Revisiting Candace Parker’s C-Tier Ranking of Angel Reese

Candace Parker’s 2025 C-tier ranking of Angel Reese looks very different after the forward helped power the Atlanta Dream to the 2026 WNBA Finals.

In a July 2025 Complex Sports segment, WNBA legend Candace Parker ranked select current players by tiers. She placed A’ja Wilson, Napheesa Collier, and Breanna Stewart in the top S tier; Caitlin Clark, Kelsey Plum, and Sabrina Ionescu in A; Arike Ogunbowale and Paige Bueckers in B; and Angel Reese (then with the Chicago Sky) alongside Cameron Brink in C.

Looking Back at Candace Parker’s C-Tier Ranking of Angel Reese

Parker explained the placement directly: “I put her right at that C level. I think in terms of being above, you have to be able to have the ability to carry your team, be a one or two option. I think Angel Reese is fantastic at her role, which is offensive rebounding. She showed and demonstrated so much growth in that first year.”

At the time, Reese was in her second season, averaging roughly 13–15 points and 12-plus rebounds while earning All-Star recognition and piling up double-doubles. Parker’s framework emphasized carrying a team as a primary scoring option and measured Reese against more established, multi-year contributors.

She later addressed backlash on podcasts including Good Follow and Post Moves, stating there was “no hate on Angel Reese,” that she loved the player, and that Reese could reach A or S tier with further development. “Right now, I don’t know if she’s alongside those players. And you’re measuring her against players that have been in the league for years,” Parker said. She framed the exercise as sports analysis rather than personal criticism.

Reese’s 2026 leap and Finals run

Reese was traded to the Atlanta Dream in April 2026 for the Dream’s 2027 and 2028 first-round picks (plus 2028 second-round swap rights). The move placed her on a stronger roster that had finished 30-14 the prior year, alongside players such as Rhyne Howard, Allisha Gray, and others under coach Karl Smesko.

In her first season in Atlanta, Reese averaged 16.4 points, 12.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.8 steals per game. She led the league in rebounding, set single-season records for total rebounds (521) and offensive rebounds, recorded a WNBA-record 26-rebound game, and won Defensive Player of the Year—the first in Dream franchise history. She finished first in Defensive Win Shares and had a major positive impact on Atlanta’s defensive rating when on the floor.

The Dream then swept the New York Liberty in the 2026 semifinals (their first Finals appearance since 2013). Reese averaged about 20.7 points in the series and scored a team-high 22 points (plus nine rebounds) in the clinching 85-83 win in Game 3.

She has repeatedly noted that she “manifested” the Finals, referencing a social-media post from the previous year while watching the championship round from home. The Dream enter the Finals (beginning October 17 against the Golden State Valkyries) on a long winning streak and have not lost in the postseason.

Context and development

Parker’s ranking was a snapshot from mid-2025, focused on then-current ability to serve as a primary offensive option amid a limited supporting cast in Chicago (the Sky missed the playoffs in Reese’s first two seasons). Reese’s production, defensive impact, and team success have all risen in Atlanta, where she operates in a better system with more complementary talent.

Parker herself has offered positive comments on Reese’s potential at other times, including describing it as “endless” around her Sky jersey retirement and highlighting Reese’s DPOY push in later 2026 analysis.

Player rankings, especially of young athletes, are inherently provisional. Reese entered the league as a rebounding specialist with clear room to expand her scoring and defensive versatility; the 2026 results show measurable growth on both ends and in high-stakes games.

Whether she is now viewed as an A- or S-tier player depends on the criteria—team-carrying primary option, two-way impact, playoff production, or all-around value—but the gap between the July 2025 assessment and her current role is substantial.

The Finals will provide the next data point. Reese and the Dream face a Valkyries team that swept the defending-champion Aces; success or shortfall will further shape how her trajectory is judged relative to the veterans Parker ranked above her a year earlier.