Jason Whitlock accuses Angel Reese of ‘destroying’ herself by trying to compete with WNBA Rookie of the Year rival Caitlin Clark

Controversial conservative pundit Jason Whitlock has slammed Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese once again.  This time, Whitlock indicated his belief that Reese’s role in the race for Rookie of the Year is hurting her brand.  Reese is one of the front runners – along with Clark – for the honor awarded to the WNBA’s top newcomer, but has hit a bit of a shooting slump in recent games.

That seemed to rectify itself with an 8-for-16 shooting line against the Phoenix Mercury last Sunday, but Whitlock isn’t satisfied.  ‘Angel Reese is paying the cost at this moment for attaching her brand to Caitlin Clark’s brand,’ Whitlock said in a lengthy assessment of Reese’s career so far.

                          Reese had been in a shooting slump up until last Sunday night’s game against Phoenix

‘If Angel Reese were disconnected from Caitlin Clark and we just evaluated Angel Reese’s performance without comparing it to Caitlin Clark, and without having this ridiculous Rookie of the Year conversation, we’d all be sitting here like “Man, what a great rebounder, energy [player], and defensive player Angel Reese is! If someone could help her figure out how to perform offensively, man she’s going to be a real impact player in the WNBA!”

‘Instead, because she compares herself to Caitlin Clark, we’re actually sitting here going “Man, this woman can barely shoot a layup”. Before last night’s game against the Phoenix Mercury, I think in her previous five games she had shot 29% from the field. All of her shots are within 2, 3, 4-feet and she can’t even make 29% of them.

‘She would be getting celebrated had she not attached herself to Caitlin Clark… Sunday night she started to hit the mid-range game and face up shots because she had no chance of getting those layups against Brittney Griner. Angel Reese has such an awkward left-handed shot. She shoots it from her shoulder, she doesn’t shoot it at eye level. That’s why her stuff gets swatted.

‘Her biggest problem is the Caitlin Clark comparison. She’s being destroyed by chasing the Rookie of the Year thing, which she has no chance. She wants to be a dynamic offensive player but she’s just not right now.  ‘She’s a great rebounder, great energy, very good player, but comparing herself and attaching herself to Caitlin Clark is actually destroying Angel Reese.’

Saying that Reese doesn’t have a chance in the Rookie of the Year conversation is disingenuous and ignores her abilities on both sides of the ball.  Clark does get more points than Reese does, but the pair are shooting at about the same rate.  Reese is shooting 39.8 percent from the field this season while Clark is shooting in the same ballpark at 41.2 percent.

Reese is also one of three people that are averaging a double-double in the league this season – with the other two being former league MVP and gold medal winner A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces as well as the Los Angeles Sparks’ Dearica Hamby.  Clark remains the front runner for Rookie of the Year – and for good reason, she’s 12th in the league in points and leads the league in assists – but Reese shouldn’t be counted out from the race just yet.