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Atlanta Dream star Angel Reese addressed Toronto Tempo head coach Sandy Brondello’s "protected species" comment prior to the Atlanta Dream’s game against the Chicago Sky on Sunday afternoon.
Reese said she was "grateful" the WNBA took action against Brondello and said there is "no place for discrimination or hate" in the league.
WNBA SUSPENDS TEMPO COACH SANDY BRONDELLO FOR 'PROTECTED SPECIES' COMMENT ABOUT ANGEL REESE
What Reese didn’t mention was Brondello’s Australian background or the fact that "protected species" is a common Australian sports expression used to describe a player who receives favorable treatment from officials.
She also didn’t acknowledge that there is no evidence Brondello’s comment had anything to do with Reese’s race or that the WNBA didn't publicly allege racial intent in its suspension announcement.
"I’m sure everyone knows about the situation that happened last game and I’m going to address this one time," Reese said.
"First, I appreciate Sandy’s apology, but I also appreciate the love and support that I have had for the last 48 hours. It has been very overwhelming with a lot of love and also other things.
"But I am grateful that the league did take action... There is no place for discrimination or hate in this league from anyone, from fans to coaches to players.
"And I’m just grateful that we are able to move on from the situation and just play winning basketball. The WNBA is supposed to be positive and we are going in a great light right now. So I just want to continue that and move forward."
Reese never explicitly called Brondello racist. She didn’t have to. Her social media response framed the comment as an attack on a Black woman, and her remarks Sunday placed it squarely in the category of "discrimination or hate." The accusation was clear, even if Reese avoided saying the word herself.
The controversy started Friday night after Reese collided with Tempo forward Nyara Sabally while battling for a rebound. Sabally fell to the floor and remained down in pain, but officials called the foul on her.
Brondello, upset with the call and concerned about her injured player, complained from the sideline that Reese was a "protected species."
It was obvious that Brondello believed the referees were protecting Reese.
The phrase is also common in Australian sports, where it is used as shorthand for perceived favorable treatment from officials.
Brondello is Australian.
None of that stopped Reese from quoting an X post that read, "Calling a Black woman a species…" and responding, "ARE WE SURPRISED?!" with a clown emoji.
Brondello apologized the next morning.
"Angel, I’m sorry," she wrote on X. "Last night, in the emotion of the moment after Nyara’s injury, I used a phrase that I shouldn’t have used, and I take full responsibility for that. My frustration was with the officiating, but my words unfairly put the focus on you."
She didn’t stop there.
"I also understand that my words carried an impact beyond what I intended, particularly for Black women in our league, and I’m deeply sorry for that," Brondello continued. "I’ve spent my career competing with, coaching and learning from incredible Black women."
Then Brondello addressed it again while speaking to reporters on Sunday.
"I wanted to put that out as soon as I woke up," Brondello said of her apology.
She explained that she contacted the Dream after the game and asked to speak directly with Reese "because she doesn’t really know me very well."
"It was a heat-of-the-moment, emotional statement," Brondello said. "It’s very common in Australia. And it wasn’t directed at Angel."
ANGEL REESE DANGEROUSLY PEDDLES RACIST CONSPIRACY THEORY AFTER WNBA COACH CALLS HER TWO WORDS
Brondello said she was emotional after Nyara Sabally suffered another injury and used an expression that Australians "say all the time."
She also acknowledged that she should have stopped to consider how the phrase might be interpreted in the United States because "racism is such a big issue" in America.
Brondello has spent 27 years in the WNBA and said the people she has worked with throughout her career know what she stands for.
"I know I’m not racist," she said. "It’s a really unfortunate situation."
Brondello added that she wants to be "part of the solution, not the problem."
She didn’t merely issue a carefully written public statement and move on. Brondello reached out to the Dream, asked for a direct conversation with Reese and then publicly pleaded for the opportunity to explain herself.
"Hopefully, I can have that chat and she gets to know me and my heart," Brondello said. "I am truly sorry."
Based on Brondello’s comments, Reese had not returned that outreach as of Sunday.
Reese could put the controversy to rest by speaking with Brondello, accepting the apology and acknowledging that the coach used a common expression from her home country while complaining about officiating.
Instead, Reese thanked the WNBA for suspending Brondello and categorized the incident as "discrimination or hate."
Brondello has apologized publicly, attempted to apologize privately and repeatedly explained that the remark had nothing to do with Reese’s race.
Of course, none of that seems to be good enough.
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