Angel Reese Bluntly States She 'Wouldn't Be Able To Live' With WNBA Salary
Chicago Sky superstar Angel Reese continued her out-and-about offseason on Tuesday by making an appearance at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in New York City.
The 22-year-old was seen reuniting with former Sky teammate Kysre Gondrezick. Gondrezick is dating Boston Celtics NBA Champion Jaylen Brown, whom Reese spent a lot of time with before she was cut by Chicago earlier in the 2024 WNBA season.
Angel Reese and Kysre Gondrezick at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) October 16, 2024
📷 Kevin Mazur pic.twitter.com/WAkQmmV0Q2
There's no question that Reese has done extremely well for herself financially. Her superstardom has propelled her into multiple major endorsements, brand deals, and collaborations with globally known and renowned companies.
However, the irony about Reese's presumed wealth and success is that the thing that got her to this place in her life — playing basketball — is not among her main sources of income.
Reese alluded to this during an Instagram Live that she posted at some point after the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show (after she had undergone an outfit change) on Tuesday.
Instagram account @pluggedsoundztv recorded and reposted Reese saying in the Live, "Hating pays my bills, baby. I just hope you know the WNBA don't pay my bills at all. I don't even think that pays one of my bills. Literally, I'm trying to think of my rent for where I stay at [in Chicago]. I'm gonna do the math real quick. I don't even know my [WNBA] salary."
Reese's WNBA salary in the 2024 season was $73,439.
"Yo, I'm living beyond my means!" Reese said after doing the aforementioned math. She then turned to someone next to her and said, "No, my rent is more than that. It's $8,000. I'm living beyond my means.
"Babe, if y'all thought... I wouldn't even be able to eat a sandwich with [the WNBA salary]. I wouldn't even be able to live," Reese continued.
It's worth noting that Reese's aforementioned salary is just her base salary for the season. It doesn’t include the bonuses she made for being an All-Star ($2,575, according to the WNBA's Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA)) and being named to the All-Rookie team ($1,500). WNBA players also receive full benefits throughout the year.
There's also the fact that WNBA players can stay in team-provided housing during season (fully paid by the team). If a player elects to live elsewhere, they can receive a monthly housing stipend from the team. They also get a rental car.
Thankfully with global superstars like Reese and Caitlin Clark now in the league, the revenue the WNBA earns will be increasing; which means that salaries will eventually increase with it.
Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.