Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese stars in a new “Wicked” teaser released this week. “There’s a lot of noise out there,” Reese says in a voiceover as she is photographed walking down a yellow brick road. “It can surround you, pull at you, and weigh you down.”
“But I’ve got other plans,” she continues as strains of “Defying Gravity” from the film’s soundtrack begin to play. “Defy gravity,” Reese continues. “Rise above the noise. Nothing’s going to bring me down.”
That’s followed by her hitting a shot as she barely leaves the ground, followed by footage from the film as “Defying Gravity” continues to play.
The 22-year-old Reese has been the subject of intense media scrutiny and speculation for several years, some of which has reached a fever pitch as the WNBA Rookie of the Year debate heats up. Also in contention for the title are the Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark and the Los Angeles Sparks’ Rickea Jackson.
Reese earned her 23rd double-double of the season on Friday, breaking the previous rookie record. A double-double is when a player hits double digits in two of the five main stat categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals or blocks. In Friday’s game, Reese earned 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The player’s feat was met with both celebration and derision, as fans, critics and basketball experts offered their take on the circumstances of the night’s game against Clark’s Fever.
Former NFL star Robert Griffin III was one of those who weighed in on Reese’s double-double record and the Rookie of the Year race.
“Caitlin Clark just won the WNBA Rookie of the Year award after tonight’s performance,” the former ESPN analyst wrote. “Until tonight, the debate boiled down to whether you value rebounds and double-doubles or points and assists more because Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese play DIFFERENT POSITIONS and are both balling. But I will say the quiet part out loud.”
“Too many people are making their public stance on who they think is the WNBA rookie of the year based on race and not the results. Many privately feel differently, but publicly take a different stance to avoid being called out by the people who look like them.”
After he noted the various rookie records Clark and Reese have broken (three pointers made in a season, three pointers made in a game, first triple-double ever, first rookie with 400 points, 100 rebounds and 150 assists for the former; first player with a consecutive 20 rebound games, most consecutive double-doubles, most rebounds in a season, most double-doubles in a season, most consecutive double-doubles in a season for the latter), Griffin added, “No one would look at these facts and give Angel Reese the WNBA Rookie of the Year award over Caitlin Clark. We have never valued rebounding over scoring and assists.”
The WNBA announced the Rookie of the Year in October last year.
Outside of the Rookie of the Year debate, Reese has enjoyed a banner rookie year in the WNBA. She debuted Reebok’s first performance basketball shoe in a decade at Friday night’s game and has her own collection with the brand. At a pregame press conference, Reese explained, “Reebok has stood on business about me since day one. Everything that I’ve wanted, all the creative control, I’ve gotten. [Reebok president of basketball] Shaq [O’Neal] told me I was going to be the face of Reebok, and I continue to be that. Being able to debut the new basketball shoe today, of course, I’m excited for it.”
Last week, Reese unveiled her new podcast “Unapologetically Angel,” which will air new episodes each Thursday. The first episode is set to launch on Sept. 5.
On Aug. 21, Hershey’s announced a new partnership with Reese and Reese’s Pieces candy, which will include eight pieces of a new logo collection and a basketball jersey.
“Wicked” is set for release on Nov. 22, 2024, though it’s expected to be the first of a two-part film story. The film stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande.
