Angel Reese refused to speak to Christine Brennan for Caitlin Clark book

Angel Reese turned down several requests for comment on Christine Brennan’s new book about her on-court rival Caitlin Caitlin, according to the author.

In her book — “On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women’s Sports,” which highlights the Fever point guard’s rapid ascendance in women’s basketball and her global impact on the game — Brennan specifically mentions Reese in chapter 10, entitled “Hip Check.”

Advertisement

In that chapter, Brennan, an award-winning USA Today columnist, rehashes the moment when Reese’s former Sky teammate Chennedy Carter shoved Clark during game last June and Reese clapped from the bench.

“Through a spokeswoman, Reese declined several requests to comment for this book,” Brennan wrote.

After making a basket for the Sky, Carter hip-checked Clark, who was about to inbound the ball, and sent her crashing to the floor in the third quarter. Referees called a common foul on Carter and later upgraded it to a Flagrant 1.

Reese stood up from the bench and applauded Carter, which only helped fuel narratives that she and Clark don’t like each other.

Advertisement

Clark took questions from the media after the hard-fought 71-70 win over Chicago.

“Over in the Fever press conference, Clark showed up as usual and answered questions about the incident,” Brennan wrote, and quoted Clark saying, “Yeah, I wasn’t expecting it. But I think it’s just, like, just respond, calm down, let your play do the talking. It is what it is. It’s a physical game, go make the free throw and then execute on offense, and I feel like that’s what we did.”

It was one of many “welcome to the league” moments after Clark was selected with the first overall pick by the Fever in the 2024 WNBA draft.

Carter refused to answer any questions related to Clark in her postgame press conference, while Reese skipped out after being requested by the media.

Advertisement

Reese was fined $1,000 by the league, as Brennan noted that league rules state every other healthyplayer is required to be made available if they are requested by a credentialed member of the media.

Clark and Reese went on to become the only rookies to be named WNBA All-Stars that season — with Clark being named the WNBA Rookie of the Year in 2024.

The Clark-Reese rivalry carried over from college to the WNBA, as the league has seen a major uptick in viewership and revenue.

Reese led the LSU Tigers to their first championship in program history in a win over Clark and Iowa in 2023 — when the former LSU forward famously waved her hand in front of Clark’s face, doing the “you can’t see me” gesture, at the end of the game, which helped push the rivalry.

Advertisement

Carter, an unrestricted free agent, has yet to publicly address the book.

Neither has Clark, who missed the Fever’s last five games due to a groin injury suffered against the Seattle Storm.

Fever head coach Stephanie White said that barring any regression, Clark will be available Wednesday against the Valkyries.