Why Does Angel Reese Only Wear One Tight?

Anyone watching former LSU standout and current Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese can’t help but notice how she will be able to run the ground and block shots from just about anywhere. But there’s one other thing which may catch the attention before the beginning clock even begins: The forward hits the court wearing a one-leg compression tight.

Turns out, her garment of alternative is greater than a fashion statement. It plays double duty to offer her the boldness she must proceed to dominate on the ground.

When asked about her signature on-court style at a pregame press conference in March, Reese explained she likes to cover a surgical scar when playing. “I had surgery two years ago on my shin,” she told reporters, referring to a tibia injury that occurred during her freshman 12 months. After the procedure, Reese’s “confidence completely dropped,” as she explained in an interview on the podcast, and he or she even questioned whether she desired to return to her sport. (Thankfully, her surgery was successful and he or she rebuilt her confidence once she was back on the starting team on the University of Maryland.)

That variety of surgery involves inserting a rod into the shinbone, Sean Rocket, MDa sports medicine doctor at Orthopedics New England who hasn’t treated Reese, tells SELF. The form of procedure requires an incision that’s a couple of inches long within the front of the knee near the kneecap, which could leave a noticeable scar, he says.

It’s not only concerning the scar, though. Reese also wears the one-leg compression tight to pay tribute to her basketball idols. She told Nola.com that wearing the garment is a nod to 2 players she looks as much as in the game: Te’a Coopera guard for the Los Angeles Sparks, and A’ja Wilsona Las Vegas Aces center.

Both women have also been known to sport the one-sided sleeve, and Reese summed it up succinctly: “It’s swag.”

Aside from the particular reasons Reese mentioned, a compression tight may also bring a couple of other advantages—each after an injury and in addition only for athletes generally, Brent Chuma, CSCSa strength and conditioning specialist who works with injured athletes at Wellness in Motion Boston, tells SELF. A compression sleeve works by trapping heat near the skin, which warms the tissue, boosts blood flow, and “increases muscle flexibility and range of motion,” Chuma says. Given Reese’s surgical history, her left leg might profit from a little bit extra help warming up.

What’s more, a good sleeve may give “a way of security to the muscles” after surgery or injury, Dr. Rocket says. This could also be subjective, he says, but can still be a profit for athletes. The compression of the muscle and fascia—the skinny layer of connective tissue that surrounds your muscles—can “improve proprioception, or feedback, for where the leg is in space,” he says. That might be necessary in a sport like basketball, where players incessantly jump and land in a pile or get jostled. “Their muscles must know when to fireside to stabilize their knee or ankle,” Dr. Rocket says. Without accurate proprioception, basketball players might be more liable to rolled ankles or injured knees.