Angel Reese taught priceless WNBA lesson as Chicago Sky's tumble continues

Angel Reese has been slammed for her efforts in one phase of play as the Chicago Sky lost again in their perilous playoff bid.

The Sky were put to the sword by the Las Vegas Aces in the WNBA on Tuesday night as Reese and co were beaten 71-90 to extend their unwelcome record to seven straight losses. Reese scored 12 points on the night but the 19-point margin of defeat shows just how much work Chicago have to do if they’re to resurrect their playoff push.

Reese’s play was also highlighted towards the end of the 2nd quarter as she attempted to lay up but was stuffed by Megan Gustafson. As Reese’s momentum took her off the court and she let out her frustration, the Aces were already on the counter.

Chelsea Gray took the play forward in the transition and had an easy pass to Gustafson who made an unmarked run to the three-point line. The Spanish Olympian had all the time in the world to line up and drain her effort as Reese was just about seen on the edge of the screen trudging back.

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One fan on social media picked up on Reese’s body language and her languid attempts at trying to track Gustafson back into the defensive phase. “Angel looked tired already with 3 min left in the 1st,” one user commented.

A second sarcastically wrote: “Solid defensive effort by the future ROTY.” Another user also pinpointed her lacklustre effort in the transition, adding: “Too early in the game to be jogging back on D”. While a fourth joked: “This is clearly a deep fake. I've been informed Angel Reese is a beast offensively and defensively.”

Barstool Sports owner and avid Caitlin Clark fan Dave Portnoy has been a regular critic of Reese and he took aim at her performance again with the Sky trailing 31-47 at halftime. Portnoy sarcastically wrote on X: “Angel fixing to go off in 2nd half vs Vegas. Down 20 at half. She's got 5 pts, 1/5 from field (20%), 8 boards. Its officially Angel time. She goes demon mode in situations like these.”

Chicago holds the final position in the playoffs, in eighth, but their 11-22 record for the season is level with ninth placed Atalanta Dream, while they’re only one win ahead of the bottom Eastern Conference side Washington Mystics.

Looking ahead to their double-header against the bottom of the standings Los Angeles Sparks, who hold a 7-25 record and on paper offer the best chance for the Sky to break their winless duck. Reese failed to make an appearance in the post-game press conference, instead teammate Dana Evans sent out a rousing message to players and fans that the Sky are intent on turning their form around.

“This league is so good that if you soak in a loss, you will not be good for the next game,” Evans said. “We have just got to be ready to play. We are not going to give up, we are not going to quit, we want to get in the playoffs. We are going to stay together.”