Angel Reese, WNBA Rookie of the Year candidate, announces season-ending injury
Angel Reese's rookie year has come to an end, as the Chicago Sky forward announced Saturday she had suffered a season-ending injury. Reese injured her wrist in the Sky's 92-78 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks on Friday, in which she recorded another one of her signature double-doubles.
The Sky also confirmed the severity of the injury, saying in a statement that "Reese has been ruled out for the rest of the 2024 season with a wrist injury."
In a social media post, Reese wrote that "through it all, I have showed that I belong in this league even when no one else believed. I'm filled with emotions right now that I have a season ending injury, but also filled with so much gratitude for what is next."
Reese ends her first year as a pro averaging a prolific 13.6 points and 13.1 rebounds per game. The Bayou Barbie wrote her name in the WNBA record books earlier this month, breaking Sylvia Fowles' single-season rebound total.
The record was a building block in Reese's campaign for Rookie of the Year, a contentious race against rival phenom Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever. The Fever smoked the Sky 100-81 in their final matchup of the season last Friday, with Clark notching a career-high 31 points.
"Caitlin is an amazing player and I've always thought she was an amazing player. We've been playing each other since high school. So I think it's really just the fans," Reese said on her new podcast, "Unapologetically Angel." "At the end of the day, it's a game that we do both love, but there is no hate."
With two weeks left to go in the WNBA regular season and seven of eight playoff berths taken, the Sky are fighting for the final spot. Reese wrote on social media that her fans and teammates can still expect to see her "being the biggest cheerleader on the sideline!"