Angel Reese Emphasizes Her Role In WNBA's Growth: 'I'll Go Down In History'

Angel Reese wants to make sure Caitlin Clark isn't the only one taking credit for the WNBA's recent surge in popularity.

The Chicago Sky rookie spoke to reporters on Monday about her role in all the newly increased hype surrounding women's basketball.

While talking to the press on Monday, Reese made sure to point out that one person can't take all the credit for the surge in popularity of women's basketball.

"I think so many people are watching women's basketball right now. It all started from the national championship game, and I've been dealing with this for two years now and understand that, yeah, negative things have probably been said about me," Reese explained. "But honestly, I'll take that because look where women's basketball is."

She also addressed the fact that she's fine with taking on the role of the "bad guy" if it helps to continue the hype around women's basketball.

"People are talking about women's basketball that you'd never would think would be talking about women's basketball. People are pulling up to games. We've got celebrities coming to games [and] sold-out arenas just because of one single game," she said.

"And just looking at that, 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. 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 you to realize that.' Like, it's just not cause of one person. A lot of us have done so much for this game."

This year's WNBA rookie class has been keeping all eyes on them. In addition to Reese and Clark, there have been a few others gaining time in the spotlight.

Cameron Brink of the Los Angeles Sparks, Kate Martin of the Las Vegas Aces, Kamilla Cardoso of the Chicago Sky, and Aaliyah Edwards of the Washington Mystics are just a few who are also demanding attention with their impressive stats just weeks into their new career as WNBA players.

Clark, who plays for the Indiana Fever, recently became the second rookie in WNBA history to score 150-plus points, 50-plus rebounds, and 50-plus assists in her first 10 games in the league. The only other rookie in WNBA history to do that was New York Liberty's Sabrina Ionescu.

While lots of firsts are happening newly into the season, Reese earned a first when the league fined her $1,000 for not making herself available after Chicago's loss to the Fever last week. This was the first time Reese and Clark played against each other in the league.

The highly anticipated game offered some drama for viewers when late in the third quarter, Chennedy Carter hip-checked Clark when the basketball wasn't in bounds. The officials call an away-from-the-ball-foul but the league later upgraded it to a Flagrant 1.

After this play, Reese stood up and cheered on Carter. In a social media post, Carter called Reese her "dawg fasho" in response to a user sharing a video of Reese seemingly celebrating the hit on Clark.

Many fans aren't happy about Reese celebrating after the apparent hit on Clark. Some even commented on Reese's recent Instagram post to share their thoughts.

On a carousel of photos shared a few days ago captioned, "Give yourself some grace. You’re doing great sweetie!" WNBA fans let loose in the comment section to point out the "jealousy."

"You celebrated your teammate taking a cheap shot at the woman who is helping revolutionize the league. That really sucked to see. Yall deserved that L. But you took two today," one person wrote.

Another said, "The jealousy gotta stop though, it’s obvious now."

Ane one other person shared, "Don’t mistake jealousy for competitiveness. We all saw it clearly today."

On other Instagram posts, comments are similar.

"Why you stand up and cheer after that dirty hit on CC?" one person asked. Another said, "Clapping for a player to get injured is wild. Y’all really must hate her for being great."

The growth of the WNBA is undeniable. Fan bases are increasing and a record number of people are showing up for WNBA games, with some games even selling out.

In addition to the rise in popularity of the league and the excitement surrounding it, the WNBA recently announced not one but two expansions with the Golden State Valkyries and the league's first international team in Toronto.

Many fans took to Instagram to share their excitement over two new teams in the league.

"I’m so happy the league is expanding," one fan wrote in the comments of a post welcoming the two new teams. "So excited for the league," another said.