If recovery had a highlight reel, Reese’s most recent roles would be at the top of it. But even though she is great on the glass and in the paint, there is still a big hole that her Chicago Sky coach is making very clear.

“Firing.” We want to shoot.
A lot of it.

“Angel Reese earns her 5th double-double in the Unrivaled Basketball League,” says a post on X. It’s not a surprise. While the Rose beat the Laces 58–53, Reese grabbed 17 rebounds and scored 16 points. This performance solidified her ability to clean the boards.

But the Chicago Sky’s coaches want her to do more than just be there; they want her to shoot. She has never been vague about this with her head coach Tyler Marsh.

In early November, the Sky teacher made it clear what he wanted to do. Given how bad the Chicago Sky were last season—they were second-worst in the league in field goal percentage at 42.2% and fourth-worst in the league in three-point shooting at 30.2%—his claim is both reasonable and necessary.

“In our first talks, I told Rachel (Banham) and Michaela (Onyenwere), ‘When you have it, I want you to feel confident enough to let it ride.’ That goes for everyone, because we’re going to teach you how to shoot threes too.

We are going to look for ways to add to it and keep building around the core, so yeah.

Even though Reese is good, she hasn’t yet shown that she can meet that level. She made 7 of 14 shots from the field against the Laces, which was a good game, but none of her three-point shots went in. 0.

That’s the matter.

Chelsea Gray made four three-pointers in one game, showing the kind of outside scoring that Marsh needs. Reese, on the other hand, stayed in her comfort zone, ruling the glass but not going outside the paint.

Some of my readers had called Reese a “brick layer,” but she has changed the story in these paints. It’s not enough for her to just work hard for putbacks; now she’s turning second chances into smooth finishes.

In her last three games, she has averaged 15.6 points, 2.3 offensive boards, and 3 assists, which has changed the game. Because Chelsea Gray makes such great plays (21.3 PPG, 5.6 APG, now 4th in Unrivaled), their team is sure to make the playoffs. But they’ll need more firepower from deep to keep the defenders honest if they want to win.

Reese needs to work on her game, but she is doing great right now. Her Rose BC partner Lexie Hull, on the other hand, is not doing as well.

Angel Reese rules the paint, but Lexie Hull improves her defense even though she didn’t shoot well that night.

Hull had a slow start against the Laces after being moved to the bench to make room for Brittney Sykes. She missed her first two shots and had a hard time making an impact on offense. She wouldn’t fade into the background, though.

Even though Hull missed all three of her shots from beyond the arc, she still proved why she’s an asset. She scored 10 points by making 4 of 9 shots and added 3 boards, 2 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block. Her defensive hustle kept Rose BC afloat, even when her shot wasn’t hitting.

Hull only had four points at break, but her constant effort on defense helped change the game’s course. With six more points and key plays to keep Rose BC ahead in the second half, she found her flow.

It’s clear that she has trouble hitting, but her ability to affect the game in other ways is still very important.

Even though Hull isn’t scoring a lot of points, she’s showing that hard work and effort can make all the difference, even on a bad night. She will be a better tool for Rose BC in the end if she can get her outside shot back.

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