Angel Reese uses Ja Morant's fierce clip to fire back at critics after Unrivaled success

WNBA star and Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese posted a short version of the infamous clip of Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant firing back at his critics.

In the video, the NBA All-Star guard heads into the locker room after a Grizzlies game, telling people to "stay on that side."

"Say everybody stay on that side. When they switched up, you switched up. Stay on that side, man," Morant said.

Angel Reese's Instagram story (Credits: IG/@angelreese5)

Reese posted a cut version of the infamous Morant statement that has since become a meme. Its full video was posted on April 2022 on Memphis' X (formerly Twitter) account.

Reese is playing for Rose BC in Unrivaled, part of the league's inaugural games on Jan. 17. On Tuesday, TNT released the viewership and engagement numbers of the opening night across its various platforms. TNT holds the media rights to Unrivaled games.

In the report, Reese and Rose BC's match against the Arike Ogunbowale-led Vinyl BC drew 311,000 fans. Rose lost that match 79-73. Meanwhile, the thrilling first game between the teams of Unrivaled co-founders Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart drew 313,000 viewers. Collier's Lunar Owls defeated Stewart's Mist 84-80 on a game-winning 3-pointer from Skylar Diggins-Smith.

According to the media outlet, the viewership peaked at 364,000 and catapulted Unrivaled's first two games to the top spot on TNT for most-watched women's basketball games.

Despite these impressive numbers, these are still way below the viewership generated by the 2024 WNBA regular season games of Reese's rival, Caitlin Clark. The reigning Rookie of the Year's games with the Indiana Fever generated 1.19 million viewers on average, per Front Office Sports.

Angel Reese shared her thoughts on people using her name for clicks

Angel Reese expressed her thoughts about the people who use the young WNBA star's name on social media for their gain.

On Thursday, Reese replied to a tweet urging her to report the YouTube videos using her name for clicks and engagement. The fan urged Reese to cut off their income, which is based on their hatred of the young star.

"nah i want everybody to eat. it’s more than enough for us to all make moneyyyy🙃get it how you can lmaooo," Reese wrote on X.

There has been an uptick in women's basketball's popularity, mainly due to 2024 Time Athlete of the Year Caitlin Clark. For her part, Reese has also amassed a massive social media following. Her Instagram account has 4.6 million followers, and her X account has a following of more than 677,000.

"Using my name for clicks is literally a drug🤣," Reese wrote on Thursday.

Angel Reese's Rose BC will hit the Unrivaled court again on Saturday to face Breanna Stewart's Mist BC. While these two teams are undefeated in two games, Mist can snatch its first win on Friday against another undefeated squad, Phantom BC. Reese is averaging 11.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists in two games.