Fans witness a fiery development every time Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark are in the same arena. Be it their National Championship game or their first WNBA encounter, their face-offs so far have been marked by controversies that attract a lot of opinions from the fans as well as analysts. Something similar transpired on Sunday when the Indiana Fever hosted the Chicago Sky at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse. After Reese was called for a flagrant foul on Clark, she expressed her dissatisfaction with the officiating. And sportscaster Dan Patrick has an issue with that.

In the post-game press conference, Angel Reese even suggested that the referees favor the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer. Evaluating her stance, Patrick drew one significant aspect of their rivalry. “Everybody had an opinion on and Angel Reese is stirring this up. Angel Reese always comes off as the victim and she’s leaning into being the bad guy,” he said on The Dan Patrick Show.

The comments come after Reese’s contrasting reactions while addressing her rivalry with Caitlin Clark. The victim angle that Patrick is referring to is her media address on March 31, just after LSU’s Elite Eight encounter against Iowa. Opening up about the online abuse, she also clarified that there is no bad blood between her and the 6-foot-guard.

However, everyone got to see a seemingly different Angel Reese in the WNBA. After celebrating Chennedy Carter’s rough physicality against Clark in their Commissioner Cup face-off, she went on and embraced the “bad guy” role in front of the media. She solidified that image recently by showing up in her second WNBA encounter against Fever wearing Joker-themed Reebok sneakers.

Patrick further pointed out how many women in the WNBA, including Reese, have benefitted from Clark’s popularity. He said, “Angel Reese needs Caitlin Clark. Caitlin Clark doesn’t need Angel Reese.” He also stated that many casual followers got to see who Reese was due to her matchup against Clark.

While many view her flagrant foul vs Caitlin Clark as uncalled for, there are some who agree with her and see it as a “basketball play”. 

Angel Reese has support from certain sections of the media

After Emmanuel Acho and Doug Gottlieb, Stephen A. Smith became another eminent analyst who justified Reese’s on-court actions. The sports journalist said, “I will say this: It was a basketball play. Yes, Angel Reese is right about that.” However, he also opined that the officials were right in their place in judging the nature of the play and coming out with appropriate actions.

He further added, “But what they called against her in terms of upgrading it to a flagrant-1 is exactly what they would’ve done in the NBA as well. She can be upset about it, but it’s a hit to the head, and that’s what they’re doing in this day and age. The call is correct.” 

The opinions on this Angel Reese-Caitlin Clark episode will continue to come to the surface in the upcoming days. Not only the fans but also analysts are interested in the enticing character of their rivalry. With the two teams set to face off once again on June 23, it will be interesting to see what the next chapter unfolds.

Stay tuned for more such updates. And to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the Reese-Clark rivalry and more, watch this video.