Angel Reese suspended for Fever matchup after reaching technical foul limit

CHICAGO (WGN) — Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese was suspended for one game after she reached the WNBA’s limit for technical fouls received during a single season, the league announced Thursday.

A player or coach is automatically suspended without pay for one game after receiving an eighth technical foul during the regular season. For every two additional technical fouls received during that regular season after that, the player or coach will then be automatically suspended for an additional game, according to the WNBA rule book.

Reese was called for her eighth technical foul with 0:46 remaining in the second quarter during Wednesday’s 88-64 victory over the Connecticut Sun. She will serve her suspension on Sept. 5, when the Sky visits the Indiana Fever.

The suspension comes after Reese made waves on Wednesday with comments that appeared critical of her teammates and the Chicago Sky organization in an article published by the Chicago Tribune.

Reese told the Tribune she “might have to move in a different direction and do what’s best for me” if the team doesn’t make significant improvements to its roster in the near future.

“I’m not settling for the same (expletive) we did this year,” Reese told the paper. “We have to get good players. We have to get great players. That’s a non-negotiable for me. I’m willing and wanting to play with the best. And however I can help to get the best here, that’s what I’m going to do this offseason.

“So it’s going to be very, very important this offseason to make sure we attract the best of the best because we can’t settle for what we have this year.”

Reese said she wanted head coach Tyler Marsh to coach players harder and that she didn’t think the team’s current roster was good enough to win championships. She also called out injured point guard Courtney Vandersloot, who tore her ACL earlier this year. Reese questioned whether the 36-year-old point guard could return to form after the injury.

Vandersloot is a two-time WNBA champion, five-time All-Star, and seven-time assist leader in the WNBA. She’s second on the WNBA’s all-time assist leaderboard behind Sue Bird and will likely be a first-ballot hall-of-fame player when she decides to call it a career. 

According to the report, Reese also said she doesn’t believe some of her teammates—Rachel Banham and Hailey Van Lith—are capable of leading a playoff team.

Reese later apologized for her comments after the Sky’s win over the Sun, saying she thought her comments were “misconstrued.”

“I think I’m frustrated with myself right now. I think the language was taken out of context and I didn’t really mean to put down my teammates,” Reese said. “They’ve been through this with me throughout the whole year. They’ve busted their ass like I’ve busted my ass. They’ve been with me through thick and thin in the locker room when nobody could see anything.

“So, I would apologize to my teammates, which I already have, about the article and how it was misconstrued about what was said. I just have to be better with my language because I know it’s not the message, it’s the messenger, and understanding what I say can be taken any kind of way, so I really just have to be better and grow from this.”