The Atlanta Dream might have to face the first-place Minnesota Lynx without one of their stars.
Angel Reese picked up her eighth technical foul of the season Friday night in Atlanta’s 101-83 loss to the Portland Fire. If the call holds, Reese will receive a mandatory one-game suspension for the Dream’s home matchup against the Lynx on Sunday afternoon.
With 8:45 remaining in the fourth quarter, Reese got tangled up with Portland guard Carla Leite on a boxout. The officials quickly whistled Reese for a tech, much to the surprise of both Reese and her teammates. The Atlanta All-Star walked away from the call saying, “I didn’t do anything.”
The Athletic contacted the WNBA league office to ask if Reese’s violation would be rescinded, as happened with Caitlin Clark when she picked up her eighth technical foul earlier this season. As of publication, no decision had been made.
If the call stands, this would mark the second consecutive season that Reese accumulated eight technicals. Last year, she served a suspension in Game 41 for the Chicago Sky. Atlanta’s next game is its 40th of this season.
Unlike in 2025, Reese’s team is in the postseason picture this year. However, the Dream fell to fifth in the WNBA standings with Friday night’s loss to Portland and they face an uphill battle against the Lynx without Reese and Brionna Jones, who was already ruled out of Sunday’s contest. One more defeat would tie them in the loss column with Washington, which owns the tiebreaker against Atlanta after winning the season series.
Reese can return to play for the Dream after the FIBA break (Aug. 31-Sept. 16), during which she will represent Team USA, and has to pick up two more technical fouls in the regular season before receiving another suspension. The tally does not carry over into the playoffs.
Kahleah Copper and Clark are both sitting at seven technical fouls and could face a potential suspension before the end of the 2026 campaign.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Atlanta Dream, WNBA, women’s sports
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