The Angel Reese Takeover has begun in Chicago
Angel Reese may not officially be the frontrunner to win the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year as far as oddsmakers are concerned, but it appears she has the attention of everyone else.
The LSU product has found her groove in the Chicago Sky front court with a rookie record eight consecutive double-doubles to bring her season averages up to 13.2 points and 11.1 rebounds. Reese is also shooting just north of 40 percent from the field on the year, which probably feels like it could get much higher as the forward gets more comfortable in the paint.
Only Caitlin Clark’s 16.3 points per game are better among rookies than Reese’s output. Yet Reese not only leads the freshman class in rebounding but is on pace to have the best season on the boards of any rookie. Her 11.1 rebound average is currently second behind the 11.7 rebounds Tina Charles averaged per game as a rookie in 2020.
When it comes to player efficiency rating, Reese again leads all rookies at 19.3 while Clark is currently second at 16.1 — though it should be noted Clark has played three more games than Reese at this point.
Yet perhaps nowhere is Reese’s rise more noticeable than at the sportsbook, where she opened the season with +4000 odds to win ROY (bet $100 to win $4000). Reese’s odds are now down to +500 and by far the biggest mover on the board at BetMGM.
The public certainly stands to cash in if this keeps up. While Clark dominated MVP betting before the season, Reese accounts for 46.7 percent of all Rookie of the Year bets, including 53.3 percent of the total money wagered on that market at BetMGM. That makes the Sky star the biggest liability to win the award.
Barely halfway through the WNBA season, it sure looks like she’s leading the race.
