Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese revealed how LSU head coach Kim Mulkey prepared her for the WNBA. “Bayou Barbie” had a legendary career with the Tigers and recently returned for a preseason clash with Brazil. Her accolades include being a two-time First-team All-American, winning SEC Player of the Year in 2024, and leading LSU to a national championship as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.

Those are just a few of Reese's accomplishments while in Baton Rouge. The double-double machine subsequently became the Sky's No. 7 pick in last year's WNBA Draft and had a historic rookie season. Reese is a rising star in the league and gives a lot of that credit to her former head coach. In an interview with CBS Sports' Jack Maloney, the standout forward detailed Mulkey's impact on her work ethic.

“She (Mulkey) prepared me for the WNBA. I think mentally, physically for sure — practices were very long and it was easy for me to do training camp. There's not really anything anybody can say to me as a coaching staff that can break me, or tell me anything that I don't know about myself, or say things that get me going because I went through Kim Mulkey. She's gonna tell it like it is, she's gonna keep it real with you and I appreciate that.

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In the moment I hated it. I'm not gonna lie, I hated it and I dreaded it and I didn't like it. But when I left I'm like, I was really thankful for that. It didn't make sense in the moment but now it all makes sense. Like why I was able to be so dominant in my rookie year was because I was able to go so hard every day. I had no excuses. She didn't let you come into practice and B.S. Every day was hard work. So I think that's something I always give kudos too. That's why she has a lot of players in the W.”

The Chicago Sky hope that Reese continues to improve as she did during her time with Mulkey. The franchise made several aggressive offseason moves in hopes of returning to the postseason as it builds around the frontcourt tandem of Reese and Kamilla Cardoso for the foreseeable future. Plenty of other franchises have high expectations in 2025, but the Sky are primed to be one of the biggest surprises of the upcoming season. There is no reason why Reese will not build on her All-Star caliber year in 2024.