“I just had big dreams,” Angel Reese said, speaking on the April 22 episode of The Light Podcast with Michelle Obama. Turns out, the star the basketball world sees today is the same star she always believed herself to be. Even as a freshman at the University of Maryland, long before she had carved a name in the WNBA or in women’s basketball at large, Reese understood the potential she carried. And more importantly, she was willing to bet on it.

When NIL opportunities were just emerging, Reese ironically had an agency tell her she would not make more than $2,000. “I signed to an agency initially that Janine was with,” Reese said. “And they told me that I wasn’t going to make more than $2,000. So I told myself, ‘I know I’m going to make more than $2,000.’” At the time, she was still a freshman at Maryland, simply looking for representation that could help her secure NIL deals. But the agency didn’t believe she had the value to generate meaningful earnings, and she clearly didn’t agree with that.

In fact, it wasn’t only Angel Reese who found the agency’s stance limiting. Her then-agent, Jeanine Ogbonnaya, who was also working with the agency at the time, also saw things differently. And together, they made a decision to leave the agency. As Reese put it, “I know I’m gonna make more than $2,000, and me and Janine left. She left the agency with me.” They chose to walk away and build independently. “We took a bold step and we’re like, we’re going to do this on our own,” Reese added. And of course, the rest has been history.

Reese has gone on to earn millions of dollars through endorsements and branding since then. In fact, by the time she left LSU, her NIL valuation was approximately $1.8 million. She has signed high-profile deals with brands like Reebok, Beats by Dre, McDonald’s, Amazon, and Skims.

Turns out that the small group that started with Angel Reese and Jeanine Ogbonnaya ended up becoming the foundation of something great. As she said, “We’re a very small group. A lot of people sign to really big agencies, but we’re very small. It’s just us.” Reese had a plan, and she took the risks. “I was like, I’m gonna do this. This is what I wanna do. I know I’m going to be able to do fashion. I’m gonna be able to be a basketball player. If I wanna start a podcast, I can do it. I just had big dreams.” And of course, she did achieve those dreams, and even at what she described as “a crazy fast pace.”

Her then-agent, Jeanine Ogbonnaya, also achieved significant success, founding The Clearview Group, a sports marketing and branding agency. And she actually negotiated Reese’s landmark partnerships with Reebok, Beats by Dre, and Amazon.

Highlighting Angel Reese’s Latest Major Deals in the WNBA

Since entering the WNBA in 2024, Angel Reese has rapidly expanded her business portfolio. Her most recent high-profile deals include a historic partnership with Victoria’s Secret and the launch of her own signature collection with Reebok.

The Victoria’s Secret deal, which took place in April 2026, made Reese the first WNBA player to star in a global campaign for the brand. She is the face of the “Season of Strapless” collection, which includes swimwear, lingerie, and fragrance. And while the exact dollar amount of the deal was not revealed publicly, it is sure to be a multi-million-dollar endorsement.

Reese also officially launched her first signature shoe, the AR1, just about a month before the Victoria’s Secret deal. She was already in a contract with Reebok, and so this signature shoe came as part of her 2024 multi-year extension. This includes a royalty structure where she earns a percentage of every unit sold from her signature footwear and apparel collections. And it made her one of only six active WNBA players with a signature sneaker.

Apart from these two, Reese also currently maintains her relationship with Amazon Fashion, Reese’s Pieces, McDonald’s, Panini America, among others. She also runs her weekly podcast “Unapologetically Angel” and is an owner-investor in a professional women’s soccer team based in Washington, D.C. In short, she has proven that her success isn’t restricted to the court alone as she continues to build a financial empire that is growing as rapidly as her on-court stardom.