Part of being a responsible adult is owning up to some of the dumber things you do in the heat of the moment.
Yes, people say and do stupid things all the time, but if they own up to them and learn from them, that prior idiocy can actually be a blessing in disguise.
And if they don’t? Well, it only makes them look bad — but it should still be called out given the rapidly dwindling levels of accountability left in this world in 2025.
Speaking of a total and complete lack of accountability, have you met WNBA and Chicago Sky star Angel Reese?
Reese — who appears to be a spitting image of her mother — has been getting used to reporters in her face again with the WNBA season having started Friday.
Sort of like this, back when she was a rookie for the Sky, just a little less than a year ago:
“I’ll look back in 20 years and be like, the reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person. It’s because of me, too. I want ya’ll to realize that.” – Angel Reese
(via @GNSportsTV) pic.twitter.com/dfn2LiuMrY
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 4, 2024
Reese, who claimed to be unbothered by her “bad guy” role (quick fact check: that was false), started ranting about the state of women’s basketball.
She was trying to make the point that Indiana Fever wunderkind and reigning Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark was not the sole reason that women’s basketball was enjoying a resurgence after years of apathy and stagnation.
“I’ll look back in 20 years and be like, the reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person,” she said last summer. “It’s because of me, too. I want y’all to realize that.”
Newsflash: Caitlin Clark is the real deal. She’s the center of the WNBA universe, whether anyone likes it or not.
Reese’s notoriety? It’s because she’s viewed as Clark’s greatest basketball rival! Her own status has been dependent on a rivalry that only one side ever really acknowledges.
(And it’s not coming from Clark’s side.)
Given the dubious nature of the claim that Clark’s star wattage is somehow not powering the WNBA, it was only fitting that Reese was asked about those remarks a year later, and she was.
A reporter asked Angel Reese if she wanted to expand on her bold statement from last year — that fans don’t just watch women’s basketball for one player, but they watch because of her too.
Angel’s response? “Next question.”
(via Chicago Sky) pic.twitter.com/xo07XIbeHN
— DraftKings (@DraftKings) May 13, 2025
“Last year you made a powerful statement saying the reason people are watching women’s basketball is not just because of one player, but because of you, too,” the reporter said. “A year later, do you feel like you’re –”
“Next question,” Reese said, cutting off the reporter with an audibly annoyed tone and visible exasperation.
Seriously? That’s all you got? This sort of lack of accountability is infuriating, especially when you consider the fact that there are likely little girls looking up to Reese, who, in complete fairness, is a ferocious rebounder and tenacious basketball player.
Reese, who’s never met a problem she’s at fault for, should answer that question a year after the fact. Does she think the league will continue to surge? Will this new crop of rookies help? Hurt? These are all legitimate and fair questions that the reporter could’ve gotten to before that terse and rude, “Next question.”
Instead, Reese did what all people lacking accountability do: She ran away.
It’s pathetic, and the sort of behavior that usually gets hammered out of most well-adjusted children by junior high school.
Accountability is utterly tantamount for growth. Without it, stupid mistakes will stay just that. Add a dash of accountability, and you’ve now turned your dumb error into a moment of growth and introspection.
Reese, ever the victim, seems utterly allergic to that growth. If anything, given the length of the above two clips, she’s going backwards.
And that’s a shame because — again — for whatever faults she may have, she’s a fine basketball player in the mold of a Dennis Rodman-type and she undoubtedly has scores of little girls looking up to her.
Instead of giving those fans some meaningful evolution to chew on, she’s giving them more venom and vitriol so they, too, can continually play victim and dodge accountability.
It’s shameful that there isn’t a responsible adult in her life to tell her these things.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
