Angel Reese does not do subtle, and she was not about to start on Sunday.
The Atlanta Dream signed DeWanna Bonner to a hardship deal earlier this month, and the two-time champion made her debut in an 89-81 win over the Minnesota Lynx. Bonner hit a corner three off a Reese kickout. Reese had feelings about it after the game.
“I told her her first shot was going to hit like crack,” Reese said. “It felt really good when she hit that three that I passed to her.”
That is one of the more unhinged quotes you will hear this WNBA season, and it lands somewhere between hilarious and mildly concerning depending on your tolerance for that specific comparison. Reese was not backing off it. She said it, meant it, and moved on.
What actually matters is what Bonner brings to a Dream team that suddenly looks dangerous heading into the playoffs. Two rings. Length. A jumper that still works at 39. And veteran calm on a roster that swings between confident and chaotic on a possession-to-possession basis.
Reese sees it. She talked before the debut about Bonner’s leadership and how her size adds a dimension the Dream have been missing. That was the professional version of the quote. The postgame version was the version people are still repeating.
Atlanta needed this signing. The Dream have been top-four in the East for weeks, but they have not looked like a group ready to actually take down the Aces, Lynx, or Liberty in a playoff series. Bonner does not solve every problem. She might solve enough of them to matter.
Reese continues to be exactly what people wanted her to be and exactly what her critics said she would be. She is a top-tier rebounder, a genuine All-Star, and a lightning rod who says whatever pops into her head after games. That combo is why Atlanta’s ratings are up and why the Dream sell out road buildings.
It is also why every quote she gives cycles through basketball social media for 48 hours before someone else takes the baton. This one will make it a full 72.
Minnesota came out of the loss looking flat. Napheesa Collier had her usual monster line, but the Lynx bench got outscored, and Bonner’s three off the bench was the moment the arena flipped. Bonner is 12 years older than Reese. She played her first WNBA game before Reese finished elementary school. On Sunday, they combined for the play of the game.
Reese described it in the least conventional way possible. That tracks.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
