3 Things to Watch in Angel Reese’s First Preseason Game With the Dream
Angel Reese’s trade was the first domino in a busy offseason. It signaled a complete pivot for the Chicago Sky and a fresh start for Reese. Judging by the last couple of weeks, the decision was best for everyone involved. Reese seems thrilled to be in Atlanta, her new teammates appear happy to have her, and the Sky managed to revamp the roster around Kamilla Cardoso, building a team that looks ready to make a playoff push.
Reese’s first preseason game with her new team is fast approaching, and there’s a ton to pay attention to as she goes into her first season as a key piece on a projected championship contender.
Does she already have on-court chemistry with the existing core?
Reese joins a stacked team that also re-signed Rhyne Howard, Allisha Gray, Naz Hillmon, Jordin Canada, and Brionna Jones. The latter might not suit up for preseason action, as she is still recovering from knee surgery. Nevertheless, Reese will get a bunch of on-court reps with the rest of the core. She already played with Howard for Team USA, but has to build chemistry with the other top players on the team and as a group.
The speed with which Reese and the other key players build chemistry could decide the Dream’s eventual playoff seeding. A bunch of early losses due to frequent miscues and lack of chemistry could come back to haunt them at the end of the season.
How much better can she be with 3-point shooters around her?
The Sky lacked a lot of things around Reese, but especially 3-point shooting. That’s not a problem with the Dream. Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray are some of the best volume shooters in the league. Te-Hina Paopao led the league in 3-point percentage for a while in her rookie season, and Naz Hillmon took a massive leap as an outside threat.
It will be great to see what Reese can do with all of that space around her, especially if she gets to start alongside Hillmon instead of Jones.
Will she expand her range already?
3-point shooting is a big part of Karl Smesko’s system, and one of Reese and Jones will have to take a leap in that area to make the two-big lineup work. Reese, who is the more versatile player and still early in her development, seems like the natural choice. She also seems excited about the opportunity to grow with a coach who already helped another forward improve that part of her game.
A jump like that doesn’t happen overnight, but it will still be interesting to see if Reese gets up (and makes) any threes or long twos in her first action with the Dream.
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Elaine Blum covers women’s basketball for On SI from Europe. She has been writing about women's hoops since 2023 and holds a Bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism and a master’s degree in American Studies with a focus on women’s and gender studies. She started playing basketball when she was 10 years old and won several league and state championships at the youth and senior level.