Angel Reese dishes on how NIL rules pushed her to leave LSU early
10/04/2024 12:56 PM
Chicago Sky star Angel Reese's decision to leave LSU early for the WNBA was significantly influenced by the limitations of NIL deals during her college career. Reese, a standout on and off the court, explained how the restrictions imposed on her ability to fully leverage NIL opportunities while in school played a key role in her choice to turn professional.
Reese described how the team shared revenue from sources like jersey sales.
"When I was at LSU, we all got a collective," Reese said on her podcast "Unapologetically Angel," with guest Dwayne Wade. "Everybody was getting the same amount of money as a collective."
However, Reese and teammate Flau'jae Johnson, both with considerable personal endorsement deals, earned considerably more through individual agreements. Reese mentioned that her personal deals, such as those with Beats and Reebok, were negotiated separately, and she often shared the benefits with her teammates. She added that the NIL process was eye-opening, revealing a disparity in the resources available to different athletes.
“It makes you look in the room because everybody wasn't making the same amount of money because my teammates weren't making the same amount of money,” Reese said. “That's why I always tried to like if I got a Beats deal I would always try to bring the team Beats. When I got my Reebok deal I tried to bring everybody stuff because everybody wasn't getting the same stuff. That why I tried to put people on around me because everybody doesn't always have the same resources.”
NIL constraints prompted Angel Reese to leave LSU
Despite her efforts to share, Reese became increasingly aware of the constraints placed on her as a student-athlete.
That was another reason why I left college too. I couldn't do certain things while I was in school. Only certain deals could go through college,” Reese said. “You're in college for nine months, I can’t fly in and fly out like I'm able to do now.”
As NIL is still relatively new, many fans might not fully understand how it works behind the scenes, and Reese's comments shed light on the complexities involved. At LSU, while every player received a share of a collective pool, star athletes like Reese had the added responsibility of negotiating their own deals, which sometimes conflicted with the structure of college athletics.
Reese's experience, highlighted in the Prime Video documentary series "The Money Game," demonstrates how NIL is reshaping the landscape of college sports. The series, which covers LSU Athletics during the 2023-24 season, features Reese alongside other NIL stars like gymnast Olivia Dunne and football standout Jayden Daniels.
Reese was draft No. 7 by the Sky in the 2024 WNBA Draft.
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