Angel Reese and Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark have undoubtedly brought some spark into the WNBA. The pair being drafted into the league contributed to the WNBA experiencing a huge growth in popularity this year.
This was mainly because the pair had already made a name for themselves during their playing days in college. And though there have been reports about a rivalry between Reese and Clark, the WNBA stars have publicly said that is not true.
Reese has also previously said that though she has been portrayed as the “villain”, she and Clark “don’t hate each other” and are just “super competitive” when playing, per CNN.
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The former LSU women’s basketball star once again touched on her relationship with Clark during a recent interview with WSJ Magazine. Reese, 22, also spoke about their super competitive nature and how they plan to normalize that in women’s sports.
“Me and Caitlin have been playing against each other since we were kids,” the Chicago Sky star said about Clark, who played college basketball for the University of Iowa. “It’s just a full circle moment of how women are viewed when it comes to trash talking and it’s okay, in men’s sport. So we’re going to normalize that in women’s sports as well. It’s just super competitive.”
Reese in the interview also said she hopes she and Clark can ultimately be WNBA teammates. “I think we’re two great competitors. We brought a lot of fans to this league, and I thought, we’re going to continue to do that and one day, hopefully we can be teammates,” Reese said.
Reese had a memorable rookie season as her 15 consecutive double-doubles set a WNBA record. Las Vegas Aces superstar A’ja Wilson was also featured in the WSJ Magazine’s cover story, and she spoke about Reese’s rookie season and how she saw a little bit of her younger self in the 22-year-old.
“It’s been super cool to play against her. Obviously I’ve watched her throughout her collegiate career, even winning back in Maryland. My good friend actually was coaching her at that time, so that’s how I honestly started to follow Angel,” Wilson, 28, said.
“And I saw a little bit of myself in her. No matter what I do, I’m going to make sure that I go all out and I give it 100%. And I saw that, just the motor that she has, I was like, oh yeah, that is young A’ja 100%.”
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