Angel Reese Praises Ex-Rival WNBA Teammate

Getty Angel Reese, now of the WNBA Chicago Sky, drives against college rival Kamilla Cardoso (left)

In four career games going up against Kamilla Cardoso and South Carolina while she was at LSU (and at Maryland before that), Angel Reese put up solid numbers. She averaged 16.5 points and 8.8 rebounds, and blocked 2.3 shots per game.

But Cardoso, no doubt, put a crimp in Reese’s efficiency—she shot only 38.2% in the four games and, in the stat she would certainly most like to forget, found herself going 0-4 in the matchups. For her career, Reese was a 49.8% shooter whose teams posted a 97-15 record when she was playing against anyone except Cardoso.

Safe to say that, rather than continuing to battle Cardoso in the trenches of the Southeastern Conference, Reese is rather pleased to find herself as a teammate of Cardoso with the Chicago Sky. The pair, with three NCAA championships between them, were taken with Top 7 picks in the WNBA draft in April, Cardoso going third and Reese going No. 7.

As was pointed out to her by the Chicago Tribune, it was less than two months ago that Reese and Cardoso were banging head-to-head in a contentious SEC final game. No biggie, Reese said.

“It’s literally just basketball,” Reese said. “We’re just here to compete. Me and Kamilla competed hard all these years. Everybody has known that. But we’re just competitors and that’s just what we do.”

Angel Reese a Future Centerpiece for Chicago Sky

Reese has been part of an injection of excitement in the Sky, who have overhauled the team that pulled off a stunning run to the 2021 WNBA championship under former coach James Wade. But Wade left to join the Raptors last summer, and the team brought in legendary guard and coach Teresa Witherspoon to replace him, overhauling the roster with Reese and Cardoso as future centerpieces in the process.

Reese is expected to start right away while Cardoso is expected to be more of a long-term project.

“I think I am very competitive and have a wining mentality,” Reese told reporters last month. “Being able to go into practice and want to win every drill, want to do everything to perfection, I am kind of a perfectionist—I want to do everything at a high level and not really take any time off. Because you don’t get these opportunities. …

“I want to dominate. I’m super-competitive. I want this team to go to amazing places, I came to Chicago to make an impact and I am super-excited.”

Kamilla Cardoso Competition Will Help Both Players

As for her relationship with Cardoso, Angel Reese told the Tribune there will continue to be battles, and that the competition the two have established over the years should only make them better.

“We’re going to be fighting over rebounds, I know that,” Reese joked. “I love that though. Being able to go in and battle, being able to have a teammate where every day I know she’s going to work hard and do whatever it takes at the basket. I’m a competitor and I know she’s a competitor too.”

Reese especially loves the way that Cardoso gets to the rim on cuts, and as if to put that on display, she hit Cardoso with a high-post pass for a highlight-reel play in the preseason opener on Friday.

“Being able to have a post player that can run the rim as fast as she can and being able to go with her and run with her,” Reese said. “If I miss a defensive assignment, she’s going to be there. If she misses a defensive assignment, I’m going to be there.”