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WNBA deletes, apologizes for social media post showing wager between Angel Reese, Paige Bueckers

Angel Reese had 22 points in the Dream's 82-81 win over Paige Bueckers and the Wings on Wednesday. Richard Rodriguez / Getty Images

By Devon Henderson and Annie Costabile

July 30, 2026 Updated 12:59 pm EDT<br>Share article

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Before Wednesday night’s matchup between the Atlanta Dream and Dallas Wings, the WNBA posted a video on social media showing stars Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers appearing to make a friendly $400 wager on the game.<br>The post was quickly deleted, but not before users on X captured screenshots and recordings, allowing it to spread across the platform.<br>Advertisement

“While the social media post was intended to be lighthearted, WNBA players are well aware of the league’s policies prohibiting betting on WNBA games and receive training every year reinforcing those policies,” the WNBA said in a statement Thursday. “We recognized that the post missed the mark, removed it shortly after it was published, and addressed the matter internally.<br>“We will also use this as an opportunity to reemphasize with the players involved that conversations about wagering on WNBA games, even when intended as a joke, can have negative consequences.”<br>Reese and Bueckers played in the WNBA All-Star Game on Saturday for Team Coop, which lost 129-122 to Team Spoon in Chicago, but the video appeared to have been filmed during a practice.<br>In the clip, Reese, while holding the cash, joked with Bueckers.<br>“Imma see y’all on Wednesday,” Reese said. “If y’all lose …”<br>“I get to have that,” Bueckers replied, gesturing toward the cash.<br>“If y’all win, you get the 400,” Reese responded.<br>“If we lose, then you get to keep it,” Bueckers said.<br>“No, you owe me 400,” Reese clarified.

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In the video posted Wednesday, the WNBA’s social media team asked Bueckers to recall the bet the two players had made in Chicago.<br>“We did?” Bueckers asked, appearing confused. “At night?”<br>After it was clarified that the interaction had occurred during practice, she doubled down.<br>“Bet, I’m standing on that,” Bueckers said.<br>The caption on the league’s post read: “We did?” followed by a laughing emoji, and then, “Paige Bueckers on the bet she made with Angel Reese at All-Star weekend on tonight’s matchup.”<br>Bueckers’ Wings lost to Reese’s Dream 82-81. Reese finished with 22 points on 9-of-18 shooting, 12 rebounds, four assists and four steals. Bueckers had 16 points and six assists.<br>Who's responsible for the WNBA's PR problem?

“Yeah, I’ll be requesting my Apple Pay after this,” Reese said, laughing during a postgame news conference Wednesday night. “Paige is a great player. To hold her to 16 points, it’s tough.”<br>Reese later tweeted, seemingly at Bueckers, after the game with another reference to the bet.<br>Advertisement

Betting of any kind is strictly prohibited under the WNBA’s new collective bargaining agreement, signed before this season. Section 5 of Article 14 in the CBA is dedicated entirely to gambling regulations. Sub-sections a and b prohibit fixing results and require players to disclose any betting offers made to them.<br>Sub-section c is the relevant provision: “Any player found by the Commissioner after a hearing to have been guilty of wagering (directly or indirectly), or of offering or attempting to wager, money or anything of value on the outcome, score, or any other aspect of any WNBA Competition shall, in the sole discretion of the Commissioner, be subject to a fine, suspension, and/or dismissal and disqualification from any further association with the WNBA.”

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Because Reese and Bueckers were shown on video appearing to wager on the outcome of a game in which they were participants, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert has the discretion to impose penalties. The players will not be punished, according to a league source. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.<br>Bueckers and Reese are among the league’s three most-followed players on social media, along with Caitlin Clark. Bueckers and Reese are 24-year-old NCAA champions — Bueckers at UConn and Reese at LSU — and are widely viewed as faces of the WNBA’s next generation.<br>While the exchange appeared...