On July 27, Atlanta Dream All-Star forward Angel Reese announced that her signature Barbie doll had sold out on Amazon and Mattel.
A week later, the Dream transformed State Farm Arena into a real-life Barbie Dreamhouse for the team’s “Barbie Game Day” against the Las Vegas Aces. While the Dream lost by 22 points, the night signified so much more than a final score. It was a night to recognize the impact Reese has not only as a rebounding menace in the WNBA, but as a role model for Black girls and women everywhere.
Aces All-Star A’ja Wilson, the four-time WNBA MVP, recognized that.
“I need a Barbie, for real,” Wilson told Reese postgame, as captured in this video montage by the Dream. “This is big for Black girls all around the world.”
Reese wears a leg sleeve, in part, because Wilson popularized the leg sleeve, and Wilson took Reese under her wing when she emerged as a global star as “Bayou Barbie” at LSU. So, it was a full-circle moment to see Reese now inspiring the woman who has inspired her so much.
What’s the backstory of Reese’s Barbie?
As aforementioned, Reese earned her “Bayou Barbie” nickname while leading the LSU Tigers to their first-ever national title in women’s basketball in 2023. When the Chicago Sky drafted her seventh overall in the 2024 WNBA Draft, Reese altered the moniker to “Chi-Town Barbie.” And when the Sky traded Reese to the Dream this April, Reese introduced herself to her new city as “ATL Barbie.”
Reese’s interest in developing her ignature Barbie doll was far from just a marketing ploy, however.
Angel Reese on why she created her Barbie:
“I didn’t have a lot of dolls because I didn’t have dolls that looked like me much, and that’s why I kind of wanna really wanted to make sure this was super intentional …”
(Q:?) pic.twitter.com/bM1hjsyxDe
— Meghan L. Hall (@ItsMeghanLHall) August 3, 2026
“I didn’t have dolls that looked like me much, and that’s why I kind of wanna really wanted to make sure this was super intentional because now they have a doll that looks like you,” Reese told reporters before the Dream’s “Barbie Game Day” against the Aces. “Nails and hair, but also you can be a killer on the court as well.”
Reese has been a killer in her first season with the Dream. On Monday night, Reese recorded her 22nd double-double of this season, breaking the Dream’s all-time record for double-doubles in a single season.
She IS the Double-Diva. She IS at the top of her game. And she IS etched into Atlanta Dream history with the most double-doubles in a single season 🙌👑 pic.twitter.com/nwD31UBpGh
— Atlanta Dream (@AtlantaDream) August 11, 2026
The Dream (20-12) have 12 regular-season games remaining, so Alyssa Thomas’ all-time WNBA record of 28 double-doubles in a single season is firmly in reach for Reese to shatter.
About Megan Armstrong
Since first getting published as a student by the Kansas City Star in 2013, Megan Armstrong has gone wherever curiosity and stories have taken her, specializing in sports, media, music, and culture coverage. She also has an extensive background in interviewing and profiling public figures. Her work has appeared in Billboard, Boardroom, Bleacher Report, Esquire, GQ, GRAMMY.com, NYLON, Newsweek, Teen Vogue, The Hollywood Reporter, UPROXX, and elsewhere.