Angel Reese Calls Break from LSU WCBB Team the 'Hardest Time of My Life'

Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese provided the backstory to her break from the LSU basketball team last season during Thursday's premiere episode of her Unapologetically Angel podcast.

Reese said that becoming a lightning rod on social media after winning the national championship the year prior was at times challenging to manage, and after LSU team lost its opening game of the 2023-24 season, the vibes on the practice court weren't quite right and she herself wasn't in the best mental space.

Reese said that she and LSU head coach Kim Mulkey then "got into it" during the team's matchup with Kent State, with Reese sitting out the second half. After that, the pair decided together that it would be best for her to take some time away from the team, with Reese skipping LSU's trip to the Cayman Islands for the Cayman Islands Classic.

"Knowing myself, I was just like, let me just take this break for myself, for the team, and just being able to have some peace of mind," she said (5:35 mark). "That was probably the hardest time of my life, just because I never took a break from basketball, and I didn't realize mental health was important. My mom came down for Thanksgiving, we made Thanksgiving dinner, and it was just a reset."

Reese denied the Internet rumors that swirled at the time, saying she didn't take a break from the team because she was suspended, pregnant, or because her GPA was too low. She also pushed back on those rumors in November:

She ultimately missed four games, and Mulkey didn't publicly disclose the reason for Reese's time away from the team beyond telling reporters that there were "locker-room issues."

"I can't sugarcoat things. I feel like people want the truth, but... I'm going to protect my players," she added. "There's a sacredness in that locker room and I'm from that school that what's in that locker room stays in that locker room."

Reese said that she respected Mulkey for protecting her at the time in "the best way she could."

"I had a lot going on, and it became contagious to other people," she added. "I was moody, I wasn't in a good place within myself. I didn't want that to become a cancer in the locker room."