Some see Angel Reese’s indomitable, confrontational energy as a distraction. But after she found herself at the center of two heated exchanges during the Atlanta Dream’s Game 3 Semifinals showdown against the New York Liberty on Friday night, a former NBA star has come out in her support, highlighting how her edge makes the Dream star dangerous.
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“Angel Reese really sitting down and accepting any challenge…. Her energy is what makes the dream win,” two-time NBA All-Star Isaiah Thomas wrote on X.
His comments come after Reese has already established herself as unwilling to back down, already getting into two altercations during the game, both of which came in the second quarter.
With about six minutes to go in the period, Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu seemed aggravated by Dream rookie Isobel Borlase, who had shoved her while attempting a layup in a previous play. On the next possession, Ionescu pushed Borlase while putting up a hard screen for Marine Fauthoux, leading to a foul being called. Ionescu’s aggressive screen made Reese immediately run up to the Liberty Guard, telling her, “Don’t do that.” Reese had to be held back by Dream forward Rhyne Howard, while Fauthoux and Jonquel Jones intervened to defuse the situation.
Afterwards, the referees reviewed the footage and deemed that no hostile act had been committed. Due to this, no technical foul was called. However, that was only the start.
Later in the period, with about three minutes left, Reese was blocked at the rim by Jonquel Jones, who then got right up in Reese’s space, sending her out of bounds with the momentum of the drive before the two got tangled up, standing right up against each other. The two had to be separated by their teammates, and the sequence immediately drew a whistle.
This time, however, Reese wasn’t as lucky. She and Jones were given offsetting technical fouls, giving Reese her second tech of the postseason and putting her two away from a one-game suspension. She will also receive a $500 fine for the sequence.
Her first technical foul came during Game 2 of the first-round series against the Washington Mystics, when Reese taunted forward Michaela Onyenwere.
Thankfully for the Dream, Reese was able to take the momentum of the confrontations into a win. The forward finished the game with 22 points and nine rebounds, leading the Dream to an 85-83 win and securing a spot in the WNBA Finals for the first time since 2013, sweeping the Liberty 3-0.
Reese is no stranger to cutting it close with technical fouls. She finished the regular season with seven technical fouls, avoiding the one-game suspension that comes bundled with eight technical fouls. Her count was reset at the beginning of the playoffs, but she has to play it safe, or Reese might have to take a seat on the sidelines.
In Sep. 2025, she was suspended for exceeding the technical foul limit, serving a one-game suspension before returning to the court.
Reese’s impact has been recognized by her team, which remains the only undefeated team in the WNBA playoffs, having swept both the Mystics and the Liberty. One of those teammates is veteran DeWanna Bonner, who joined the team after being bought out from the Phoenix Mercury in the middle of the season.
“She’s the motor [of the team],” Bonner said after Game 2 against the Liberty. “Her defensive presence is unmatched. … She brings the toughness. She brings the umph. As long as she’s out there, we see her go hard; it’s like, ‘Man, I want to dive on the floor for a ball.’ That’s rare. That’s kind of hard to find … we feed off her, and she gets us going every single game.”
What has been even more impressive about Atlanta’s performance in the series against New York is that they have managed to take the win without leading scorer Allisha Gray, who played 11 minutes in Game 1 before missing the following two contests due to a hand injury.
Only time will tell if Reese can lead the Dream to their first championship, but judging from her energy, she’s definitely prepared to do so.