NEW YORK — As the Sky try to redirect their season, they’re hoping the bonds they’ve built with each other will lift them.
That was evident Tuesday after an 85-66 loss to the Liberty. Sky star Angel Reese played her best game of the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds, becoming the fastest player in WNBA history to reach 30 career double-doubles by doing so in 42 games, and was asked afterward whether a performance like that sends a message to those who criticize her on social media.
“I don’t worry about what’s going on online,” Reese said. “I get so much love in person. I haven’t ever had a negative encounter in person. Ever. And I’ve been going through this for three years. I’ve never had an encounter in person that was negative. People online are behind a keyboard for a reason, and I don’t worry about that stuff.
“I trust my work. My teammates trust me. I was telling [Kamilla Cardoso] today — she felt like she was having a rough day — and I was like, ‘How many times have I had a rough day, and you picked me up? So don’t get down on yourself.’ I know my teammates have my back, my coaches have my back and that’s all that really matters. I don’t have to prove anything to anybody but myself and my teammates.”
As the next question came for Reese, teammate Ariel Atkins interjected from the seat next to her with an impromptu speech in her defense that visibly moved Reese.
“This is a 23-year-old kid who handles herself with grace. Her crown is heavy.”
Ariel Atkins had Angel Reese’s back in the postgame media Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/D7ZuibFCJH
— espnW (@espnW) June 11, 2025
“This is a 23-year-old kid, and the amount of crap that she gets on a day-to-day [basis], and she still shows up,” Atkins said. “So whatever questions y’all have got about our team, basketball-wise, we appreciate it, but all the other nonsense is irrelevant. We’re here to play basketball and do what we do. We’re having a hard time right now, at the end of the day.
“Just a 23-year-old kid who handles herself with grace. Her crown is heavy… She has to have the wall, because if she doesn’t, people will break her down — not only just because of the way she looks, but because of the way she carries herself. She doesn’t just walk around and act like, ‘Oh, I’m this.’ She knows who she is. And we ain’t going to break her down for that. So whatever other questions y’all got, I’m hoping it’s just about basketball, maybe a box score question, but the kid’s crown is heavy. Respect that.”
Reese wiped away tears as Atkins spoke and thanked her for it at the end.
She then continued in discussing her appreciation for her teammates.
“I just focus on basketball,” Reese said. “I come into work every day and work. I don’t complain. I don’t care about anything else. I have bad days. I haven’t been playing well at all. And I could sit here and just mope around and point the finger, but it’s been me. I take accountability.
“I come in every day and try to be better than the last and I know my teammates trust me. I know they have my back. Ariel has my back through everything. I just love that part of being part of a team that I know really trusts me and trusts my work, and everything else is everything else.
“I’m just here to come to work every day and go home. That’s all I want to do is just come to work and be able to enjoy my job that I love. People would die and kill to have this job. And being able to play with the best players in the world means a lot to me. I put my all in this [sport]. I do.”
Reese is looking for a breakout season after earning an All-Star selection as a rookie and making the All-Rookie team last season. She and the Sky have talked extensively about expanding her offensive game to become more than a post player, and she showed some of that Tuesday with a 16-foot jumper and her second three-pointer of the season in the first quarter.
She has averaged 10.1 points and 12.1 rebounds per game, both down from last season, as well as 3.9 turnovers per game, which is up from 2.2 last season. Reese brought up her five turnovers against the Liberty unprompted, saying she must “get that down and be better for this team.”
