The WNBA announced Thursday that Angel Reese is the 2026 Defensive Player of the Year, and the vote wasn’t close.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reese received 46 of 74 votes from a national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. Golden State Valkyries star Gabby Williams finished second with 20 votes, while last season’s co-DPOY winner A’ja Wilson received four votes. Washington’s Shakira Austin and Sonia Citron, Golden State’s Veronica Burton and Atlanta’s Rhyne Howard each received one vote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reese led the league in rebounding for the third straight season \u2014 521 boards at 12.1 per game \u2014 and anchored an Atlanta Dream defense that earned the No. 4 seed and a first-round sweep of the Washington Mystics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hoops fans erupted online at the news. “Angel Reese is the best defensive player in the WNBA, it’s that simple\u2026 DPOY,” one fan posted. Others noted the timing: Reese went 2-0 in the playoffs this week, reaching the second round before her longtime rival Caitlin Clark, whose Fever were pushed to a winner-take-all Game 3 against the Aces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The award caps a remarkable playoff debut for the third-year forward, who never reached the postseason in her first two seasons with the Chicago Sky. Reese recorded a 13-point, 12-rebound double-double in her postseason debut on Sunday, then helped the Dream close out Washington 93-75 in Game 2 to reach the semifinals for the first time in eight years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reese was also named to the AP All-WNBA Second Team this week, alongside Rhyne Howard, Paige Bueckers, Jackie Young and Gabby Williams. Clark took Comeback Player of the Year honors on the same awards weekend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sources: WNBA announcement via Sportskeeda (Oct 1, 2026); ESPN playoff results. Stats as reported.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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