Angel Reese to miss remainder of WNBA season with wrist injury

Angel Reese has officially put up the last double-double of her standout rookie campaign, as the Chicago Sky unexpectedly announced on Saturday night that she had suffered a season-ending wrist injury in the team’s Friday win against the Los Angeles Sparks.

Reese scored 24 points to go with 12 rebounds in 32 minutes in what will be the final game of her first WNBA campaign, but the Sky said in a statement that “after undergoing further medical evaluation” Reese has “been ruled out for the rest of the 2024 season with a wrist injury.”

They did not specify which wrist Reese had injured or provide any specifics beyond saying the team would “provide medical updates later as needed.”

Considering she has her own podcast now, it’s likely Reese will also give further updates herself on her own platforms. In her first post following the announcement, Reese struck a hopeful tone, joking that she never would have guessed a 3-pointer would be the last bucket of her rookie year, but that she hopes it’s a warning for the league about a shot she wants to hit more consistently moving forward when she’s back on the floor:

What a year. I never would have imagined the last bucket of my rookie season would be a 3 but maybe that was God saying give them a taste of what they will be seeing more of in Year 2 lol Through it all, I have showed that I belong in this league even when no one else believed.… pic.twitter.com/re1X85mWR2

— Angel Reese (@Reese10Angel) September 8, 2024

Reese will finish her first year in the W with averages of 13.6 points and 13.1 rebounds while setting a new WNBA record for rebounds in a single season. And as she said in her post, she certainly made her impact on the league felt in her first year, and as a result is widely expected to finish second in Rookie of the Year voting behind fellow rookie star (and frequent foil) Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever.

Here’s to a rapid recovery for Reese, and from the sound of it fans won’t have to wait too long to see her play again: She said in her post that she’d still be ready for the first season of the women’s professional 3-on-3 league “Unrivaled,” the debut campaign for which will begin in January.

For the Chicago Sky (12-22 overall, and 2-8 in their last 10 games), they were unlikely to make the playoffs anyway, so this only impacts their season in that it will mean less on-court reps for Reese to continue to develop. But if she returns in full form with another high draft pick in 2025 on the way, the future is still bright for them next season.