Through her first two seasons in the WNBA, Angel Reese emerged as an immediate star, earning All-Star nods in both of her first two seasons in the league. However, in her first two preseason games with the Atlanta Dream, Reese has been struggling mightily.
Back in April, the Chicago Sky traded Reese to the Atlanta Dream in return for two first-round picks. The move gave the Dream the top rebounder in the league.
Throughout each of her first two seasons in the WNBA, Reese has been the top rebounder in the league, averaging 12.6 per game last season. She is the only player in WNBA history to average at least 12.0 rebounds per game in a season, doing it in both 2024 and 2025. She also led the league in double-doubles last season with 23.
In addition to her dominance on the boards, Reese is also a consistent scorer, averaging 14.1 points per game through the first two seasons of her career. However, she has not looked like the same player through the first two preseason games with the Atlanta Dream.
In her first preseason game with the Dream, which came against her former team, the Chicago Sky, Reese scored 8 points and tallied 7 rebounds in a win, but she wasn’t exactly efficient. Reese shot just 2-for-7 from the field, including just 4-for-8 from the free-throw line.
On Sunday, Reese made her home debut with the Dream during a preseason game against the Washington Mystics, and things did not go much better. In the loss, Reese scored just 10 points and had 4 rebounds while committing 2 turnovers and 3 personal fouls, and shooting just 3-for-7 from the field.
Obviously, these are not terrible numbers, but they are certainly not the numbers that the Dream expected from the young star when the team gave up two first-round picks to acquire her, with general manager Dan Padover calling her a “perfect fit” back in April.
“Angel is a dynamic talent and a perfect fit for what we are building in Atlanta,” Dream general manager Dan Padover said in a statement. “She has already proven herself as one of the most impactful players in the league, and her competitiveness, production and drive to win align seamlessly with our vision. This is an exciting moment for our organization and our fans.”
The good news is that these were only preseason games, so there is time for Reese to right the ship a bit before it starts to count.
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