Angel Reese is in the WNBA Finals for the first time in her career after leading the Atlanta Dream past the 2024 champion New York Liberty.
However, Reese still draws criticism from some for her style of play, including her actions, reactions, and incidents during WNBA games. In addition, she's typically outspoken and has developed a strong social media presence.
Off the court, she has ventured into other big opportunities, including partnerships with Reebok, Victoria's Secret, and Mattel, the latter of which launched a Barbie doll to honor Reese this past season. Some of those ventures have drawn scrutiny from some critics who question her focus.
In addition to reaching the finals in her first season with the Dream, she captured the 2026 WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award. In a recent discussion on the "7 PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony" podcast, the NBA legend defended Reese, blasted her critics, and gave the Dream star her flowers.
He explained that Reese likely felt she had to work "five times harder" to stay in the conversation as one of the league's emerging superstars due to often being linked or compared to other rising stars in the WNBA, such as the Indiana Fever's Caitlin Clark.
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Anthony then spoke about Reese's mindset as a "winner" after joining the WNBA's Chicago Sky in 2024.
"'Like, [expletive], no matter what the [ expletive ] I do, like, I'm a winner. ... I won in elementary. I won in middle and high school and college. And now I'm about to win in the pros," he said.
"When you talk about the body of work in a short period of time, we talking about something special," Anthony said of Reese.
"Like, we're talking about a body of work that's so impeccable that the antics a lot of times overshadows that," he said, adding, "But, it's not the antics, it's passion. It's her passion. And when you come from where she come from, you understand that passion. You understand that chip you play on."
Anthony also indicated that Reese has become her own success story in the league despite any narratives surrounding her.
"And now starting to create [her] own lane because now, 'Don't put me with that no more. Don't put me with that no more. I don't even want that. ... y'all going to continue to do it anyway, but now I'm over here, and I'm carving out my own [expletive]. I believed in myself,'" he said.
"Shout out to Angel. I just wanted to give her her flowers cuz it's beautiful, and a lot of people won't give her her flowers that way, and it's unfortunate, and it's [expletive ] up. But, like, let her live. You know what I mean?" Anthony said.
Reese now gets the chance to lead the Dream to the franchise's first-ever championship, but she'll face a tough task against the league's top defensive team, the Golden State Valkyries. However, as the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Reese will play a pivotal role in determining if Atlanta captures its first WNBA title.
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