CHICAGO -- Angel Reese was completely unbothered as she stood along the baseline inside Wintrust Arena at Wednesday morning's shootaround. Now a member of the Atlanta Dream, the two-time All-Star had no hard or weird feelings about being back in the building that was her basketball home for the first two years of her professional career.
The only uncomfortable part was heading to the visitors locker room.
"Coming back to a familiar place feels great," Reese said. "I have a home here still. So, it's always good seeing Chicago. ... So, I'm happy to be back and obviously be in a familiar place that I've done a lot of great things here.
"I'm still happy. I'm grateful for my time here in Chicago. I experienced a lot of great things, but I'm just happy to start this new journey. Being able to be with the Dream here. It feels awkward being in a different locker room when I'm so used to being in the other locker room. But I'm really grateful. I'm thankful, and I'm looking forward to this new start."
Reese and the rest of the Dream went through the workout wearing black T-shirts with star guard Rhyne Howard's face on the front in commemoration of her birthday. The team sang the traditional and Stevie Wonder versions of 'Happy Birthday' at the end of practice.
In two years with the Sky, Reese led the league in rebounds per game in both seasons and averaged 14.1 points and 12.9 rebounds. The team traded her for two future first-round picks earlier this month after the relationship soured when Reese was publicly critical of the roster makeup late last season. The team suspended her for a half, but she never played again after Sept. 3 because of injury and a league suspension for technical fouls.
"I think it was just best for me to move on, and I think it was helpful for both of us," Reese said. "I'm grateful for Chicago for putting me in a situation where I could come somewhere that I really wanted and people that really wanted me. So, I'm just grateful to turn the page. No love lost. And I'm just really grateful and happy to be here.
"I think it's a part of my journey. Just being able to have, [at] this point for me, and being able to grow from it. And I'm just really happy to have this opportunity where Atlanta really wanted me to come in and find ways to help them, and them to help me. I've been happy every day. I've shown all 32 teeth every single day."
Late in the shootaround, Reese took shot after shot from beyond the arc as she works to extend her range. Dream coach Karl Smesko likes to play up-tempo and create plenty of 3-point attempts. The 6-foot-3 forward may be known for her interior skills, but the team plans to have her on the perimeter as well.
"We're all pouring into her, and she's pouring into us," Howard said. "But we're making sure that she still understands that she can go score and go do other things outside of, like, rebounding. She's down there working on 3s now. We expect that from her this year, and just a ton of other stuff along with playmaking, setting good ball screens. And we're just making sure that she feels comfortable."
