After a standout a number of weeks of basketball throughout Unequalled‘s inaugural season in Miami, Florida, Angel Reese has been declared the league’s first-ever Defensive Participant of the 12 months.
Article continues under commercial
Angel Reese Is Named Unequalled’s DPOY
The Chicago Sky energy ahead was named Unequalled’s first-ever Defensive Participant of the 12 months (DPOY) after receiving the “most mixed weighted votes from Unequalled gamers and coaches, in addition to a nationwide panel of sportswriters and broadcasters,” a press launch from Unequalled, despatched to The Blast, learn.
Reese, who performs for the Rose BC with Unequalled, led the league in rebounds, averaging 12.1 per recreation, and led her group in blocked photographs. “Reese was the anchor all season for the most effective scoring protection in Unequalled, permitting 65.2 factors per recreation,” the discharge acknowledged.
Article continues under commercial
Unequalled Named Angel Reese Second Crew
The DPOY honor comes days after Reese was named Second Crew All-Unequalled. The LSU alum made the group with fellow WNBA stars Skylar Diggins-Smith and Rhyne Howard.
Along with her spectacular rebounding skills on the court docket, Reese was additionally a “double-double machine,” in response to her teammate, Chelsea Grey. “She’s any individual who has a knack for rebounding and simply goes after it.”
“It is actually laborious to do this constantly. It is quite a bit in your physique. It is a mindset that it’s a must to have, and it is one she’s had this entire time,” she continued.
Article continues under commercial
Angel Reese’s DPOY Honor Has Excited Her Followers
On X, previously Twitter, Reese followers have been buzzing since studying that the Chi-City Barbie was awarded the league’s DPOY award by her friends and coaches.
Somebody wrote, “Congratulations, Angel! You deserve this, and I hope you could have a profitable profession.”
“Keep down, 5. The expansion [will] all the time present!” one other particular person commented.
A 3rd fan agreed and inspired the 22-year-old to “make them really feel it within the WNBA for underestimating you.”
Reese additionally addressed her monumental win on X with an emotional put up during which she thanked “God” for getting her by way of life’s most tough moments. “Be the place your toes are and permit your self progress,” she completed.
Article continues under commercial
Unequalled Attracts Main Stars And Traders
With Reese and different in style WNBA stars enjoying within the low season league, Unequalled has attracted main consideration from star athletes and powerhouse manufacturers alike.
Not too long ago, Golden State Warriors star and NBA legend Stephen Curry revealed he was becoming a member of the league, which was based by Breanna Stewart and Nephessa Collier, as an investor to assist set a “new commonplace” for girls athletes.
“I’m extremely proud to be becoming a member of the Unequalled household because the league continues to set a brand new commonplace for a way girls’s skilled sports activities ought to function—empowering athletes and making certain they’ve an actual stake in their very own success,” mentioned Curry, in response to a press launch.
Article continues under commercial
He continued, “Unequalled isn’t just innovating the best way we play basketball, but additionally how we worth and spend money on the athletes who drive the sport ahead.”
Along with Curry, Unequalled additionally secured partnerships with big-time manufacturers, together with Samsung Galaxy, Sephora, TNT Sports activities, Below Armour, Ally Monetary, Miller Lite, Ticketmaster, BODYARMOR, and extra.
Reese Says She’s Half Of The Motive Folks Are Watching Ladies’s Basketball
In June 2024, Reese sparked controversy within the sports activities world after saying she believed she was a serious a part of the explanation girls’s basketball was experiencing such a surge in recognition.
“I believe so many individuals are watching girls’s basketball proper now. It began from the nationwide championship recreation, and I have been coping with this for 2 years now and perceive that, yeah, unfavourable issues have most likely been mentioned about me,” she mentioned. “However actually, I will take that as a result of look the place girls’s basketball is.”
Reese defined that she was OK with enjoying the “dangerous man” if it could hold folks considering their recreation.
Article continues under commercial
The “Unapologetically Angel” podcast host additionally talked about the celebrities, together with Latto, who’ve proven help to the league due to her efficiency through the 2023 NCAA Championship recreation.
“And simply that, I will take that position. I will take the dangerous man position, and I will proceed to take that on and be that for my teammates, and I do know I will go down in historical past. I will look again in 20 years and be like: ‘Yeah, the explanation why we’re watching girls’s basketball isn’t just due to one particular person; it is due to me too, and I need you to comprehend that.’ Like, it is simply not trigger of 1 particular person. Loads of us have accomplished a lot for this recreation,” she completed.
