Is Chicago Sky’s Angel Reese the best rookie in the WNBA? Her double-double record says ‘yes’
Since entering the league, the Chicago Sky’s star has been arguably the best rookie in the WNBA. Now, with her historic numbers, she can back that claim up.
If there was any doubt about how good Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese is, it should probably be put to rest now. The 22-year old has taken the league by storm and quite frankly shows no signs of slowing down.
Angel Reese sets WNBA double-double record
On Thursday night the Chicago Sky notched an 83-72 win over the Dallas Wings, but what truly caught the eye was the performance of Sky rookie, Angel Reese. Indeed, Reese put 16 points and a career-high 18 rebounds on the board and with that, registered her seventh consecutive double-double of the season, the longest streak in WNBA history for a rookie.
“I’m just happy we finally won, and at home,” Reese said post-game. “It’s super exciting for myself. I try to give myself some grace and tell myself I’m doing a good job. But I have so much more to grow and I’m just excited to be in this league and excited to win some more.” It’s got to be said that Reese showed that growth on Thursday night as she improved on her recent offensive struggles around the ring, scoring 7-of-13 from the field. There were also the seven rebounds that she pulled down within the game’s first eight minutes.
A closer look at Angel Reese’s achievement
For context, the record that Reese just broke was previously set by Tina Charles (2010) and Cindy Brown (1998) both of whom recorded six straight double-doubles. To be clear, Charles’ 22 double-doubles in 2010 still stands as the rookie season record. Currently sitting on eight with 26 games to play, could Angel Reese break that record too? With an average of 12.1 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, one can’t deny the possibility that she just might.
Yet, this isn’t entirely surprising for a player who posted the NCAA single-season record of 34 double-doubles during the 2022-23 season, while averaging 23 points and 15.4 rebounds per game on the way to helping the LSU Tigers become national champions for the first time. Indeed, it was that night that she was truly thrust into the spotlight for the first time, defeating the highly touted Iowa Hawkeyes and Caitlin Clark, the no. 1 overall pick in this year’s Draft which saw Reese selected 7th overall.
Ultimately, there is still some distance to go in this campaign and Reese has already surpassed the Sky’s single-game rebounding record while maintaining the pace to do the same with the Sky’s single-season offensive rebounding record of 117 which was set by LSU alum Silvia Fowles in 2013. “I love Sylvia. She was a great person to me and a great mentor to me when I was at LSU,” Reese said. “I know she is going to be super proud of me. Obviously, I just want to do whatever it takes to win, and rebounding is what I do to win.” At 5-9, the Sky will need to keep doing just that and it starts with a rematch this Sunday, June 23rd against the Indiana Fever and of course, Caitlin Clark. Tip off is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. ET and we’re expecting this one to be lit. Don’t miss it.