Angel Reese #5 of the Chicago Sky reacts to a call during the first half against the Minnesota Lynx on May 6, 2025 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois© Photo by Melissa Tamez/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

The preseason game between the Golden State Valkyries and the Los Angeles Sparks confirmed Angel Reese’s assertion. During the 2024 WNBA season, there was much debate about who was the key factor in the league’s rising popularity and viewership. The spotlight was on Caitlin Clark’s impact and Reese’s own growing fame.

This led to heated discussions among fans, some of whom pointed fingers at WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert for her handling of the Reese-Clark debate. It comes as Reese’s mom fired shots at Clark ahead of the new season.

Reese was also quick to emphasize that the league’s success wasn’t solely due to Clark. In a June 2024 press conference, the Chicago Sky standout insisted that she, along with other prominent

“People are talking about women’s basketball but you never would think that we talk about women’s basketball,” she commented back then. “People are pulling up to games, we got celebrities coming to games, sold-out arenas like just because of one single game and just looking at that like I’ll take that role.”

Reese also stated her readiness to embrace the “take the bad guy” persona and expressed confidence in her lasting influence: “I know I’ll go down in history, I’ll look back in 20 years and be like yeah, the reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person, it’s because of me too and I want y’all to realize that.”

Despite Reese not being on the Valkyries roster, the revived interest in women’s basketball is unmistakable. On a night when Golden State suffered a narrow 83-82 defeat to Los Angeles in its inaugural WNBA match, the Valkyries enjoyed robust fan engagement and record attendance.

An overall view of Chase Center before the game between the Los Angeles Sparks and the Golden State Valkyries during the WNBA Preseason Game on May 6, 2025 at Chase Center in San Francisco, California© Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images

On Tuesday evening, a staggering 17,428 supporters descended upon Chase Center, disregarding the simultaneous Warriors vs. Minnesota Timberwolves clash in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals.

Remarkably, the Chase Center can house just over 18,000 fans, making Tuesday’s turnout the third-largest for a WNBA preseason encounter. The night’s significance did not go unnoticed by the victorious Sparks. Post-victory, Los Angeles coach Lynne Roberts spoke of her amazement at the fan presence.

“We knew that with all the things in the media, we knew that there was going to be a good crowd, but I was impressed with how loud they were and engaged they were,” she shared with reporters. “And like KP [Kelsey Plum] said, it’s going to be even more, but that’s what you want. Like that’s, that’s why you want to play.”

Roberts also emphasized the desire to coach in the league for such moments. Sparks standout Azura Stevens echoed the enthusiasm, stating: “I thought it was great, it was electric, obviously it was history in the first game here, so it was fun to be a part of that and I thought it was a great turnout.”

Valkries head coach Natalie Nakase also noted how passionate the fans in the arena were with every move. “Our crowd showed up,” she said, per ESPN.

“I’m very lucky for all of these fans that showed up on a preseason game. But not only did they show up, they were loud. It felt like a playoff game.

“That’s what it felt like and you could see our players feeding off their passion. Every time there was a dive on the floor or a block or a tough foul, that crowd responded.”