Angel Reese’s professional basketball career begins on Monday, when the former LSU star learns where she will play.
Reese might have returned to LSU for his fifth season of college basketball. But instead, the 6-foot-3 forward chose to join Monday’s WNBA draft (6:30 p.m., ESPN) in Brooklyn, New York, where she is projected to be selected in the first round.
Cracking the WNBA roster and winning a spot in the WNBA rotation are not simple tasks.
But ESPN commentator and former Tennessee women’s basketball player Andraya Carter claimed in a Thursday press conference that Reese’s rebounding abilities would immediately translate to the NBA.
“So many times this season I called Angel relentless,” Carter went on to say.
“Angel is a thinker.” She likes to think about the game. She enjoys learning the game. So, I believe she will perform exceptionally well learning from veterans, listening, and doing whatever the team requires.”
Since the completion of LSU’s season, Reese has been working on her game with Tim Martin, a trainer who works with a variety of high-profile clients, including NBA talents Tyrese Maxey, Trae Young, and Victor Wembanyama.
On Thursday, Reese was banging down NBA-range 3-pointers at a New York gym, according to a video she uploaded on social media
Angel Reese regularly made NBA three-pointers yesterday đ pic.twitter.com/oaHtUHfvPG.
â Christopher Brickley (@cbrickley603) On April 12, 2024, Reese sank only one of nine 3s she attempted during her final season at LSU. However, prior to games and practices, she spent a significant amount of time working on her outside shot, with the goal of increasing her range and smoothing out the rough edges of her game in preparation for the start of her professional career.
In 2023, just 18 of the WNBA’s 32 eligible draftees made the roster for their debut seasons. The rest, including former LSU players LaDazhia Williams and Alexis Morris, were waived before the season even began.
If a team takes Reese in the first round, her roster status is most certainly secure. But an unexpected tumble into the second round may imperil her hopes.
Elite post players dominate the top of Reese’s class. Cameron Brink, a 6-foot-4 shot blocker from Stanford; Kamilla Cardoso, a 6-foot-7 center from South Carolina; Rickea Jackson, a dynamic 6-foot-2 forward from Tennessee; and Aaliyah Edwards, a 6-foot-3 defensive standout from Connecticut.
Reese and Caitlin Clark are the two most prominent prospects in a draft class that, according to Rebecca Lobo, a Hall of Famer and ESPN pundit, is brimming with personalities who have the potential to boost the league’s appeal.
“We have women coming into the draft this year who people are very much aware of,” Lobo said, “and anxious to see how their
The game will translate at this level. I don’t think we’ve ever seen an entire class with this much concentration off the floor.”
When Reese joins the league, she will complement her seven-figure annual endorsement earnings with a five-figure wage. Under the current WNBA collective bargaining agreement, top-10 draft picks earn between $70,000 and $76,000 in base salary on rookie contracts.
Reese is expected to be the 23rd LSU player taken in the WNBA draft. Seven Tigers were selected in the first round, with six taken with a top-10 pick. Only two, Seimone Augustus and Sylvia Fowles, have been chosen as one of the first five.
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