Sky’s Ariel Atkins says Angel Reese’s ‘crown is heavy,’ urges media to show more respect

After Angel Reese put together her strongest stat line of the season in the Chicago Sky’s lopsided loss to the New York Liberty on Tuesday night, she was asked if she hopes a performance like that against the defending champions will help her battle the scrutiny she faces online.

Veteran teammate Ariel Atkins took the opportunity to implore the WNBA community to give Reese the respect she deserves.

After Reese said she doesn’t pay much attention to the criticism on the internet because of the love she experiences in person, Atkins interjected before a follow-up question could be asked and expressed frustration at Reese being asked a question about an off-court issue.

“Can I say something? This is a 23-year-old kid,” Atkins said, pointing to Reese on her left. “And the amount of crap she gets on a day-to-day and she still shows up.

“Whatever questions y’all got like about our team, basketball-wise, we appreciate it, but all the other nonsense, like it’s irrelevant. This is a 23-year-old kid who handles herself with grace. Her crown is heavy.”

Atkins, 28, was acquired by the Sky in February to bring her defensive-minded leadership to the young Chicago roster. The two-time All-Star helped the Washington Mystics win the 2019 WNBA title.

“(Reese) has to have a wall because if she doesn’t people will break her down,” Atkins added. “Not only because of the way she looks but because of the way she carries herself. She doesn’t just walk around and act like, ‘Oh I’m this.’ No, she knows who she is, and we ain’t going to break her down for that. So whatever other questions y’all got, like, I’m hoping it’s just about basketball, maybe a box score question, but the kid’s crown is heavy. Like respect that.”

After Atkins finished talking, Reese thanked her and put an arm around Atkins’ shoulder as the availability continued.

While Reese notched her fourth double-double of the season Tuesday, tallying 17 points and 11 rebounds while shooting 61.5% from the field, the Sky’s 19-point loss marked their fifth double-digit defeat of the young season. On Saturday, Chicago fell 79-52 to the Indiana Fever, which was without Caitlin Clark, in a rematch of the team’s season opener, which the Fever also won, 93-58.

After Atkins’ support Tuesday night, Reese said her team has to remain patient and grind together through this stretch of the season.

“Luckily I’m around amazing women every day that love each other,” she said. “We genuinely love each other.”

Following Atkins’ and Reese’s availability, Sky coach Tyler Marsh lauded his players for sticking up for one another during the tough start.

“When it comes to our players, they come every day ready to work. They come every day ready to stick up for each other,” Marsh said. “It’s been a tough start to the season. … We got a lot of time to regroup but we can’t do that if we don’t stay together with one another. After every game thus far this year and every day in practice, and every film session and every travel session, we enjoy being around each other. And I think that that’s kinda the foundation of who we are and who we want to be.”

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