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Even Angel Reese sometimes struggles to walk in heels.
The 22-year-old WNBA star, a.k.a. “The Bayou Barbie,” hilariously shrugged off the fashion faux pas when she was seen limping in a pair of strappy sandals ahead of her team the Chicago Sky’s game against the Indiana Fever on Saturday, June 1.
In the clip, posted by the official WNBA TikTok account, Reese seemingly grimaced as she strutted in the footwear, which she paired with a cropped hoodie and a miniskirt.
She accessorized with squared sunglasses and a sparkly silver Balenciaga Hourglass bag. When a reporter tried to ask her a question, Reese hilariously said, “Let me get these shoes off. A baddie can’t stay a baddie too long.”
After slipping out of the shoes, Reese threw on her blue-and-yellow uniform to take on Caitlin Clark and the Fever. The Sky lost to the Fever 71-70. The Fever’s win, however, was outshined by drama between Clark, 22, and the Sky’s Chennedy Carter.
Carter, 25, made headlines for forcefully knocking Clark to the ground, sparking a debate about whether players are intentionally targeting Clark — who has been hailed for bringing the WNBA and women’s sports more recognition.
Reese shared her two cents on the conversation in a Monday, June 3, press conference, pushing back on the idea that Clark is being treated unfairly by other WNBA stars.
“When we go out there and play super hard, compete every single day, it’s not personal,” Reese said on Monday. “I promise you it’s based off of our stories and where we’ve come from.
We’ve come from so many places that you guys have never seen or would never understand, so just being able to go out there and play with that chip on our shoulder every single night, that’s just what we do and that’s just who we are.”
Reese also noted that Clark is not the only reason women’s basketball has gained popularity — she is too.
“I think so many people are watching women’s basketball right now. It all started from the [2023] national championship game,” Reese said, referring to the game where her LSU Tigers defeated Clark’s Iowa Hawkeyes.
“I’ve been dealing with this for two years now. And understanding, like, yeah negative things have probably been said about me, but honestly, I’ll take that, because look where women’s basketball is. … I’ll take that role. I’ll take the bad guy role, and I’ll continue to take that on and be that for my teammates, and I know I’ll go down in history.”
She added: “I’ll look back in 20 years and be like, ‘Yeah, the reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person, it’s because of me too.’
And I want y’all to realize that. Like it’s just not ’cause of one person. A lot of us have done so much for this game. Chennedy has been here before obviously, but there are so many great players in this league that have deserved this for a really, really long time, and luckily, it’s coming now.”
