- Louisiana State University star basketball player Angel Reese has no apologies over a controversial hand gesture
- She made it to Caitlin Clark of Lowa during U.S. championship game for women’s collegiate basketball
Louisiana State University star basketball player Angel Reese has no apologies over a controversial hand gesture to Caitlin Clark of Lowa during U.S. championship game for women’s collegiate basketball.
Reese led LSU to the NCAA women’s basketball victory, a win she had always waited for to get back at Clark.
In the same style as Clark, Reese celebrated the triumph by waving her hands in her rival’s face and pointing at her finger to symbolise the ring that her LSU team had just won.
She didn’t miss the chance to return serve to Clark. By waving her hand in a similar style as legendary WWE star John Cena’s famous “You can’t see me” sign.
Angel Reese from LSU. Photo/Allure
It is this style that Clark mimicked and she never hesitated flashing it out on her opponents every time Lowa won.
Reese argued that she was merely administering a dose of her own medicine to the Iowa player.
In a post-game interview with ESPN, Reese addressed the gesture and stated that she wasn’t going to allow Clark to show disrespect for teammate Alexis Morris or South Carolina, whom Iowa defeated in the NCAA Final Four.
“Caitlin Clark is a hell of a player for sure, I don’t take disrespect lightly,” Reese stated. “And she disrespected Alexis and my girls – South Carolina, they still my SEC girls, too. Y’all not gonna disrespect them either… I had a moment at the end of the game. I was in my bag. I was in the moment.”
However, the contentious conduct sparked social media uproar, with many criticising the LSU champion as “classless”.
Jose de Jesus Ortiz tweeted: “This is classless. Angel Reese is only 20, so she’s still young, but taunting Caitlin Clark like this shows a pure lack of class. Win with class, lose with class, play with class. Clark’s mom and dad can be proud that her daughter ignored the taunting. They raised her right.”
Danny Kanell wrote: “What a classless move by Angel Reese. Doing WAY too much to taunt Clark.”
Despite the controversy, Reese addressed the backlash citing that there was a significant double standard based on skin tone in the social media backlash on her gesture.
The Louisiana State University star critiqued voices who termed her gesture as classless saying it is so when it involves a Black athlete.
Caitlin Clark of Lowa. Photo/People
She said that if it was Clark, no one would have said a thing which is open bias favouring white athletes.
Reese said that the whole year, she was a subject of criticism on who she is and most people branded her a woman from the hood with a ghetto act.
On the other hand, when a white player does the things she was criticized for, nothing is said about them. This is why she decided to remain ‘unapologetically Reese’.
Despite the online bile, she is hopeful that she has helped the WNBA grow ideologically.
LeBron James was one of several influential figures in the basketball community who defended Reese in the face of harsh criticism.
He said that everything she said and did was nothing but raw facts.
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