Just as things were beginning to heat up, it all came down crashing. The Chicago Sky, in an all-important race for the final playoff spot, have lost their rookie sensation to injury. Angel Reese is out of the season because of a wrist fracture she incurred last Friday, after falling on her left hand in a home game against the Los Angeles Sparks. The ‘Chi-Town Barbie’ just had surgery that will put her hand in a cast for six weeks. How did it go? Chicago coach Teresa Weatherspoon is answering.

Chicago Tribune reporter Julia Poe wrote on X, “Teresa Weatherspoon says she spoke with Angel Reese this morning ahead of her wrist surgery. “High spirits.” No updates from the Sky yet on the procedure.” A hairline fracture in her left wrist had turned the tables on Reese’s play. She could have played through pain, she could have suffered through and seen how things went. But doctors warned that if left untreated, it could turn into a full-blown shattered bone.

In a video explaining more details of her injury, Reese revealed that doctors “gave me options to play,” but without surgery, she could also have arthritis issues, which obviously “wasn’t an option” for the rookie. “I want to have a long career in the league,” Reese said, “I play basketball for awhile.”

Per the Sky player, the surgery will mean doctors putting a screw in the bone, and a cast for a total of six weeks – a hard cast for four and a soft cast for two. What will she do in the meantime? Rehab, which will include “lifting, running, conditioning, shooting with my off hand, dribbling with my off hand, working on my nutrition.” But that’s not all!

Angel Reese will still be “modeling still, podcasting still, being a baddie still.” Indeed, this season has seen the Sky player be in a neck-to-neck race with college rival Caitlin Clark. While the Fever guard might have pulled ahead in the Rookie of the Year race in the latter half of the season, Angel Reese has still been formidable, dominating on both ends of the court and leading the league with 446 rebounds.

Her record-breaking ways have continued throughout the season, even if she will now miss the last 6 Sky games. The Sky forward noticeably had a 15-game streak with double-doubles, breaking Candace Parker’s record for most consecutive games with the stat line. She has also racked up a total of 26 double-doubles in 34 games. Her coach has not said much about the injury or the surgery yet, except that it went well. Reese has been present courtside at the last home game vs the Dallas Wings. While she was present in the Wintrust Arena, it’s unclear whether she will travel to Minnesota with the team on Friday.

Looking at the latest update from Weatherspoon, it’s likely that Reese herself will give more information soon as the Hall of Famer coach allows the rookie to be her unapologetic self. T-spoon has come under fire for her methods lately, but no matter what, her No. 1 pupil is in her corner.

Despite widespread criticism, Angel Reese defends Teresa Weatherspoon

In an early July game vs. the Seattle Storm, Chicago Sky fans had rallied against the coach. Weatherspoon had only put Angel Reese’s fellow rookie Kamilla Cardoso in for 20 minutes in a game that the Sky lost. In the post-game press conference, T-spoon explained that nothing had been wrong with the Brazilian player, but it was just the coach’s decision.

This sparked an outcry against Weatherspoon online, and it was viral enough that Reese reacted on X. “One thing I don’t play about is T-Spoon so let’s not even try it. that’s one thing i don’t tolerate like at all,” she wrote. The Sky forward and coach undoubtedly share a close relationship as the first-year head coach is close to her former LSU head coach Kim Mulkey and was a part of her squad at one point.

Some fans even went so far as to call for a dismissal of Weatherspoon, but to some, it’s just a one-off incident. The coach looks ready to stay in Chicago for as long as they will have her, and if no one else, she will always have Angel Reese standing beside her.