Once again, off-court drama is dominating Angel Reese’s career rather than her play on the floor. The fact that she’s the best rebounder in the WNBA, an excellent defender, and an All-Star once again seems to pale in comparison to the drama that surrounds Reese. Much of this is projection since many people create the drama around her due to their own perceptions of her personality and style of play. But Reese sure brought it on herself this time, and now we are forced to wonder where the star will play next.
For a thorough rundown of the situation if you’re not already familiar, listen to the breakdown from Ros Gold-Onwude and WNBA legend Angel McCoughtry below.
To be clear, Reese’s comments are not without merit. Chicago has made numerous mistakes in the last two years since she arrived. They traded away multiple premium first-round picks to acquire Hailey Van Lith in the 2025 WNBA Draft while sending out more capital to bring in Ariel Atkins. Head coach Teresa Weatherspoon was fired to make way for Tyler Marsh. These were win-now moves designed to take a 13-27 team to the next level.
Instead, Chicago responded with a 10-34 season, tying with the Wings for the worst record in the league. Despite strides taken by Reese and frontcourt partner Kamilla Cardoso, this team was going nowhere fast. Atkins was often injured and could not provide the juice they needed. The role player signings didn’t work. You can certainly argue Reese should not have made such brash comments on the state of the team, but no lies were told. The Chicago Sky are a mess.
Let’s look at our current odds on DraftKings Sportsbook for Reese’s next WNBA team.
There is a definite theme to how these teams stack up. The Mystics and Sparks do make some sense as the top two teams outside of Chicago. Washington has spare draft capital and would be enticed to pair rookie All-Star Kiki Iriafen with Reese. The trio of Reese, Iriafen, and Sonia Citron does excite. Los Angeles would surely love to pair Cameron Brink’s defensive prowess with the league’s best rebounder and they have some players to move.
It’s essential to consider the context of this offseason when evaluating a bet on this. The majority of the league will be entering free agency, expecting improved salaries due to the new collective bargaining agreement. However, talks on that CBA aren’t exactly going well.
There’s also the expansion draft to consider. Teams will once again have to circle the wagons to determine who they are willing to sacrifice on top of the free agency chaos.
In short, this is going to be a confusing and chaotic offseason, and that doesn’t boost the chances of Reese being traded. If nobody is sure what their team will look like when the dust settles on the expansion draft and free agency, why pour assets into a non-superstar? If Chicago believes Reese to be so toxic that she has to go, why would another team bring her into the fold?
Even at -120 odds, Reese staying in Chicago is the value play here. The two sides have to work this out one way or another.
