As the WNBA Finals came to a close and the whining about the officiating becomes a mere footnote in the New York Liberty’s first WNBA championship, the two names that keep the WNBA on the minds of fans and will continue to do so into the offseason is Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese.
While Clark has taken the offseason to golf, chill with her boyfriend and family and recently made an appearance taking photos with Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton at the Golden Gala, a fundraiser benefiting the Pacers Foundation, Reese has been a walking billboard and brand-booster for the WNBA with her podcast, various brand collaborations and many public appearances that bring an entirely different audience to the WNBA.
Angel Reese Has Been Everywhere Representing WNBA’s New Face
Reese has kept the pressure on, cultivating her reputation as the “pretty” hooper. Her fashion, connection to the hip-hop community, ability to gain the adoration of young male fans and the celebrity community and her devoted urban persona has made her a face of the league that is irreplaceable. Regardless of how proponents of other players critique her game and criticize the way she chooses to live her life.
Reese moves the needle, and the WNBA should actually be thanking her for her crossover value.
WNBA Reportedly Loses $40M, Players Want Pay Increase Opt Out Of CBA
Despite the financial windfall that the WNBA reportedly experienced this season — with the arrival of an historic rookie class, increased ratings and attendance and a $2 billion media rights deal — the league still lost $40 million, so the branding abilities of the WNBA’s top stars going forward will be an essential part of the league’s continued rise out of the hole and into the green.
The realities of the books will be exposed now that the WNBA Players Association (WNBPA) has opted out of the current collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with the league and will return to the negotiating table.
Higher salaries are reportedly a sticking point for players. There have been reports of this CBA producing the first $1 million per year WNBA player, but that might be a bit ambitious considering the top salaries are currently around $250,000, forcing more than half of the league to play overseas in the offseason.
SportsPro Releases ‘50 Most Marketable Athletes’: Angel Reese Ranked Too Low At 26?
SportsPro, a company valued at $2.6 million, just released their list of ‘50 Most Marketable Athletes’ and Caitlin Clark ranks at No. 4, right behind GOAT gymnast Simone Biles, Brazilian soccer star Vinicius Junior, and NBA star LeBron James.
This list puts Clark, who is coming off a Rookie of the Year and First-Team All WNBA selection, in rarefied air as a brand. It’s hard to argue that Clark has become a phenomenon and one of the biggest brands in sports. Even if the WNBA failed to capitalize on it as many have criticized.
If the WNBA has actually failed to promote Clark properly, Reese has made sure that she reminds the league that her popularity can be used to help expand the brand.
That’s why her 26th place ranking on the list is a bit odd. It’s amazing that WNBA players can even have several players on any Top 50 list of most marketable athletes, but is Reese really less marketbale than Kelsey Plum, Paige Bueckers, Breanna Stewart and A’ja Wilson?
Everything we have seen says the opposite. Reese, the first female athlete signed to Reebok, has been the chosen WNBA player at several marquee sporting events from the Olympics to NBA games, rap concerts and more recently, the WNBA Finals.
With Over 15 Endorsement Deals, Angel Reese Worth Nearly $2M
On Tuesday night, Chi Barbie was in the Big Apple for the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show and reports say she out-modeled the VS models in a stunning red dress, displaying her ability to naturally exist around the elegant and the ratchet. She has solid relationships with the OGs of the league and her contemporaries. Despite how you feel about her fashion choices, she clearly knows how to nail the moment.
She came under fire recently for telling fans that the WNBA doesn’t pay her bills, and she is living above her means in an apartment that costs $96,000 per year despite the fact that she only makes $74,000 in league salary.
She has plenty of endorsement deals and is estimated to be worth almost $2 million, which is significantly more than Plum, whose popularity has been waning. Paige Bueckers is the new it girl in college basketball.
The JuJu Watkins vs. Bueckers race-inspired court wars are sure to dominate this next college basketball season. Neither, however, represent the corporate brand and the streets like Reese, a native of Baltimore.
Bueckers is getting the same corporate push that Clark received entering her senior season. The fifth-year senior was recently named the fourth-most marketable college athlete and top in women’s basketball by the Action Network.
The study evaluated 50 college athletes based on 15 measurable categories. They were ranked by their overall “Marketability Index Score.”
According to the publication, the most marketable athletes were analyzed based on NIL Valuation, Social Media Performance, Audience Engagement, and Interest and Likability.
Bueckers scored 43.1 out of 100 overall, placing fourth, while LSU gymnast Livvy Dunne continued her NIL assault, topping the list with a Marketability Index Score of 61.9 out of 100.
A’ja Wilson is a true star, won her third MVP and has a signature shoe under the Nike umbrella which boosts her standing in the athletic world. She’s still not as popular among the teens and tweens as Reese, but she’s considered a GOAT candidate.
Her brand is not producing the same traction that Angel’s is. Same with Breanna Stewart, a two-time MVP with an estimated net worth of $5 million, who just led the Liberty to the franchise’s first WNBA championship.
Being considered a bigger brand than Reese, is kind of crazy, considering Stewie is 30 and represents a generation prior to the one Reese, 22, represents. The future. Reese’s fans are the ones who will helped the WNBA get out of this financial hole by tapping in with the new generation.
Reese’s social media following can’t be matched by anyone in the entire league. Between her constant streams and fan interaction and podcast and public appearances as a celebrity and WNBA ambassador, she is already a brand with millions of followers and a hustle that the league needs to take notes about.
She even sang with Usher at a concert and is on an insane NFL winning streak for the games she’s attended.
The WNBA All-Star and ROY contender prior to hurting her wrist and missing the last six games of a record-breaking rookie season, averaged a double-double of 13.6 points and 13.1 points per game. You’ll be sure to see her in a few more spots, as she still has several months off before joining her WNBA sisters in the new Unrivaled league in January in Miami.
I would bet the farm that by the start of the next WNBA season, Reese will be higher on that list and second only to Clark as far as the WNBA’s biggest brands.
