After two years in Chicago, the Angel Reese era now feels like a dream
Was it all a dream?
When Angel Reese was drafted No. 7 in 2024, it felt like a new day in Chicago. The world's attention was turning toward women's basketball, and now, blessed with one of the sport's biggest names, Chicago would be at the epicenter.
Reese had her naysayers coming out of LSU, but she proved many of them wrong.
Her game, it turned out, translated to the pros. In her rookie season, she surpassed Sylvia Fowles to claim the single-season rebounding record and set a WNBA mark for the most consecutive double-doubles with 15.
There was still a lot of room for growth, sure, but it looked like she had the potential to be the face of the franchise.
It wasn't just that she was a generational rebounder with All-Defense potential and MVP aspirations.
It was also that she was the kind of larger-than-life figure the Sky had not had since Candace Parker. She was the kind of star who ensured celebrities sat courtside at Wintrust — the kind who could hit the Met Gala on a Monday and help down the Liberty on a Tuesday.
That meant something. Players who change franchises don't just produce; they project their personality. Reese had the necessary flair: she was unapologetic, multi-dimensional, a fierce competitor.
There was a certain grace in the fact that she wanted to be in Chicago. The Sky had struggled since the 2021 championship core split and head coach James Wade departed abruptly during the 2023 season. But Reese embraced the opportunity. She wanted to play for Teresa Weatherspoon, a WNBA legend and first-time head coach, and the city rallied around them in 2024.
But the fame and the spotlight Reese carries also embedded a tension into the partnership with the Sky. While Reese pulled Chicago into the WNBA's modern era, the Sky remained relative stragglers on the organizational side.
As franchises in New York, Phoenix, Minnesota and Las Vegas began operating more like NBA teams, the Sky still lacked a dedicated practice facility, a robust performance staff, and an in-house analytics team.
Still, Reese defended them. She told reporters at media day in 2025 that while people want to start with the "glitz and the glamour," you sometimes have to "start in the gutter."
Maybe Reese and the Sky could evolve together. Growing pains and all.
Reese's second season had plenty of them. She endured an epic slump to start the year, struggling to finish around the rim and looking hesitant with her outside shot. But she played herself out of it, adapting to coach Tyler Marsh's system and showing she could be a playmaker and a ballhandler, too.
Meanwhile, the Sky were headed toward one of their worst seasons in franchise history, weighed down by injuries and a talent deficit. Organizationally, they were trying to elevate the player experience, but the reality of practicing in a public recreation center overshadowed other changes.
By the end of the season, Reese's public comments suggested she was far less satisfied with the view from the gutter.
On the Sky's facilities: "Y'all saw the rec where we practice at … I don't think anyone wants to practice there."
On their roster: "I'm not settling for the same s— we did this year," Reese told the Tribune. "We have to get good players. We have to get great players. That's a non-negotiable for me."
The Sky ultimately suspended Reese for a half-game for comments she made in the Tribune interview, and she sat out the remainder of the season with a back injury.
The relationship hit a crossroads. Could Reese still be a foundational piece? A pillar? Somewhere in between? Then, poof, she was gone.
To hear both sides tell it now, it is almost as if the era never happened. Both insist it was a mutual parting: no trade request, no love lost. Just a general manager making an opportunistic move, just a player doing what was best for her career.
"There's a lot of gray area in basketball and trading and there's no black and white answer of this is right and this is wrong," Sky guard Hailey Van Lith said before Wednesday's preseason game against the Dream. "People just go with their gut and I think that's kind of what played out. It's a gray area, and you have respect for everyone involved and you keep pushing."
The Dream won the gray area Wednesday night, 87-78, with Reese looking like what her new teammates have been calling "the missing piece."
What's possible for this Dream team in the regular season?
"I think what's possible is ultimately win a championship," coach Karl Smesko said before the game.
What's possible for the Sky?
It's still tough to get a good read. On paper they look like a playoff-caliber team, but three of their major offseason signings—Azurá Stevens, Courtney Vandersloot and DiJonai Carrington—are all out with injuries and lack specific return timelines.
The Sky do have candidates for the face-of-the-franchise question in Rickea Jackson and Kamilla Cardoso. They’ve also taken steps to professionalize, now practicing at UIC’s Flames Athletic Center and adding a performance staff.
But there's plenty of gray area left to work through.
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