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Yaxel Lendeborg returns Angel Reese’s taunt after Valkyries claim first WNBA title

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Cite

Murray, T. L. (2026, November 1). Yaxel Lendeborg returns Angel Reese’s taunt after Valkyries claim first WNBA title. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/11/01/sports/yaxel-lendeborg-returns-angel-reeses-taunt-after-valkyries-claim-first-wnba-title/

Dated from the outlet's own feed. Check the original for its byline.

New York Post · collected 2026-11-01 · by Thomas L. Murray

Quick Summary

Yaxel Lendeborg of the Golden State Valkyries returned a taunt from Angel Reese of the Atlanta Dream after the Valkyries won their first WNBA championship with a 68-63 victory in Game 7. In Game 3, when the Dream had a significant lead, Reese made a dismissive gesture toward Lendeborg; he responded similarly upon winning the title, adding to the rivalry between the players. The article highlights the contrast between the teams' performances in Games 3 and 7 while noting that despite Reese’s strong individual performance throughout the series, she was limited to eight points in Game 7 as the Valkyries secured their championship.
Written by AI on 2026-11-01, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

The Golden State Valkyries won their first WNBA championship on November 1, defeating the Atlanta Dream 68-63 in Game 7 of the Finals. During the game, Yaxel Lendeborg, a promising young player known for his trash-talking, taunted Angel Reese from Atlanta by mimicking a gesture she had previously made towards his team's bench in Game 3. Despite leading the series with impressive stats throughout, including scoring over 25 points and grabbing more than 10 rebounds in Game 2, Reese was limited to just eight points and 12 rebounds in the decisive final game. The Valkyries' Gabby Williams earned Finals MVP honors for her standout performance in Game 7 with 30 points and three rebounds.

Written for “Yaxel Lendeborg Responds to Angel Reese” on 2026-11-02, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political question, so it has no leaning score. That is an answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political position.
No political leaning scored for article 121926 · logged 2026-11-01

Story

📰 Yaxel Lendeborg Responds to Angel Reese
Sports · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
WNBA bailed out of scheduling disaster as Angel Reese, Dream force Game 7 Different event
Fox News
Hedges 1 of 42 claims Outlet record 69/100
“The articles describe different moments in the WNBA Finals series: Article A covers Game 6 where the Dream forced a Game 7, while Article B discusses the aftermath of Game 7 when the Valkyries won the championship.”
Angel Reese went from taunting Golden State to complaining about officiating as WNBA Finals shifted Different event
Fox News
Hedges 2 of 68 claims Outlet record 69/100
“While both articles refer to Angel Reese's taunting gesture during Game 3 of the WNBA Finals, Article B describes a later retaliatory gesture by Yaxel Lendeborg after the series concluded with Golden State winning the championship in Game 7.”
Golden State Valkyries defeat Atlanta Dream to capture first WNBA crown Different event
Al Jazeera
Hedges 0 of 41 claims Outlet record 60/100
“The articles describe related events but not the same specific incident; Article A focuses on Gabby Williams' performance and the Valkyries winning their first WNBA championship, while Article B describes a post-game taunting incident between players after the game.”
JACKSON THOMPSON: Angel Reese trash talk timeline, from mocking Caitlin Clark to beefing with Bidens Different event
Fox News
Hedges 5 of 216 claims Outlet record 69/100
“Article A discusses Angel Reese's history of trash talk, while Article B specifically describes a taunting incident between Angel Reese and Yaxel Lendeborg during Game 7 of the WNBA Finals.”
Enes Kanter Freedom praises WNBA Finals players, rips leadership after Valkyries' historic championship win Different event
Fox News
Hedges 1 of 32 claims Outlet record 69/100
“The articles cover related events following the same WNBA Finals game, but they describe different actions: one focuses on Enes Kanter Freedom's comments about league leadership and player recognition, while the other describes Yaxel Lendeborg taunting Angel Reese.”
Angel Reese after Atlanta Dream's disappointing WNBA Finals Game 7 loss: 'We'll be back' Different event
Fox News
Hedges 1 of 35 claims Outlet record 69/100
“The articles describe related events but not the exact same incident: Article A covers Angel Reese's post-game comments following the Atlanta Dream's loss to the Golden State Valkyries, while Article B focuses on a taunt exchanged between players during a previous game in the series.”
Angel Reese, Atlanta Dream fall short in Game 7 as Golden State Valkyries win first WNBA championship Different event
Fox News
Hedges 1 of 53 claims Outlet record 69/100
“The articles describe different aspects of the same championship game, but they do not report on the exact same incident or moment.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
12
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
0%
0 of 12 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
66/100
New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Sports
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-11-01 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

New York Post · 15921 article(s) · 35 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 35 correction(s)
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Who wrote this

