Angel Reese says thereās no hate between herself and fellow rookie superstar Caitlin Clark — but some of Clark’s fans have crossed a line over their perceived rivalry.
During the premiere episode of her released Thursday, Reese revealed some of the hate sheās been gettingź¦¬ from people she described as fans of Clark which included racism and death threats.
Reese made sure to absolve Clark of blame for any of the hate the Chicago Sky superstar has been getting, saying that she didnāt believe the Indiana product āstands on any ofš that.ā
āI think itās really just the fans. Her fans, the Iowa fans, now the Indiana fans, that are like, they ride for her and I respect that respectfully,ā Reese said. āBut sometimeš °s itās verź¦y disrespectful. I think thereās a lot of racism when it comes to it and I donāt believe she stands on any of that, but when it comes to death threats ā Iām talking about people have come down to my address, followed me home. Itās come down to multiple occasions people have made AI pictures of me naked, literally.ā
Reese claimed that people had sent those ąµ²AI-created šexplicit images to family members which in turn have resulted in them reaching out to her.
The debate over Clark aš¬nd Reese has been a massive storyline in the WNBA and dates back to the pairās days in college š¹at Iowa and LSU, respectively.
While the two have tried to steer clear of fanning the flames of the rivalry that both have pointed to as one being pushed by the fans and media, it hasnāt stopped debate shows and sports pundits from dissecting every ašspect of their games and perąµ²sonalities.Ā
Reese said during the hour-long episode that Claršk āis an amazing playšer and Iāve always thought sheās an amazing player.ā
The two have helped the explosion in popularity of the WNBA š¹this year as both have had stellar rookie campaigns in their own right.
Clark of course has broken record after record thšis year for both the league and the Fever franchise.
At the same time, Reese has dominated in her own right averaging a league-leading 13.2 rebounds per game and setting aā single-season record.š¼
The two even teamed up during the WNBA All-Star Game in July, dšelighting many hoops fans. š;
Reese even appeared to hint that the two stars could fišnd themselves teamed up together again in the fź¦uture.
āWe’re gonna play on the same team one day, I’m sure. We’re gonna definitely play on the same team one day,ā Reese said.