"Woke up next day and I was a celebrity": $1.8M NIL-valued Angel Reese throws light upon her overnight fame after 2023 National Championship win
Angel Reese has officially declared for the 2024 WNBA Draft, joining on-court rival Caitlin Clark as the highlights of a highly-anticipated draft class. Doing so with a cover shoot for Vogue was the icing on the cake for the LSU superstar.
Reese had decided to announce the news in this manner before the tournament began, with her decision stemming from her ambition to be "one of the greatest basketball players to play" and the lack of accolades left for her to assemble at the collegiate level.
"I've done everything I wanted to do in college. I've won a national championship, I've gotten [SEC] Southeastern Conference Player of the Year, I've been an All-American. My ultimate goal is to be a pro- and to be one of the greatest basketball players to play, ever. I feel like I'm ready."
The "ready" she describes is apparent in her performances on the court, where she became the NCAA record-holder for most double-doubles in a season. Her crowning achievement came during last year's March Madness where she led the LSU Tigers to a National Championship.
Winning most outstanding player for the tournament, Reese and her rivalry with Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes, generated significant interest in women's basketball - with a record-breaking 9.9 million people watching, as Angel Reese became a household name.
But it took some time for Angel before she realized how monumental a change had occurred in her life.
"You don't really realize it in the moment but obviously the things you say and do can change everything. I literally woke up the next day and I was a celebrity."
Angel Reese is ready for the WNBA Challenge
The difference between the WNBA and LSU is going to be stark. The staff as well as locker rooms, are significantly worse at the professional level, with private flights, as she's used to, non-existent. But, for Reese, the challenge is part of the process.
"I want to be a rookie again and build myself back up; I want to be knocked down and learn and grow at the next level."
1-time NCAA Champion, 1-most outstanding player of the NCAA Tournament, and SEC Player of the Year, Angel Reese is a lock to get drafted in the 2024 WNBA Draft. She will be joining as one of 36 new players, entering a league with 144 total.
The pressure is enormous and in the interview with Vogue, Reese makes it clear that she's ready to continue grinding, stating her mentality with vehement certainty.
"I’ll be working with grown women. I’ll be working with women that have kids, women that have a family to feed. I’m going to have to work my butt off every single day and grind. And who wouldn’t want that? I don’t want anything in my life to be easy.”
A draft class featuring Caitlin Clark just became more loaded with her chief on-court rival joining the fray. With the Indiana Fever making their intentions to draft the Hawkeyes superstar apparent, which team should go after Angel Reese in the 2024 WNBA Draft? Let us know in the comments below.