Thomas L. Murray
157 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Valkyries’ star Gabby Williams was sensational in Game 7, scoring 30 points and grabbing three rebounds, earning her a Finals MVP trophy.
2026-11-01 · assertive framing · Yaxel Lendeborg returns Angel Reese’s taunt after Valkyries claim first WNBA title
🔮 USC’s toughest task of the season might’ve just gotten a little easier.
2026-10-31 · assertive framing · USC’s attempt to salvage season comes as Ohio State turns to former Southern California high school QB
🔮 Golden State went up against a Timberwolves team that was without Anthony Edwards, who will miss at least the next two months due to arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.
2026-10-29 · assertive framing · Steph Curry ties LeBron James with epic piece of history
🔮 “I never thought this day would come.
2026-10-29 · assertive framing · Shaquille O’Neal reveals shocking details to Ernie Johnson after his sudden retirement from ‘Inside the NBA’
🔮 The Summer Olympics are two years away from hitting the streets of Los Angeles, and the event’s committee announced that legendary film producer Kathleen Kennedy will oversee the opening and closing ceremonies of content.
2026-10-29 · assertive framing · ‘Star Wars’ producer Kathleen Kennedy tapped to bring Hollywood magic to LA Olympics
🔮 During halftime of the Philadelphia Eagles vs. Dallas Cowboys matchup on Monday Night Football, the NFL announced that Jay-Z would be performing the halftime show for Super Bowl 61 at SoFi Stadium.
2026-10-28 · assertive framing · Jay-Z shrugs off Super Bowl halftime pressure with bold response
🔮 The 49ers got good news on the former NFL Defensive Player of the Year on Tuesday morning when John Lynch appeared on KNBR and said he could return after the bye, when they face the Las Vegas Raiders on Nov. 8.
2026-10-28 · assertive framing · Nick Bosa and girlfriend go full cartoon for Halloween as 49ers fans share fairly odd request
🔮 The Dream will host the Golden State Valkyries at 12:30 p.m. EST at State Farm Arena, the same day the Hawks will play the Cavaliers in an NBA game at 8:00 p.m. EST.
2026-10-28 · assertive framing · Dream address WNBA Finals venue mess in open letter to Atlanta
🔮 Rojas said on the broadcast that he will always cherish the moments the Dodgers organization did for his son son Aaron, like when his teammates would take him to the outfield to shag fly balls.
2026-10-28 · assertive framing · Miguel Rojas reveals why his Dodgers years meant so much more than baseball
🔮 Johnson opened up the video and said all he could do is “sit here and laugh.”
2026-10-25 · assertive framing · Legendary USC receiver unloads on ‘f—ing joke’ Trojans after Lincoln Riley’s latest disaster
Also by Thomas L. Murray
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2026-10-31 · New York Post
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2026-10-28 · New York Post
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 157 articles by Thomas L. Murray →

Topics

Atlanta Dream Game 7 Valkyries WNBA

Subjects

Lendeborg PERSON · 5× Reese PERSON · 5× Dream ORG · 4× WNBA ORG · 4× Valkyries ORG · 3× Atlanta ORG · 2× Angel Reese PERSON · 1× Yaxel Lendeborg PERSON · 1× the Atlanta Dream ORG · 1× the Golden State Valkyries ORG · 1×

Narrative

Aside from averaging 19.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.3 assits, and shooting 48.2% from the field, Lendeborg has emerged as a promising young trash-talker in the league, as he and Luka Doncic caught everyone’s attention in their season opener game on October, 21.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-11-01
🔮 Valkyries’ star Gabby Williams was sensational in Game 7, scoring 30 points and grabbing three rebounds, earning her a Finals MVP trophy.
2026-11-01 · New York Post
Yaxel Lendeborg returns Angel Reese’s taunt after Valkyries claim first WNBA title · assertive framing

Claims (12 extracted, 0 hedged)

Nobody is safe from being trolled by Yaxel Lendeborg. asserted
Nobody → troll → Lendeborg
That includes the WNBA. asserted
That → include → WNBA
After the Golden State Valkyries captured their first WNBA championship on Saturday night by defeating the Atlanta Dream 68-63 in Game 7, Lendeborg was seen taunting Angel Reese. asserted
Lendeborg → capture → Reese
In Game 3 of the series, where the Dream had a 94-69 lead with 28.7 seconds left, Reese made a gesture towards the Valkyries’ bench by closing in her thumb and index finger to let them know they’re “too small.” asserted
they → have → thumb
When the final whistle blew, Lendeborg was seen celebrating on the court and returned the favor to Reese by doing the same gesture towards the Dream’s bench. asserted
Lendeborg → blow → bench
While the score difference between Games 3 and 7 was significantly different, it was the Dream who had the last laugh, as their first WNBA title came in their second season as a WNBA franchise. asserted
title → have → franchise
Through most of the series, Reese was one of the best players on the court for Atlanta, including in Game 2 when Reese made history by becoming the first Atlanta player to score over 25 points and have 10 rebounds in a WNBA Finals game. asserted
Reese → include → game
In Game 7, Reese had 12 rebounds, but the Valkyries found a way to hold back her offensive production, as she was limited to eight points. asserted
she → have → points
Valkyries’ star Gabby Williams was sensational in Game 7, scoring 30 points and grabbing three rebounds, earning her a Finals MVP trophy. asserted
Williams → score → trophy
Lendeborg is just beginning his career as a professional basketball player, but is already making a name for himself. asserted
Lendeborg → begin → himself
Aside from averaging 19.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.3 assits, and shooting 48.2% from the field, Lendeborg has emerged as a promising young trash-talker in the league, as he and Luka Doncic caught everyone’s attention in their season opener game on October, 21. asserted
he → average → October
While the Dream’s season is officially over, Lendeborg is set to play at home on Sunday night against the Los Angeles Clippers. asserted
Lendeborg → set → Clippers
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