Angel Reese, already one of the best players in women’s college basketball, suddenly became one of the most famous women in sports in the world.of LSU Big’s interaction with Iowa superstar Caitlin Clark during the 2023 national championship game sparked discussion for weeks and made Reese an overnight celebrity. Now Reese is jumping in there. WNBA.
lease Announces participation in 2024 WNBA draft in Vogue cover story. She left LSU as one of the greatest women’s college athletes of her era. She was a national champion, the 2023 Women’s NCAA Tournament Most Valuable Player, as a junior she was named an AP First Team All-American, and she was named an AP Second Team All-American. -She was an All-American as a senior and the 2024 SEC Player of the Year. This year’s Tigers’ season drew more than 12.3 million viewers and ended in the Elite Eight with a loss in the highly anticipated Clark-Iowa rematch. Most-watched women’s college game in history.
Reese is widely known for her unapologetic personality, but the 21-year-old told Vogue that she is turning professional with a degree of humility.
“I want to start at the bottom again,” she says. “I want to go back to being a rookie again and rebuild myself. I want to get beat up and learn and grow at the next level.”
Where will Reese go in the WNBA Draft? How will her game translate to the pros? Let’s dive in.
Angel Reese’s WNBA mock draft prediction has her as a first-round pick
Reese is unlikely to be selected No. 1 in the 2024 WNBA Draft, but he is still a viable first-round pick. Clark will play for the Indiana Fever with the No. 1 pick. After that, the Los Angeles Sparks are expected to select big Cameron Brink of Stanford University with the second overall pick. The Chicago Sky holds the No. 3 pick, and Tennessee wing Rikea Jackson is currently considered the top choice.
Reese’s draft range appears to start late in the first round, from pick No. 6 to pick No. 12. Here’s how she looks right now in some mock drafts.
The WNBA Draft is much more unpredictable than the NBA or NFL Draft. You don’t know what’s going to happen until your team makes a selection. The top two may be confirmed, but everything after that is fair game.
How will Angel Reese’s game translate to the WNBA?
Reese’s professional appeal begins with his physique. Her height is listed as 6’3, 165 lbs, which makes her arms appear long.
Reese is a big, old-school player. She aggressively attacks the glass as a rebounder on both ends of the floor. She finished second in the nation in rebounds per game each of the past two seasons. She is especially aggressive on the offensive glass and can easily get buckets on putbacks.
Reese doesn’t shoot three-pointers. In her past two seasons at LSU combined, she only made two total 3-pointers. She finished her collegiate career with 5-of-32 3-point shooting. She has shot 70 percent from the foul line in her career.
The WNBA modeled itself after the NBA in its desire to find big players who can shoot. WNBA teams continue to attempt more threes than ever before, and having shooters clear the floor and create running lanes for guards also has great benefits. Reese is neither a floor spacer nor a shooter, which is the biggest drawback in her current WNBA translation.
Reese was an outstanding defender at the collegiate level. She posted a 3.1 percent steal rate and a 3.1 percent block rate as a senior at LSU, both impressive numbers. The big question in her WNBA translation is whether she will play No. 4 or No. 5. Reese is a little undersized for a WNBA center. She primarily played in drop coverage at LSU, but that’s difficult to do in the pros without a big size advantage. Is she fast enough to defend four opposing players who can shoot in space? This is a big question for WNBA GMs to ask themselves.
There’s no disputing Reese’s college work. She has been amazing game after game for LSU the past two years. As a junior, she averaged 23 points, 15.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game. She then had a great season as a senior, averaging 18.6 points and 13.4 rebounds per game.
Reese’s lack of off-shoot shooting ability and lack of elite pro size will be hurdles in her WNBA translation. She will need to play with another shooter in the frontcourt. She still plays a brief role as an inside scorer, rebounder, and defensive paint protector.
Angel Reese is making the right move entering the WNBA Draft
Reese could have gone back to school for five years. Instead, she is turning professional. It feels like the right move. After a star college career at the University of Maryland and her LSU, Reese is ready to move on to the next level. Teams looking for an athletic big who can shatter the glass should consider Reese in the first round.
