Angel Reese Gets Rejected As Ex-Warriors Star Turns To Paige Bueckers Instead

2025 is not going the way WNBA fans envisioned. That NCAA three-way rivalry with Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Paige Bueckers wasn’t revived. Caitlin Clark didn’t have a potential MVP campaign. The CBA talks are inching closer to a lockout. And the injuries… oh, the injuries. Fortunately, Paige Bueckers’ injury curse from UConn hasn’t carried forward. She’s having a stellar season that culiminated in the Rookie of the Year trophy. Although she missed the playoff spot, she’s winning fans not only in the NBA but also in the BIG3.

Bueckers will head to 3vs3 basketball in Unrivaled next season but it’s the other league that has an eye on her. Jordan Crawford also missed the BIG3 playoff berth this year but established himself as one of the most prolific scorers in Ice Cube’s league. From one scorer to another, he’s loving what Bueckers has done during the void CC’s injury has left.

On the TFU podcast, the former NBA player revealed he watches the WNBA because of specific stars. “I watch. Yeah, I watch certain players,” was how he walked into his co-host’s trap. Because that allowed them to asked if he watched Caitlin Clark or Angel Reese.

Now both have been limited by injuries in their sophomore years. So excuse Jordan for enjoying what he did watch. “I like I like to watch Caitlin Clark’s game more, but I actually like Paige more…”

Not a surprising choice at all. Especially after he saw her scoring streak recently. But no mention of Angel. In fact, there’s no record of Crawford ever commenting on Angel Reese at all. It appears that only Caitlin falls in the Big3 radar.

Ice Cube had offered Clark a $5 million contract in 2024 which she ignored. The W fans, NBA veterans, and analysts criticized him for it, especially when he didn’t seek any other female basketball player including Angel Reese. Cube doubled down on Clark’s marketability, downplayed Reese’s, and had several BIG3 players defend his stance.

Crawford now says that’s what sets the BIG3 apart from the WNBA. “Even in the Big3, it’s getting to a point now, especially with owners getting involved and things, everything’s going to change. So, you know, you can sit back quiet, but then there’s also times where you do got to speak up. It’s going to come that time. So, you know, it’s everything is evolving.”

Is that a dig at the WNBA’s stalemate with the WNBPA? Or how the league is struggling in CC’s absence?

Jordan Crawford and BIG3 have Caitlin-shaped focus

We didn’t get the Clark-Reese-Brink-Bueckers matchups we’d all been anticipating when Paige Bueckers finally – finally – entered the WNBA draft. While the sophomores were dealing with a streak of injuries, the UConn star had a high scoring streak. But league-wide problems persisted.

The rising number of injuries led players and fans to point fingers at the WNBA. After a lot of suspense, Caitlin Clark was ruled out for the rest of the season. Angel Reese also missed several games. Cameron Brink is barely making a comeback from a torn ACL. Clark has meanwhile focused on joining other players in the CBA discussions while her teammates have been calling out the poor officiating.

Even Bueckers, after a few narrow scrapes, has slammed the refereeing. While she’s undoubtedly phenomenal, she hasn’t been enough to carry forward what Clark started. Without Clark on the floor, viewership and attendance took a hit even though Bueckers is the new fan favorite.

Jordan Crawford turned from the fan of the 2024 #1 pick overall-turned-ROTY to the 2025 title-holder. Not a surprising pattern when you know the why. One of the reasons why Jordan Crawford switched from Caitlin Clark to Paige Bueckers, as he said was her high-scoring games.

Bueckers made some all-time scoring records with 40 points in March and 44 points in August. The latter was in an 81-80 win over the Sparks. Bueckers sank 17 of 21 shots, including 4 of 4 from the arc and 6 of 6 at the free-throw line to become the first player in league history with 40-plus points on 80% shooting from the floor.

The last time a rookie made that statline was by Cynthia Cooper in 1997. Bueckers’ 44 points puts her 10th in the all-time WNBA record list. The records and awards are great. But what’s even better is the sweet sound of haters getting silenced. Even Dwyane Wade is enjoying watching the Paige deniers lose their minds.

Paige Buckets and CC are two favorites in BIG3 circles. But Clark rejected Ice Cube’s $5 million offer and Bueckers has chosen Unrivaled. The BIG3 has been evidently distant from Angel Reese. Like Ice Cube, even Crawford has been a Clark fan from day 1.

When Clark was getting hate for winning 2024 RoTY, Crawford came to her defense. “When you’re a rookie, and somebody sees you coming up late trying to stop that… It’s not a personal thing, but it’s like a me thing. ‘You’re getting the light right now, and it’s great for the league, but I’m gonna show you it’s not gonna be easy.’ You’re gonna have to come and take it,” he said last year.

His statement might apply to Paige Bueckers too. Either way his choice won’t make Angel lose sleep over it.