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Angel Reese Joked About WNBA Salary After Earning Bonus With Unrivaled Championship

Reese brought home $50K after Rose BC won the Unrivaled title.

Liam McKeone

Reese was named Unrivaled's first Defensive Player of the Year
Reese was named Unrivaled's first Defensive Player of the Year / Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
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Angel Reese was one of the big winners of the inaugural season of Unrivaled, the three-on-three women's league that debuted this winter in Miami. She won the first-ever Defensive Player of the Year award for the league and her team, Rose BC, won the first-ever championship. Reese was unable to play in the title game due to a wrist injury but merely being on the roster comes with its advantages, both historical and financial.

Along with the honor of being on the first Unrivaled championship team ever, Reese took home a $50,000 bonus. She celebrated the big win and her extra income on her X account on Monday night, tweeting "50K NEED DATTTTT" shortly after Rose BC defeated Vinyl.

This drew a response from WNBA veteran and Indiana Fever guard Sydney Colson, who joked that she'd be willing to hang onto that money for Reese if she needed to get rid of it. Reese responded in kind, making a crack about her needing that money due to her WNBA rookie salary.

"hey sista. i’m doing well. just won 50k on a flight," Reese said on X. "I know you are VERY aware & i’m sorry to break it to you but i’m on a rookie contract & that 50k was a little more than half of my contract so I have to keep that to myself…. sorry :( give me a few years and i gotchu. be well"

Reese, who was picked seventh in the 2024 WNBA draft by the Chicago Sky, signed a four-year deal worth $324,383 upon entering the league. Which makes her average annual salary about $81,000. Quick math says she earned more than two-thirds of her rookie salary from the Unrivaled championship.

It is understandable, then, that she'd want to hang onto that cash.

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Liam McKeone
LIAM MCKEONE

Liam McKeone is a senior writer for the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has been in the industry as a content creator since 2017, and prior to joining SI in May 2024, McKeone worked for NBC Sports Boston and The Big Lead. In addition to his work as a writer, he has hosted the Press Pass Podcast covering sports media and The Big Stream covering pop culture. A graduate of Fordham University, he is always up for a good debate and enjoys loudly arguing about sports, rap music, books and video games. McKeone has been a member of the National Sports Media Association since 2020.

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