_ElenaBs_Alamy.jpg?width=1280&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale#)
![Bitten By Bed Bugs At Luxor—Rushed To Hospital, All They Did Was Waive Her Resort Fee. Now She’s Suing [Roundup]](https://viewfromthewing.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/luxor.jpg?#)
‘Unique and relentless’ – Angel Reese stepping up for second WNBA season with tone-setting influence on Chicago Sky rookies
Angel Reese established herself as one of the WNBA’s biggest stars thanks to an impressive rookie campaign. Entering the league as the seventh overall pick of the 2024 draft that was headlined by Caitlin Clark, the Chicago Sky All-Star set records before her season was cut short by injury. Reese helped take the WNBA to new heights during her rookie seasonAP There’s no doubt that Reese’s personality, both on and off the court, also helped the WNBA soar to new heights in popularity as she and Clark took their high-profile rivalry from college to the pros. Now, the Chicago star is looking to inspire a new class of rookies. Ahead of the 2025 season, the Sky drafted Hailey Van Lith and Maddy Westbeld from TCU and Notre Dame respectively. Van Lith and Reese are former college teammates, having played together for a year at LSU, and have already made a championship prediction amid their reunion in the Windy City. Westbeld, meanwhile, has also heaped praise on Reese, describing her as a ‘unique’ basketball star. “Angel is such a trailblazer in this game, and just for women’s sports, women’s leadership in general,” the rookie told CBS Sports. “I’m grateful to share the floor with her, and to be able to see the impact that she’s making and the love that surrounds her, which is obviously very well deserved. “I’m so grateful to be able to compete with her every day because her relentless activity is something that is very unique. “Just being able to up my game, up my level of activity whenever I’m competing against her in practice, or just being able to watch her, even in the game, how she communicates with her teammates.” Westbeld went on to further praise Reese for the leadership she’s shown heading into her second year with the Sky. Westbeld has described Reese as a ‘unique’ basketball star after joining the SkyGetty “She’s a phenomenal leader, and I think people don’t really see that,” Westbeld explained. “But being with her every day in practice, she’s a great communicator and she’s a great leader. “I’m grateful to be on the same team as her.” While Reese — who recently launched a heartwarming venture alongside an NBA legend — has clearly made an impression on Chicago’s latest rookie, the Sky struggled in her debut season. The team finished 10th in the WNBA with a 13-27 record and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2018. Heading into year two, Reese – who missed the final weeks of her rookie season through injury – is looking to change things. Reese is heading into her second season with Chicago in 2025 and is hoping to winGetty “I wasn’t used to that,” she said of the losing record last week. “It just takes an adjustment. It’s something that you don’t want to get used to because you don’t want to get in a mindset, like, ‘Oh, we’re just going to be losing every night.’ We were right there every night.” In a bid to turn their fortunes, Chicago fired former coach Teresa Weatherspoon after one year and hired Las Vegas assistant Tyler Marsh in her place. The Sky have also brought in veteran leadership, including franchise career assist leader Courtney Vandersloot and two-time All-Star Ariel Atkins. Chicago will hope those additions, as well as rookies Van Lith and Westbeld, will help them compete in 2025. That, according to general manager Jeff Pagliocca, is something of huge importance to Reese. “She wants to win, she’s somebody that puts that above everything else,” Pagliocca said. “With all the time that she puts into building her brand and flying all over the world, she still has proven to us time and time again she puts basketball first. Reese has been described as a player who puts winning above all else by her GMGetty “Only a competitive player is going to have all these things in her life that are so special but still want to be the greatest player she can be.” The Sky have lost two close pre-season games against the Minnesota Lynx in recent days, as they prepare for their 2025 opener against Clark’s Indiana Fever on Saturday, May 17.
Angel Reese established herself as one of the WNBA’s biggest stars thanks to an impressive rookie campaign.
Entering the league as the seventh overall pick of the 2024 draft that was headlined by Caitlin Clark, the Chicago Sky All-Star set records before her season was cut short by injury.
There’s no doubt that Reese’s personality, both on and off the court, also helped the WNBA soar to new heights in popularity as she and Clark took their high-profile rivalry from college to the pros.
Now, the Chicago star is looking to inspire a new class of rookies.
Ahead of the 2025 season, the Sky drafted Hailey Van Lith and Maddy Westbeld from TCU and Notre Dame respectively.
Van Lith and Reese are former college teammates, having played together for a year at LSU, and have already made a championship prediction amid their reunion in the Windy City.
Westbeld, meanwhile, has also heaped praise on Reese, describing her as a ‘unique’ basketball star.
“Angel is such a trailblazer in this game, and just for women’s sports, women’s leadership in general,” the rookie told CBS Sports.
“I’m grateful to share the floor with her, and to be able to see the impact that she’s making and the love that surrounds her, which is obviously very well deserved.
“I’m so grateful to be able to compete with her every day because her relentless activity is something that is very unique.
“Just being able to up my game, up my level of activity whenever I’m competing against her in practice, or just being able to watch her, even in the game, how she communicates with her teammates.”
Westbeld went on to further praise Reese for the leadership she’s shown heading into her second year with the Sky.
“She’s a phenomenal leader, and I think people don’t really see that,” Westbeld explained.
“But being with her every day in practice, she’s a great communicator and she’s a great leader.
“I’m grateful to be on the same team as her.”
While Reese — who recently launched a heartwarming venture alongside an NBA legend — has clearly made an impression on Chicago’s latest rookie, the Sky struggled in her debut season.
The team finished 10th in the WNBA with a 13-27 record and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2018.
Heading into year two, Reese – who missed the final weeks of her rookie season through injury – is looking to change things.
“I wasn’t used to that,” she said of the losing record last week.
“It just takes an adjustment. It’s something that you don’t want to get used to because you don’t want to get in a mindset, like, ‘Oh, we’re just going to be losing every night.’ We were right there every night.”
In a bid to turn their fortunes, Chicago fired former coach Teresa Weatherspoon after one year and hired Las Vegas assistant Tyler Marsh in her place.
The Sky have also brought in veteran leadership, including franchise career assist leader Courtney Vandersloot and two-time All-Star Ariel Atkins.
Chicago will hope those additions, as well as rookies Van Lith and Westbeld, will help them compete in 2025.
That, according to general manager Jeff Pagliocca, is something of huge importance to Reese.
“She wants to win, she’s somebody that puts that above everything else,” Pagliocca said.
“With all the time that she puts into building her brand and flying all over the world, she still has proven to us time and time again she puts basketball first.
“Only a competitive player is going to have all these things in her life that are so special but still want to be the greatest player she can be.”
The Sky have lost two close pre-season games against the Minnesota Lynx in recent days, as they prepare for their 2025 opener against Clark’s Indiana Fever on Saturday, May 17.
