LSU basketball star Angel Reese wasn’t always cashing big NIL checks.
The All-American forward — whose NIL valuation reached $1.6 million as of June — recently told Overtime that she “didn’t spend” her first NIL check.
“I saved it because it wasn’t much,” Reese said, laughing. “My first one was not much.”
She did not share specifics about the deal.
Nowadays, Reese is securing six-figure NIL deals with beauty, fashion, sports, fitness and lifestyle brands.
“I’ve done a lot of shopping lately,” Reese said. “I bought a couple designer bags.
“Luckily, I just did a deal [with Benz] — I just got a Benz,” she said, referring to the black Mercedes-Benz car she purchased for her 21st birthday in May.
“It’s cool because, one, you really don’t see black women doing a lot of deals, especially with a lot of these brands — so, just to see me being an example for a lot of young girls that look like me, and just giving them a point just to know that they can do it.”
Reese also said she enjoys shopping in her free time, as well as sleeping, traveling and anything TikTok-related.
As of March 2023, Reese has 17 NIL deals with McDonald’s, Xfinity, Wingstop and backpack maker JanSport.
That number has since increased with Reese’s latest deals with Sports Illustrated, Mercedes Benz and ZOA Energy — Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s energy drink brand.
Although the junior All-American has built a career from being outspoken and unapologetically herself, Reese said she didn’t anticipate being in this position at the age of 21.
“I didn’t think I would be here right now,” Reese told Overtime in a separate video. “This is crazy.
“I think my transfer to LSU has helped me a lot. I’ve matured and grown a lot, so I think that was the biggest jump for me within a year.”
Reese transferred to LSU in May 2022 from Maryland, which was about a 45-minute drive from her hometown of Randallstown.
After two seasons at Maryland, Reese was the top-rated player in the 2022 transfer portal.
Reese was a captain in her debut season at LSU, during which she led the Lady Tigers to their first national championship while averaging a double-double.
The Bayou Barbie’s rise to social media stardom soared after she arrived in Baton Rouge with about 70,000 Instagram followers, according to the LSU website.
Reese’s Instagram follower count rose from nearly half a million to over a million after LSU’s 102-85 victory over Iowa in April.
Despite being eligible for the 2024 WNBA Draft, Reese has said she’s “in no rush” to leave college.
“The money I’m making is more than some of the people that are in [the WNBA] that might be top players,” Reese said on the “I Am Athlete” podcast in April.