Angel Reese and the ‘Mebound’: Looking at LSU Tigers basketball legend, Chicago Sky star’s rebounding phenomenon
The WNBA’s newest buzzword in 2025, “mebounds,” was coined by fans and amplified online, referring to Angel Reese’s uncanny knack for rebounding her own missed shots.
It’s often used playfully. But behind the meme lies a concerning trend that started in her rookie season and appears to be continuing into her sophomore campaign.
Based on data from the 2024 season, the relationship between Reese’s inefficiency and team struggles is undeniable.
In the 12 games where Reese posted her lowest field goal percentages, the Chicago Sky went 0–12.
That’s not a fluke.
Every time her efficiency plummeted, so did the Sky’s chances of winning, despite her dominance on the boards.
This isn’t about nitpicking a rookie’s growing pains. Reese led the league in total rebounds (446) and blew past expectations in offensive rebounding, collecting 53 self-rebounds.
That stat is loosely tracked by media outlets and data enthusiasts, but still ignored by the WNBA’s official stat sheet.
In Reese’s 12 highest rebounding games, her field goal percentage was well above her season average of 39.1%, and the Sky went 6–6. When she scores efficiently and rebounds, the team competes. When her boards come off her repeated misses, the offense stalls and the scoreboard follows.
Every self-rebound reflects a missed opportunity. Instead of one shot and a reset, it often becomes two, three, even four attempts in a single possession; all from the same player.
It gums up ball movement, breaks offensive rhythm, and turns possessions into solo battles rather than cohesive sets.
The 2024 Chicago Sky finished 13–27, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2018 and finishing last in offensive efficiency. Reese missed six games due to injury, and the Sky went 0–6 without her, which complicates the picture further. Her impact is real, but not always productive when the offense becomes overly reliant on repeated self-recycling of looks.
Now, with the 2025 season underway and signs pointing to this trend continuing, the case for better stat tracking grows stronger.
While Reese isn’t lacking in hustle, effort, or star power, her style of play increasingly looks like an exercise in self-promotion more than team execution.
She’s not just padding stats, she’s hijacking possessions.
The numbers make it clear: when her rebounding becomes more about salvaging her own misses than elevating her teammates, the Sky suffers.
Reese has branded herself as “unapologetically” herself, but at some point, the results matter.
Her tenacity isn’t in question, but her priorities might be.
If this trend continues, Chicago’s front office may soon have to decide whether they’re building around a star…or enabling one.
It’s 2025. There’s no excuse for empty stats disguised as dominance.
