College basketball standout Angel Reese, who plays for the Louisiana State University Tigers, has been working on her brand.
The student-athlete inked a deal with Dick’s Sporting Goods for her own line of merchandise. Since Jan. 18, Dick’s, the largest sporting goods retail company in the United States, has been selling Reese-branded T-shirts featuring her likeness for nearly $50.
Select Dick’s Sporting Goods locations are offering a variety of Angel Reese items, from T-shirts and hoodies to crop tops. The products are also available online.
The Year of Reese
In 2023 Reese secured the NCAA women’s basketball championship by defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes in the title game.
She not only won the national championship, but the NCAA Women’s Tournament title game also attracted the largest viewership for the finale to date, with 9.9 million viewers watching the event on TV. Her exceptional accomplishments earned her the Best Breakthrough Athlete ESPY award in 2023.
Reese has an estimated net worth of $1.3 million, according to various reports. College athletes like her can earn money through name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals.
With the inclusion of her Dick’s branding deal, her NIL valuation is $1.7 million, according to On3 Sports.
The LSU star has already secured another branding deal with the relaunch of Reebok’s sneaker division. She is spearheading the efforts to attract female customers with a signature selection of Reebok shoes called Angel’s Picks and will also play a role in designing her own collection.
How Reese Can Profit From NILs
NIL deals continue to grow for college athletes like Reese. Even from the beginning, the proved to be a healthy income stream. In the inaugural year, 2021, of college sports’ NIL era, football and men’s basketball continue to dominate in the number of deals and average compensation, with social media emerging as the primary avenue for securing NIL earnings, NBC 4 New York reported in 2022.
The estimated total expenditure in the NIL space reached approximately $917 million, according to Opendorse, a prominent NIL platform.
College football leads the way with an average deal amounting to nearly $3,400 on two platforms. Excluding football, women’s sports secured more deals than their male counterparts. Notably, female gymnasts emerge as major earners, with an average deal fetching around $7,000, according to the NIL platform INFLCR.
