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Angel Reese Could Beat At Least 4 Atlanta Hawks Players In A Game Of 1-On-1

Angel Reese Could Beat At Least 4 Atlanta Hawks Players In A Game Of 1-On-1

Angel Reese was traded to the Atlanta Dream on Monday. The Chicago Sky got two first-round picks in return. Within minutes, the entire basketball internet was arguing about what went wrong in Chicago, whether the Sky got enough, and whether Reese is overrated.

Nobody is talking about what her numbers actually say. And what they say is that Angel Reese pulls down rebounds at a rate that competes with the best big men in the NBA.

The numbers

Her career WNBA averages: 14.1 points, 12.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists per game. Two seasons. Two All-Star selections. Forty-six career double-doubles, the fastest any player has reached 30 in league history.

That 12.9 rebounds per game number is the one that should stop people in their tracks. The NBA’s top rebounders this season, Nikola Jokic and Rudy Gobert, are averaging around 13 per game. Angel Reese’s career average, across two full WNBA seasons, sits right there with them.

Former NBA All-Star Jeff Teague put it plainly: “She’s the Dennis Rodman of the WNBA.”

It sounds like hyperbole until you look at what she’s actually done.

The rookie year

Reese was the seventh overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft out of LSU. She walked into the league and immediately started rewriting the record books.

In 34 games as a rookie, she averaged 13.6 points and 13.1 rebounds. That 13.1 number set the WNBA single-season record for rebounds per game. Her 446 total rebounds were the most any WNBA player has ever grabbed in a single season. Her 172 offensive rebounds were also a single-season record.

She set the WNBA record for consecutive double-doubles at 15, breaking Candace Parker’s previous record of 12. Reese did it as a 22-year-old rookie in her first 20 games.

She became the first player in WNBA history to grab 20 or more rebounds in three consecutive games. The last rookie in the WNBA or NBA to post back-to-back 20-rebound games was Shaquille O’Neal in April 1993.

And she did all of this while her season was cut short. She fractured her left wrist in a game against the Sparks in September, had surgery, and missed the final six games.

The second year

In 2025, she averaged 14.7 points, 12.6 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game. She led the WNBA in rebounds per game again. She recorded 23 double-doubles, tied for the most in the league. She became the only player in WNBA history with multiple streaks of 10 or more consecutive double-doubles. She also recorded the second-youngest triple-double in league history.

She earned her second straight All-Star selection. In two seasons, she had already logged 46 career double-doubles, the fastest pace in WNBA history. Sylvia Fowles holds the all-time record with 193. At the rate Reese is going, she could challenge that number before she turns 30.

Before the WNBA

Reese was already a household name before she got drafted. At LSU, she led the Tigers to their first national championship in 2023, scoring 15 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in the title game, a 102-85 win over Caitlin Clark’s Iowa Hawkeyes. She was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.

That game drew 9.9 million viewers, making it the most-watched women’s college basketball game in history at the time. Reese’s “you can’t see me” gesture toward Clark at the end of the game became one of the defining images of women’s sports that year.

The Reese-Clark rivalry followed both of them to the WNBA and became one of the biggest storylines in professional basketball. It helped drive record viewership numbers across the league. Love her or not, Reese moves the needle.

What Atlanta gets

The Dream just acquired a 23-year-old, two-time All-Star who averages a double-double for her career, holds multiple WNBA rebounding records, and brings a built-in national fanbase. They gave up their 2027 and 2028 first-round picks to get her.

In the inaugural Unrivaled season in early 2025, Reese led the league in rebounding, posted the first 20-20 game in league history with 22 points and 21 rebounds, won the championship with Rose BC, and was named Defensive Player of the Year. She returned for the second Unrivaled season this past February.

She earned $9.4 million in 2025, making her the highest-paid Black woman in professional basketball. Her brand partnerships include Beats by Dre, Cash App, Victoria’s Secret, and Reebok. She brings attention, revenue, and an audience wherever she goes.

The point

Everyone is arguing about the trade today. Whether the Sky got enough. Whether Reese wanted out. Whether she’s overrated.

The numbers don’t leave a lot of room for that last one. Angel Reese’s career rebounding average would put her among the top rebounders in the NBA right now. She holds more WNBA records after two seasons than most players accumulate in a career. She won a national championship at 20. She broke the WNBA’s rebounding record at 22. She’s a two-time All-Star at 23.

Atlanta didn’t just make a trade. They added the most dominant rebounder in women’s basketball history who is still a month away from her 24th birthday. If that’s not the story, people are paying attention to the wrong thing.

Anthony Amador

A graduate from the University of Texas, Anthony Amador has been credentialed to cover the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks and high school games all over the Lone Star State. Currently, his primary beats are the NBA, MLB, NFL and UFC.
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