When the Chicago Sky had dropped their first three games of the season, Angel Reese took advantage of the game against Mercury to establish hope. Concerns were there about her reduced shooting, however, she took everyone’s mind off that by surpassing Tina Charles. With the double-double she posted, Reese became the fastest player in WNBA history to accumulate 500 points and 500 rebounds. It took her only 38 games as compared to Charles’ 44. So, everyone thought she was just warming up and would soon unlock her advanced numbers. But now, after seven games, everyone’s patience is wearing thin.
Angel Reese might already be the queen of rebounds. Be it offense or defense, she leads the entire WNBA (not just rookies) with a 13.1 RPG in 2025 so far. Fair to say that she gives her team more second-chance opportunities than anyone else. However, here’s the catch: “She now has more rebounds than points in her WNBA career.” Clearly, many of those second chances are needed because she misses quite a few of the first ones.
Indeed, she is not a ‘bad’ scorer, but she’s far from reliable just yet. Her field goal percentage hovers in the low 30s. That’s noticeably less than other elite post players. And her shooting range is still a work in progress. She rarely steps out for threes, and her mid-range game hasn’t fully developed. This shortcoming gained even more spotlight after the Sky’s recent loss to the Fever, where Reese just scored 4 points for the squad. And following that, another record caught the public eye: “Caitlin Clark is averaging more APG than Angel Reese is averaging PPG this season.”
Clark has 9.3 assists per game, whereas Angel Reese has been averaging just 9.1 points per game. More than shocking, it is downright embarrassing for a player who showed so much potential during the first 38 games of their professional career. However, Coach Tyler Marsh still sees the potential he first saw in Reese in his introductory statements. He called Reese (alongside Kamilla Cardoso) one of the team’s “cornerstones.”
And he is sticking to those words. In the postgame interview, he said, “I don’t think Angel struggled tonight, I think we struggled as a team…It’s not about Angel being better for us, it’s us being better for Angel.” That’s actually a lot of confidence to put in a player who hasn’t been acting up to the hype. After all, it hasn’t really been a one-game thing. Her lowest point being the May 22 game against the Liberty where she wrapped up with just 2 points on 0-for-8 shooting. Efficiency was already not her strength and the fact that it has regressed can rarely be a good sign. In her rookie campaign, she averaged 13.6 points and shot a bad percentage of 39.1% from the field, but it was still better than her present 31.1%.
Once again, Reese is focusing the majority of her shot attempts near the basket, but her conversion rate has dropped to an unusually low level. Out of 61 field goal attempts, 44 have been taken from the restricted area, where she’s only managed to make 31.8% of those shots. Averaging 7.3 attempts per game in this high-percentage zone, the highest in the league, Reese stands out among players who take at least five shots there, as she has the lowest accuracy, with every other player shooting above 53.7%. Not to forget that in the league’s history, no one has ever managed to go below 43.8%.
But again, motivating is what mentors do, right? And hopefully, Marsh will be proven right someday. Until then, he has a bigger problem at hand.
Tyler Marsh on Courtney Vandersloot’s injury
The Chicago Sky’s concerns quickly shifted from Angel Reese’s underwhelming 4-point performance to Courtney Vandersloot’s potentially serious injury. It has left fans anxiously awaiting updates. While everyone is in anticipation, head coach Tyler Marsh has offered cautious optimism in his postgame interview. “Still assessing the injury and we’ll have more information soon,” he said, but Courtney’s visible discomfort on the court has many fearing the worst.
If Vandersloot’s injury proves to be long term, Marsh and his staff will face an urgent challenge. They will have to rework their system around the absence of their floor general. And it was evident from how the coach didn’t mince words about her importance. He told the reporters, “[Sloot’s] our engine. She’s our captain and our leader out there.” It was a testament to the 14 years of experience and stability she brings.
Without her, the Sky’s already shaky 2-5 season could spiral further unless the roster ups its game. Tyler Marsh made it clear that Vandersloot’s absence demands collective accountability. “We’ve all got a responsibility…Everyone needs to step up with Sloot out. Today we didn’t do that for her or for each other.” He openly admitted this while highlighting the team’s failure to compensate in her absence.
The Sky’s aggressive offseason rebuild is now going to face its first major test. If the team cannot stabilize without Vandersloot, it risks validating critics who questioned the front office’s approach. For now, Chicago clings to hope, but Tyler Marsh’s message was unmistakable. Whether she returns soon or not, the rest of the roster must elevate their game and fast.
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