as I want to be out there to compete with my brothers. These are guys that I'm willing to go to war with and we've had such a special year, and we have a special bond as a group, and you know, I think I'd beat myself up if I didn't give it a chance," he said. Advertisement "I just want to be out there and fight and just had to have an honest conversation with coach (Rick Carlisle) that, you know, if I didn't look like myself and was hurting the team, like sit me down. Obviously, I want to be on the floor. But I want to win more than anything. So had an honest conversation with coach. But yeah, I want to be on the floor, and if I have the ability to, if I can -- like I said, if I can walk, I want to be out there." He will get one more chance to be out there for the Pacers. That will come Sunday in Oklahoma City for the finale. He said he knows the key for the Pacers will be putting Game 6 behind them and moving on. "Celebrate this one tonight and move on. It's done with. We did our job to take care of home court, and we have to be ready to compete in Game 7," he said. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 20, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Celtics Make 'No-Brainer' Payton Pritchard Announcement on Friday
Celtics Make 'No-Brainer' Payton Pritchard Announcement on Friday originally appeared on Athlon Sports. While the Boston Celtics fell short of their championship aspirations in 2024-25, the team had some notable bright spots shine throughout this past year's NBA campaign. Advertisement Fifth-year Celtics guard Payton Pritchard put together the best season of his young NBA career, averaging a career-high 14.3 points on 47.2% shooting from the field and 40.7% shooting from behind the three-point arc. Pritchard accomplished these impressive statistics through 77 games off the bench in 2024-25. As such, he was recognized with the NBA's coveted Sixth Man of the Year trophy earlier this year. Unsurprisingly, Pritchard was also recognized as the Celtics' Sixth Man of the Year winner in an announcement on Friday. "The biggest no-brainer of our Awards Series: our Sixth Man of the Year," the team wrote on X. This Sixth Man of the Year trophy marks Pritchard's second honor of the Celtics' postseason award series. The former No. 26 pick was also recognized as the team's Most Improved Player. Advertisement The Celtics still have one more postseason award to announce: the Sharpshooter of the Year. Pritchard is certainly a candidate for this award as well as he boasted the team's best three-point percentage of any player averaging at least one attempt per game. Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard (11).Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images The Celtics' 2024-25 season came to an end with a second-round playoff loss the the New York Knicks. In Game 4, Boston superstar Jayson Tatum suffered an Achilles tendon tear. With Tatum out for the majority of the 2025-26 season, Pritchard will likely serve an even more integral role in the Celtics' upcoming NBA campaign. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 20, 2025, where it first appeared.
