After an excellent career at LSU, Angel Reese is among the top rookies in the 2024 WNBA season. The first-round selection has developed into one of the best rebounders in the league; in her most recent game against the Las Vegas Aces, she grabbed 22 rebounds.
Despite this, she has also faced criticism for her subpar rim-shot attempts. Given some of her horrendous misses in the paint, some have even gone so far as to accuse her of stat padding.
We already mentioned her amazing double-double total, which was further enhanced by her 22-rebound performance on Sunday. She did manage 11 points, but her field goal percentage was only 25%.
Many of those 12 misses, with the exception of one embarrassing wide-open miss from beyond the arc, were in close proximity to the basket.
She was frequently observed snatching up her own missed shots to increase the amount of shots that rebounded.
Many have questioned the validity of her rebounding totals because of her inability to score in the paint (less than 40% on 2-point attempts), which has resulted in many situations similar to the one above.
You can see the impact of the poor shooting by examining the stats.
The WNBA’s top rebounder, Reese, grabs 12.9 boards per game. Her commanding hold atop the offensive rebounding leaderboard helps to support that figure.
This season, the rookie has racked up an incredible 152 offensive boards, 63 more than the next closest player (Aliyah Boston, 89). She has nearly doubled all other players in the Top 10.
Val Whiting, a former WNBA player, disputes the apparent correlation between those close misses and rebound outputs.
In response to accusations of stat padding, she supported Angel Reese.
Whiting attributes Reese’s ability to knock down those boards to her work ethic rather than her poor shooting!
Although it’s a little easier when you know the ball won’t go in the basket when it leaves your hand, her ability to position herself to grab those rebounds is undeniable.
For the rest of the season, the debate will likely continue, particularly if the rookie consistently records 22 rebounds on 25% shooting.
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