Dream Coach Addresses 'Tough' Angel Reese Decision During Loss to Lynx

Angel Reese and the Atlanta Dream suffered their first loss in three games on Wednesday night. They put up a formidable fight against the Minnesota Lynx on the road, but ended up losing, 91-86.

Reese finished with 10 points on 3-of-8 shooting, to go along with eight rebounds, five assists and a steal in 27 minutes of action. It was another strong all-around performance from the two-time WNBA All-Star, but it just wasn't enough to help lift Atlanta against a shorthanded Minnesota side.

During the postgame press availability session, Dream head coach Karl Smesko was asked about a specific moment in the game involving Reese. At one point in the second half, Smesko had a decision to make after Reese committed a personal foul.

Smesko used his coach's challenge on the call. The referees reviewed the foul and ended up overturning the call in Reese's favor.

"Well, it's tough because, I mean, at that point, we had gotten back in the game in the first half," Smesko said on his decision on Reese's foul. "And if you lose a challenge, you don't have it for the rest of the game.

"So, you know, you trust your player. But it also has to be conclusive on video. You want to make sure that on video, it's something that the officials will be able to overturn.

"And our assistants gave good advice this time. They got to see it on the video and thought it would be overturned, so we went with it. And fortunately, we got that one overturned."

This is the second straight game that Smesko used his challenge on a foul against Reese. On both occassions, the 6-foot-4 forward was adamant that she was innocent. She was right on both instances. The Dream also won a coach's challenge on a Reese foul against the Phoenix Mercury, which proved to be a pivotal moment in the contest.

As Semsko said, it's tough to make these kinds of quick decisions during games. However, he has a lot of trust in his players and his coaching staff.

Related: WNBA Announces Angel Reese History After 69 Games Played

Copyright 2026 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved

This story was originally published May 28, 2026 at 10:36 PM.