X/@TheDunkCentral
In that game, everything was going off-the-charts: 17 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists with 53.8 percent shooting. You’d think those stats would put some of the critics away. The Chicago Sky forward had a very efficient night, only for critics to complain about her turnovers and plus-minus, as if it were a poor outing.
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The image aligns wonderfully with the text: Reese great full steam ahead driving to the basket, focused, and oblivious to all the noise. That type of picture shot generally gets praised, except when it’s Angel Reese.
Some folks supported her; one simply opined, “Good game.” Another urged: “Meanwhile AR is peacefully playing her game,” meaning to spotlight injustice wrapped around almost all aspects of critical commentary on Reese.
Then appears the usual suspects-kind of tweets: the angry-cakes fever about turnovers: “Seven TO’s? That’s absolutely insane.” Another one nullified the performance because her team lost to the rivals with sarcasm: “Oh snap she actually shot over 50%? Let’s keep doing that or else probably a bum.” Backhanded compliments abounded, one declared, “She finally had an efficient game for the 2nd time in like 11 games.”
The nuttiest? One user was, somehow, wondering if Reese should be tested for PEDs; because, you know, a 17-and-10-night is now suspicious. Meanwhile, trying to silence her impact were others flagging her minus-7 plus-minus, as if basketball is not a team sport at all.
Then came the positives: Several actually had watched the game and had a bigger picture view of what was going on. “Yall just so damn hateful,” one punched the trolls. Another said Reese is basically moonlighting as a PG for Chicago, considering their lack of guard depth: “If they could bring Chennedy back, they would cook.”
But crazier still, a few responses bore no relation to basketball. One made some awkward comment about Reese’s looks while another randomly decided to insult “poor niggas talking about basketball.” The internet remains undefeated in shutting really worthwhile conversations down.
By the numbers, unlike anyone else described here, she really played well or at least pretty good. The real takeaway is: They’ll always be waiting for her down, regardless of what she does; and she just keeps going and playing through it. Quite possibly that might be the most remarkable stat of all.
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Seven turnovers? Probably not. But 17 points and 10 boards at that efficiency? Whether critics acknowledge it or not, that’s a performance to respect.
