
The Chicago Sky have suspended Angel Reese for a single half as a result of the forward making “statements detrimental to the team.” Reese, who is already suspended for Friday’s game against the Indiana Fever after reaching the technical foul limit, will miss the first half of Sunday’s matchup against the Las Vegas Aces, per the team.
“The Chicago Sky values the safety, respect, and well-being of every player. We are committed to accountability so our players can stay focused on playing basketball,” the team wrote in a statement. “Because of statements detrimental to the team made by Angel Reese during league-mandated media, she will not play in the first half of the game on September 7 against the Las Vegas Aces. This matter has been handled and resolved internally, and we are moving forward as a team.”
The move comes days after Reese spoke candidly about her frustrations with the team’s losing season, telling the Chicago Tribune that she was “not settling for the same s***” next year.”
“I am very vocal about what we need and what I want,” Reese said, emphasizing the team’s need for more strong players. “I’d like to be here for my career, but if things don’t pan out, obviously I might have to move in a different direction and do what’s best for me. But while I am here, I’m going to try to stay open-minded about what I have here and maximize that as much as I can.”
The Sky have struggled mightily this season under first-year coach Tyler Marsh, dropping to 11th place in the league with a 10-30 record, and have long been out of playoff contention. This comes after Chicago went 13-27 last season, in Reese’s rookie year.
Advertisement
On Wednesday, Marsh told Front Office Sports that the team was addressing Reese’s comments in-house, since the frustrations apparently made several teammates unhappy.
Later on Wednesday, following the Sky’s win over the Connecticut Sun, Reese had already begun to walk back those comments.
“I probably am frustrated with myself right now,” Reese said. “I think the language is probably taken out of context, and I really didn’t intentionally mean to put down my teammates because they’ve been through this with me the whole year … I want to apologize to my teammates, which I already have, about the article and how it was misconstrued about what was said.”
Reese also picked up her eighth technical foul on Wednesday, shortly before halftime in the game against the Sun. She will miss Friday’s game as a result of an automatic one-game suspension from the WNBA, as Chicago takes on the Caitlin Clark-less Fever. Sunday’s punishment, however, is imposed only by the Sky, not the league.
Advertisement
Chicago will play the Aces again on Tuesday as well, and will end its 2025 season at home against the New York Liberty.
#Chicago #Sky #suspend #Angel #Reese #publicly #expressed #frustration #team