LSU alumna and former national champion Angel Reese suffered a season-ending injury Friday night. The news cuts short a dominant first season with the Chicago Sky.
Reese dropped the news of her injury status on social media Saturday night, later sharing with her followers that she suffered a hairline fracture in her left wrist.
The fracture came following an and-one bucket against the Los Angeles Sparks Friday night. Reese underwent surgery Tuesday.
“The risk of not having surgery, I could literally have arthritis at 22 years old,” Reese said on a livestream. “That wasn’t an option.”
She says she expects to return to normal in six weeks, just after the WNBA season ends.
“I am finally able to give myself a physical and mental break,” she said in her post.
The WNBA has one of the quickest turnarounds from college to pro in all of sports. Reese had just over a month between her last game with LSU and her first game with the Sky, not to mention preseason training and the draft.
Despite a shortened season, Reese still managed to break plenty of WNBA records.
She now holds the league record for rebounds, rebounds per game and offensive rebounds in a season, as well as the record for consecutive double-doubles.
She also had the second most double-doubles ever by a rookie and is the fifth rookie ever to average a double-double.
This is all while missing six games. The 2025 WNBA schedule expanding from 40 to 44 games should instill fear into all rebound and double-double record books.
Reese was able to transfer her abilities from college to the pros almost immediately. All season, she has dominated the board, imposed her will on defense and drawn consistent fouls.
She averaged 13.6 points, 13.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game on the season.
In her final game on Friday, she finished with 24 points and 12 rebounds in 32 minutes.
Irreplaceable a piece as Reese is, the Sky still have their eyes on the playoffs. Reese plans to contribute in every way she can to achieving that end.
 “She’s tough, she walks in here with a great amount of energy, she’s energizing everybody else, she’s encouraging everybody else,” Sky head coach Teresa Witherspoon said. “She’s been super strong, were going to be just as strong for her.”
The Sky currently sit as the eight-seed in the playoff picture, which represents the final spot in the postseason. They’re one game ahead of the Atlanta Dream and two games ahead of the Washington Mystics. They’ll play both teams once before playoffs begin.
Isabelle Harrison is set to replace Reese in the starting lineup. She shined on Sunday, producing 21 points and nine rebound in 33 minutes.
Regardless of the season’s outcome, the Sky have begun to lay a strong foundation for their future.