Angel Reese won't let Caitlin Clark get all the credit for WNBA popularity surge

Sports may be about competition at their core, but professional sports are also all about the show. Pro sports exist to entertain, and not just through the flying dunks and creative dishes. Narratives entertain as well. And there's never been a narrative more compelling than good vs. evil.

The wild world of wrestling understands this. That's why there is always a face and a heel. It's not enough to give the audience someone to root for. You have to give them someone to root against as well.

In women's basketball today, Caitlin Clark is the face and Angel Reese is the heel.

There are complex conversations to be had about why each of those women landed in those roles. Race is undeniably a factor, one that can't be untangled from the discussion.

Regardless of the societal factors in play, Reese is taking a page out of Billie Eilish's book. She's embracing the role.

Angel Reese will be the bad guy but doesn't want Caitlin Clark to get all the credit

"It all started from the national championship game. I've been dealing with this for two years now. Understanding, yeah, negative things have probably been said about me, but honestly, I'll take that. People are talking about women's basketball who you never would think would be talking about women's basketball. People are pulling up to games. We've got celebrities coming to games, sold out arenas. Just because of one single game. Just looking at that, I'll take that role. I'll take the bad guy role. And I'll continue to take that on and be that for my teammates. I know I'll go down in history. I'll look back in 20 years and be like, the reason why we're watching women's basketball is not just because of one person. It's because of me, too. I want y'all to realize that."

Everything I know about wrestling and the face/heel concept I learned from the gone-too-soon Netflix series "GLOW." It taught me that in wrestling, a hero is only as good as their antagonist makes them. The Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling only took off once Alison Brie's Zoya the Destroya stepped up in opposition to Betty Gilpin's Liberty Belle. It turns out, people love to boo as much as they love to cheer.

What Reese wants is for the audience to recognize her role in Caitlin Clark's rise and, thus, the WNBA's surging popularity. Conflict is compelling after all.

The sad thing about all this is the toll it can take on the human beings involved.

Clark didn't ask to be the face of the WNBA. She didn't ask for everyone to give her all the credit for the league's success from here on out. She hasn't done anything to warrant so many figures in the WNBA holding that against her, with words and physical actions.

Reese didn't ask to be the bad guy. She didn't ask for her national title triumph to be overshadowed by accusations of classlessness. She didn't ask for her dream of playing in the WNBA to come with a never-ending conversation about Clark.

They both just want to play ball and be remembered for it.