On Saturday, September  7th, Angel Reese, forward for the Chicago Sky, suffered a season-ending wrist injury, putting an end to her rookie season. The no. 7 draft pick and rookie of the year finalist has had a record-breaking and entertaining season, and fans are sad to see it come to a finale.

This news came after the Chicago Sky beat the Los Angeles Sparks 92-78. Reese revealed in a TikTok that her injury is a small hairline fracture, and she injured her wrist during the game when she got the and-one,”..I fell on my hand when I got the and-one, when I fell back, fell on my hand. And it is a small crack in my bone.” She also talked about the different options for her recovery and decided on surgery, and being in a cast for six weeks.

With the first games of the WNBA Finals starting on September 20th, and Chicago being one of three teams along with Atlanta Dream and Washington Mystics fighting for a playoff spot, Reese’s injury couldn’t have come at a more unfortunate time.

Angel Reese has been an integral part of the Sky’s team and has broken many franchise and league records. Her most notable are record-breaking 15 consecutive double-doubles, the most double-doubles in a season by a rookie, and 2nd most in league history (26), most rebounds in a single season (446), and more! Reese averaged 13.6 points, 13.1 rebounds (another record), and 1.3 steals per game in the 34 games she played this year. She was also named an All-Star and played on the winning All-Star team against the USA Women’s Basketball team in the WNBA All-Star game.

The rivalry between Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark has been a popular storyline in women’s basketball and has helped to boost the sport’s popularity. Everyone was looking forward to more iconic Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark moments in the finals, especially since the most memorable moments came from their college championship games. After her game, Clark had compassionate words for Angel Reese, “It’s definitely sad anytime you see anyone go down with an injury, especially people that you came into this league with, whether it’s Cam [Brink], whether it’s Angel…For me, getting to play against her, her motor is up there if not the best in the league, she just doesn’t stop working. Congratulations to her, I thought she had a tremendous year.”

Reese took to Instagram to announce her injury, and said, “Through it all, I have showed that I belong in this league even when no one else believed. All I have ever wanted was to come into the W and make an impact. I can confidently say I have done that and will strive to keep doing so.”

Angel Reese has had an intense, but amazing rookie season. She’s received intense backlash and criticism, but despite all, she’s continued to show up and show out for herself, her team, the league, and all of her fans who take inspiration from and look up to her. Angel Reese has done an incredible job helping to shape the WNBA and pave the way for women’s sports.