Angel Reese has faced historic struggles around the rim

Angel Reese has etched her name into the rookie record books once more during her sensational 2024 run with the Chicago Sky, matching Tina Charles’ mark for most single-game rebounds in a debut season with 22 on Sunday.

It’s her third consecutive game with 20 rebounds, a record amongst all WNBA players, but Reese’s path to this dominant feat has featured acute ridicule on social media and accusations of “stat-padding” for her historic offensive ineptitude inside the restricted arc.

En route to matching Charles’ record in Sunday’s devastating, 77-75 defeat at the buzzer to Las Vegas, Reese shot just 4-16 from the floor, with all but one of her field goal attempts coming outside of four feet. A particularly erratic, and for many emblematic, sequence unfolded in the fourth quarter as Chicago battled back from a 13-point deficit, with Reese missing three consecutive tries at the rim, snagging her rebound each time, before eventually earning a trip to the free-throw line.

Reese remained unbothered by the wave of criticism around her poor shooting, driven most notably by Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, writing Sunday on X, “If it was easy, everybody would be doing it. we good!” But these layup struggles have long predated Sunday’s turbulent box score, on track to become one of the worst in WNBA history with just a month remaining in the 2024 season.

The No. 7 overall draft pick is shooting just 43.8 percent on shots inside of five feet this season, a figure that, according to HerHoopStats data dating back to 2018, is the fourth-worst on record among players that started a majority of WNBA games. More damning is that all three players ranked ahead of her, Jackie Young (2019), Kia Nurse (2021) and Victoria Vivians (2022), are backcourt players that combined to attempt just 22 percent of their shots within that distance.

Meanwhile, Angel Reese’s 274 attempts inside five feet lead the WNBA by a wide margin this season, and her overall volume — the LSU grad ranks 17th in total field goal tries — makes her a key cog in one of the WNBA’s less efficient offenses. Reese’s opponents have also notched 8.2 blocks per every 100 possessions against the Chicago forward, the 10th highest in the W.

Despite these historic struggles around the basket, Reese remarkably remains a plus player for the Sky as they battle for the final WNBA Playoff slot. Part of her effectiveness comes, controversially, from cleaning up her own misses around the rim, with 44 of her 135 offensive rebounds on the season coming through that method. But even if you discount these self-rebounds, Reese remains the single most productive WNBA player on the offensive glass.

“That’s her. That’s all her,” Sky coach Teresa Weatherspoon said about Reese’ offensive rebounding prowess. “That’s grit and grind like we always say. It’s a will and a want to … That’s all her desire to go get a rebound and create second-chance opportunities. That’s what the game is all about.”

Reese is also a plus defender despite relatively modest block totals, ranking inside the upper third for individual defensive rating this year. Her relentless effort underneath the basket has also earned her the fifth-most free-throw attempts of any WNBA player, where she converts at a respectable 74 percent, and overall her 18.1 player efficiency rating is 29th among 119 eligible players and tied with Caitlin Clark.