Atlanta Dream fans spent the final minutes of Sunday’s win holding their breath. Angel Reese went down with a non-contact injury in the fourth quarter, and everyone in the building knew how bad those can be. Non-contact knee injuries have a way of ending seasons.
But then the Dream posted their locker room win-cam video. And there was Reese, knee wrapped in ice and bandages, walking past the camera and shouting something that can’t be printed in a family newsletter. She yelled something about “dubs in the chat” with an expletive in the middle. She looked fired up. She looked fine.
That’s about as good a sign as you’re going to get in the immediate aftermath of a scary moment. Players don’t scream obscenities into a camera if they think they just tore something.
What Actually Happened to Reese’s Knee
The play itself wasn’t dramatic. Reese was moving without contact, and then she just stopped. She grabbed at her left knee and stayed down for a bit before walking off with trainers. The Dream never brought her back, even though the game was still close at that point.
Coach Karl Smesko explained after the game that he made the call to sit her. He said Reese looked like she was in a lot of pain and he didn’t feel comfortable putting her back out there. He also made it clear that Reese matters more to the organization than one regular season win.
“Angel, the person, is very important to us, and we support her in all situations,” Smesko said. “I just didn’t feel good about putting someone out there that looked like she was in that much pain.”
That’s a reasonable approach. But it also means we don’t have a real diagnosis yet. The team hasn’t released anything specific about the injury. No MRI results. No timeline. Just a lot of hope and a video of her cursing happily.
The Timing Could Be Worse or Better
Atlanta’s next game is Monday night on the road against the Dallas Wings. Whether Reese plays or not will tell us a lot. If she sits, that’s probably precautionary. If she plays, everything’s fine. If she’s listed as doubtful and the team goes quiet, that’s when you start worrying.
Reese has been through a lot already this season. She’s been the target of opposing coaches making weird comments about her game. Sandy Brondello said some stuff over the weekend that got people talking. Reese handled it the way she handles everything — by winning and letting everyone know about it.
The win over Chicago was big. The injury scare was not. But the win-cam video suggests the scare might stay just that. A scare. Not a disaster.
Tip-off in Dallas is at 8 p.m. ET. We’ll know more by then.
Leave a Comment