Angel Reese shuts down Caitlin Clark question abruptly before start of WNBA season

Chicago Sky star Angel Reese was about to be asked about her previous comments in relation to the Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark, but shut down the question ahead of the new WNBA season

Angel Reese refused to answer a question about Caitlin Clark ahead of the Chicago Sky’s season opener against the Indiana Fever.

The new WNBA season gets underway this weekend, and long-time rivals Reese and Clark are set to face off at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Saturday. Last year’s star rookies are now entering their second pro seasons and will have ambitions to win the WNBA championship.

Reese and Clark became hugely popular during their college careers, and that attention translated to the pro league, helping to bring women’s basketball to a wider audience. However, Reese refused to be drawn on a question about the Fever guard referencing Reese’s statement from last year that the league’s growing popularity was not solely down to Clark.

As a reporter began to form a sentence about her comments last season, Reese suddenly interrupted: “Next question.” A Chicago staff member responded: “Yeah, we’ll move on. Thank you.”

The statement in question occurred after the Sky’s 71-70 defeat to Indiana last June, which centered around Chennedy Carter’s controversial foul on Clark. The ‘Caitlin Clark effect’ had been largely credited with helping to grow the sport, but Reese felt that this narrative overlooked other stars on the basketball court.

Speaking last year (via the New York Post), Reese argued: “I’ll look back in 20 years and be like, the reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person.

“It’s because of me, too. I want ya’ll to realize that. Like it’s not just because of one person. A lot of us have done so much for this game… there are so many great players in this league that have deserved this for a really long time, and luckily it’s coming now.”

Caitlin Clark helped the Indiana Fever reach the first round of the playoffs last season (Image: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Clark was selected as the first overall pick in last year’s draft, while Reese was drafted seventh. However, the two stars have played against each other since high school, with their competitive rivalry crystallizing in the 2023 NCAA championship match. During LSU’s victory over Iowa, Reese celebrated with John Cena’s ‘You can’t see me’ hand gesture in front of Clark

“It all started from the national championship game, and I’ve been dealing with this for two years now,” Reese admitted last year. “Understanding, yeah, negative things have probably been said about me, but honestly I’ll take that because look at where women’s basketball is.

“People are talking about women’s basketball, who you never would think would be talking about women’s basketball. People are pulling up to games. We got celebrities coming to games, sold-out arenas just because of one single game.”

Elaborating on her feelings towards Clark, Reese explained: “I don’t have any hard feelings toward her and she doesn’t have any hard feelings towards me. It’s just basketball and it gets crazy sometimes.”

Clark may make plenty of headlines, but Reese has become a star in her own right. The WNBA has embraced this budding rivalry by making it the season opener, which echoes what commissioner Cathy Engelbert said almost a year ago.

On the debates surrounding Clark being targeted during her rookie year, Engelbert argued: “Look, apathy is the death of a brand.

Nobody’s apathetic about the WNBA because we’ve brought in so many new fans into what we call the fan funnel this year. And yeah, some are frustrated for sure. I get a lot of emails that I’ve never got in four years, but that’s because people care.”

Engelbert added: “She obviously captures a viewer we haven’t had before, which is great. We’re thrilled with Caitlin and the generational players that have come in, and we’re thrilled with the rivalries that are being built.’