Sky’s Emotional Angel Reese Discusses Back Injury
The smile we all grew accustomed to seeing was absent from Angel Reese these last few weeks. Instead, it was replaced with eye rolls, scowls, and a bit of a frown as she battled a bothersome and persistent back injury.
Reese is a happy-go-lucky person. She loves her teammates, coaching staff, fans, and of course, fashion.
More than all of that, however, is her love for the game.
"It felt great,” Reese said, according to the Chicago Sky’s X account, when referring to how it felt to be back on the court. “I love basketball. It's my pride and joy. Sitting on the sidelines is no fun. Sitting and just doing rehab every single day is no fun. Also, just sitting and figuring out what's going on with myself.”
Reese’s 2025 has been a gift and a curse. On one end, she improved on her great rookie numbers, became a two-time All-Star, and is leading the league in rebounding. However, she spent weeks on the bench thanks to her injury, the Sky have been officially eliminated from playoff contention, and flat-out, she realizes that her squad needs major improvements if they want to contend in the future.
In the midst of it all, Reese’s rehab was the most arduous situation she dealt with all year. Known for her toughness and willingness to fight through anything, Reese was forced to look in a mirror for a change and deal with the reflection she saw looking back at her.
"I think I learned a lot about myself over the last three, four weeks.”
In the end, none of it was easy. Reese isn’t willing to accept full credit for getting through it. There’s a reason why she was able to get out there against the Seattle Storm for 26 minutes. And, going forward, she plans on leaning on her support system.
“I'm just super grateful for everybody that was in my corner, my teammates, my coaches, they were here for me through the whole process. So I'm really happy to be back with the team."
A graduate of Queens College, Hans has covered practically every sport you can think of. The NBA, NFL, Boxing, UFC, Tennis, MLB, even Rugby! His work has appeared in various places such as Bleacher Report, USA Today, Fox Sports, and FanSided. When he isn’t reporting or writing on sports, he’s watching it. He also enjoys boxing, lifting weights at the gym, and debating anything sports-related.