Atlanta Dream superstar forward Angel Reese has struggled on the offensive side of the ball throughout her career, but she has always been a strong defender. In fact, she was named the Defensive Player of the Year for the Unrivaled three-on-three basketball league during the WNBA offseason. However, she did not have a strong defensive performance on Wednesday night.

After Reese talked up the Dream for having the top record in the WNBA, Atlanta promptly lost that designation as they fell 96-81 to the Minnesota Lynx, giving the Lynx the top record in the league.

While Reese had a relatively strong game despite the loss, scoring 10 points while leading the team with eight rebounds and five assists, she did struggle consistently on the defensive side of the ball, especially when she was defending Lynx star Natasha Howard.

Howard had an absolutely dominant performance in the post, where she was primarily guarded by Reese, putting up 22 points in the game on a 11-for-16 shooting performance from the field. Reese had a had time staying in front of Howard on  and especially struggled defending Howard on the pick and roll, and fans certainly took notice as Reese faced heavy criticism on social media.

“Angel Reese is getting sliced and diced by Natasha in pick and roll oh my. Too easy. That’s DPOY though, right?” one fan wrote in a post on X.

“Natasha Howard is absolutely cooking AngelReese,” someone else added.

“Angel was getting demolished in pick and roll, Howard dominated her up and down the court,” commented another fan.

“Howard taking AngelReese to school. I thought she played defense,” another fan wrote.

“Natasha Howard is having her way with AngelReese,” someone else commented.

“Angel Reese is getting blown by every play and can’t make it up the court. Natasha Howard of all people is gassing her,” another fan wrote.

Reese often struggles on the offensive side of the ball with both her shooting and her turnover issues, but she is typically a strong defender. We’ll have to see whether or not this game was an anomaly or if this will be a point of concern for Reese going forward.

The post Angel Reese draws criticism after getting ‘dominated’ by opponent in loss appeared first on The Comeback: Today’s Top Sports Stories & Reactions.

Superstar Angel Reese turned a lot of heads this week when she emphatically declared that her Atlanta Dream was the top team in the WNBA just five games into the season. It certainly did not take long for her to be proven wrong.

With a 4-1 record, the Dream technically had the top winning percentage in the WNBA this week heading into their game with the Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday night. However, it’s worth noting that they had also played the fewest games of any team in the league. But that didn’t stop Reese from talking it up, anyway.

Reese addressed the crowd at this year’s Birthday Bash ATL, an annual hip hop festival in the city. During her speech, she brought up the fact that the Dream were the “number one team” in the WNBA at the moment.

“Well, this is my first Birthday Bash, and I’m really excited,” Reese said earlier this week. “On behalf of my teammates, we appreciate the support that y’all show us in the city, and we the number one team right now in the W.”

Unfortunately for Reese, she was proven wrong immediately, the very next game.

On Wednesday night, the Dream took on the Minnesota Lynx, where they put their league-best record to the test. It’s safe to say that they did not pass the test.

The Dream was beaten decisively on Wednesday night with the Lynx coming out on top by a final score of 96-81. Atlanta did not lead at any point in the game. At one point, the Dream amassed a 19-point lead.

As for Reese, she had a relatively strong individual performance, scoring 10 points while leading the team with eight rebounds and five assists. However, both the scoring and rebound totals were well below her career averages in those categories.

Reese also struggled mightily on the defensive end, where she usually thrives. Minnesota post player Natasha Howard put up 22 points, going 11-for-16 from the field while being primarily guarded by Reese.

With the loss, Atlanta no longer has the top record in the WNBA. That is now the Lynx, who have a 5-2 record, including a win over the previous “number one team” in the league.

The post Angel Reese was immediately proven wrong appeared first on The Comeback: Today’s Top Sports Stories & Reactions.

The WNBA-leading Atlanta Dream (4-1) hit the road on Wednesday night to take on the Minnesota Lynx (4-2) at the Target Center in Minneapolis, with both teams coming off consecutive wins.

MORE: Early favorites for the 2026 WNBA MVP Award

How to Watch Atlanta Dream vs Minnesota Lynx

• When: Wednesday, May 27, 2026
• Time: 9:00 PM ET
• TV Channel: WPCH – Peachtree Sports Network
• Live Stream: Fubo (try for free)

Atlanta stormed back, using a 9-0 run to tie the game with a little more than a minute left, and took the lead on Jordin Canada’s three-point play in the final minute to stun the visiting Phoenix Mercury 82-80 on Sunday. Rhyne Howard scored 21 points for the Dream while Allisha Gray went for 18 points. Angel Reese finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds, and four steals, and Canada posted her first double-double of the season with 11 points and 14 assists.

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Natasha Howard scored 14 of her 26 points in the second quarter, and the Lynx cruised to an 85-75 road win over the Chicago Sky on Saturday. Howard also grabbed 14 rebounds while Courtney Williams tossed in 17 points and rookie Olivia Miles contributed 14 points and five assists. Minnesota is still awaiting the season debut of Napheesa Collier, expected back early next month after ankle surgery.

Gray averages 21.8 points for the Dream, with Rhyne Howard getting 18.8 points per game, Reese posting 12.8 points and 11.4 rebounds a night, and Canada registering 12.4 points and 7.2 assists per contest. Natasha Howard leads Minnesota with averages of 17.0 points and 8.3 rebounds, Williams nets 15.8 points per game, and Miles posts 15.0 points and 5.5 assists per outing.

This is a great WNBA matchup that you will not want to miss; make sure to tune in and catch all the action.

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The Atlanta Dream might have the best record in the WNBA right now, with four wins to just one loss, but the stats seem to indicate that star forward Angel Reese is hurting the team more than she’s helping.

The Dream added Reese this offseason through a high-profile trade with the Chicago Sky. But despite Reese’s star power, the stats indicate that the team has actually been better when Reese is off the court rather than when she is playing.

Reese Hurts Her Team

While Reese has developed a reputation as the top rebounder in the game, as well as a consistent scorer, ESPN’s Net Points metric paints a grim picture of what she has actually meant to the Dream.

ESPN’s Net Points metric is designed to give a complete picture of what a player means to a team, as it “gives offensive and defensive credit to players corresponding to points added to the team point differential.” Unfortunately for Reese, she does not fare well in this statistic.

This season, Reese’s overall Net Points rating sits at -13 – -12 on offense and -1 on defense – indicating that she is actively hurting her team when she is on the court, and the team actually performs better when she has been off the court.

This was certainly the case in a recent game against the Las Vegas Aces when Reese was benched down the stretch after going just 1-for-8 from the field while turning the ball over eight times. With Reese on the bench, the team was able to mount a late comeback.

Criticism Mounts

Needless to say, this statistic led to a lot of reactions from fans on social media who were quite critical of the Dream star.

“Been saying this since game one for the Dream. They are making massive comebacks and winning games when angel reese is off the court. Embarrassing cultural movement,” a fan wrote in a post on X.

“Wow. This is diabolical. With her insanely low shot percentage and high turnover rate it’s not surprising however. Her stans of course will make up excuses,” another fan said.

“Funny how the Dream are better without Angel while the Fever are better with CC and yet the W Media discourse tries to say the opposite… well, them and the Fever coach,” someone else added.

“So glad people are opening their eyes,” another fan added.

“Yikes! She really is bad for this team,” someone else wrote.

“Proof, she is the 4th option… at best. Why did she take 16 shots the previous game?” another person commented.

Reese was able to bounce back with two strong performances since her eight-turnover performance against the Aces. We’ll have to see how she performs on Thursday night when the Dream takes on the New York Liberty.

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