Randy Smith
Okay....all the fuss about former LSU star and current WNBA Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese skipping practice with her new team to attend the Met Gala fashion extravaganza this week is a little too much. I've written some pretty negative things about Reese and her arrogance on the basketball floor but we have to face it. Angel was a knock-out on the red carpet and a future as a model could pay her many times more than playing pro basketball. The WNBA regular season hasn't even begun yet and Reese has already stirred up a lot of dust.
First, she questioned the televising of the Indiana Fever's exhibition game, though the game was the first one that top draft choice and the darling of women's basketball Caitlin Clark played in.
So it was a no-brainer to televise that game because the arena was sold out days before the game was ever played. Even though some people tried to make it a " racial snub," it was all about Caitlin Clark and nothing more.
Angel Reese fell victim to playing a couple of seasons under Kim Mulkey at LSU. She became part of the rivalry so to speak when Clark and her Hawkeyes lost to the Bengals in the 2023 NCAA Championship Game, then lost to the Hawkeyes in the 2024 national semi-finals. In other words if you liked Caitlin Clark you couldn't like Angel Reese and vice versa. I would imagine that rivalry will continue as long as those two play in the WNBA.
Getting back to the Met Gala, it featured some of the most ridiculous outfits I've ever seen in my life. For instance one woman wore a gown that was so bulky and heavy, she had to be carried down the red carpet. That was perhaps the most outrageous look but when Angel Reese walked out in her stunning sequin studded silver gown she was absolutely gorgeous. She most definitely was in her element and after the Gala ended, she returned to her team and played in the Sky's exhibition win over the New York Liberty. Even though she only missed part of one practice, the critics started chiming in on social media and Reese added the perfect rebuttal. " So now ya'll can delete them drafts and tweets saying I shouldn't have gone to the Met gala and I can't do both. I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME. "
After defending her for attempting to be a better rounded individual, I now have a lot of respect for Angel Reese. I already had a lot of respect for Caitlin Clark so the rivalry between the two should make for an exciting WNBA season. Stay tuned.
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Randy Smith can be reached at rsmithsports@epbfi.com.