Among the top seven picks from the 2024 WNBA Draft, Caitlin Clark was the only draft selection to guide her team to the playoffs as a rookie. The Indiana Fever’s playoff stay might be a short one, as they trail 1-0 to the Connecticut Sun in a best-of-3 first-round series, but Clark will have gained valuable postseason experience while other highly-touted rookies — like Cameron Brink and Angel Reese — chart championship contention courses of their own.
Reese’s case is a particularly fascinating one, as her Chicago Sky were on track to claim the eighth and final playoff seed prior to an unfortunate hairline fracture in her left wrist. The injury brought Reese’s historic rookie season to a premature end — but the former LSU Tigers star has revealed a multi-tiered plan to challenge Clark in the new-look WNBA next year
Reese submits her GM candidacy
During Sky exit interviews this week, Reese surprised reporters when she said that she has been offering roster advice to head coach Teresa Weatherspoon and general manager Jeff Pagliocca — claiming that several players have reached out to her and have expressed interest in teaming up.
“Obviously players reach out and say they would love to play with me, so I just let (Pagliocca) know and he does what he wants,” Reese explained.
Reese also detailed her “checklist” for the offseason, once she resumes basketball activities following her wrist fracture. She wants to work on her much-criticized shooting efficiency and range, in addition to bolstering her fitness regimen and improving her footwork around the rim — all of which will surely excite the Sky and their fans.
For such a big market team, Chicago has had some trouble attracting superstar talent throughout its history — the notable exception being former MVP Candace Parker, who joined her hometown Sky as a free agent in 2021 and led them to a championship.
Reese is hoping to have a similar impact on the franchise. The 22-year-old broke Parker’s consecutive double-doubles record as a rookie and finished with season averages of 13.6 points and 13.1 rebounds across 34 games — and with the Sky projected to have the second-most cap space in the WNBA as it expands to 13 teams next year, Reese and fellow rookie Kamilla Cardoso can help usher in a new era of star power in Chi-town.