A day after the WNBA suspended Toronto Tempo head coach Sandy Brondello for a game without pay for making an “inappropriate comment” about Atlanta Dream forward Angel Reese, the All-Star forward spoke publicly.
Reese spoke to reporters on Sunday before the Dream’s game at home against the Chicago Sky and talked about both Brondello’s apology and the discipline the Tempo coach received from the league.
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“I appreciate Sandy’s apology, but I also appreciate the love and support that I’ve had for the last 48 hours,” Reese said. “It has been very overwhelming, a lot of love and also other things. But I am grateful that the league did take action.
“There is no place for discrimination or hate in this league from anyone, from fans to coaches to players. And I’m just grateful that we are able to move on from the situation and just play winning basketball. The WNBA is supposed to be positive and we are going in a great light right now, so I just want to continue that and move forward.”
During the Dream’s 111-92 win over the Tempo on Friday, Brondello — while talking to a referee — called Reese a “protected species,” as she pleaded for a foul to be called against Reese. Brondello issued a public apology to Reese on X, saying she “used a phrase that I shouldn’t have used, and I take full responsibility for that.”
While some social media users were making the case that the phrase is a common one used in Brondello’s native Australia and carries no racial undertones, the WNBA deemed the comment inappropriate. There is precedent for a coach being suspended for making inflammatory comments about players. When he was the head coach of the Connecticut Sun, Curt Miller was suspended for a game and fined in 2021 after saying, “Come on, she’s 300 pounds,” to a referee, referring to Las Vegas Aces center Liz Cambage.
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Brondello said she reached out to the Dream right after the game.
“I have a ton of respect for her. It was an emotional statement. It’s a statement that’s very common in Australia and it wasn’t directed at Angel — I would never do that to any kind of player. That’s not the coach that I am. It was just unfortunate,” Brondello said Sunday. “I made a comment that, Australians, we say all the time. I should have took a breath and realize where I am. In America, I know that racism is such a big issue here.
“I felt mad at myself because I’m part of the solution, not the problem… I did make a mistake… It was never meant to be personal and I am truly sorry.”
Atlanta Dream coach Karl Smesko also addressed the incident Sunday.
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“Sandy had talked to somebody in the organization, but I checked on Angel just to make sure she was doing OK,” Smesko said. “Anything that we had to say is going to be private, but we had some communications… As for the penalty, the league looked at it. They took it serious. We appreciate that, and we let the league handle the discipline with that.”
Reese, who will play in her third WNBA All-Star game next weekend, leads the league in rebounding this season with 11.8 per game.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Dream’s Angel Reese ‘grateful’ WNBA took action after Sandy Brondello’s comments
