By Ukpai Victor Agozirim
Angel Reese is a name the history books will not forget in a hurry. Her latest collaboration with Rebook revealed her influence beyond the court. On September 18, 2025, Reebok released her first signature sneaker, ‘The Angel Reese 1’.
What happened next was beyond what anyone could fathom. In the speed of light, three color ways of the AR Collection – ‘’Diamond Dust’’, “Mebounds” and “Receipts Ready”, vanished from Reebok’s website. The rush left servers smoking, fans running to buy from licensed stores and some scrambling resale scalps on secondary markets. The star took to her social media to share her overwhelming emotion at the surreal occurrence.
“I’m in full tears right now. Taking a leap of faith and launching three of my signature shoes at once was a huge risk but guess what? They all sold out! I’m sooooo THANKFUL & beyond GRATEFUL and just want to thank everyone for the amazing support. REEBOK IS BACK!”
This moment was proof that in a world saturated with products, fans buy stories. It was a revelation of what is, and bore the fact bare for everyone to see that we live in an era where people crave originality over polish. Angel’s journey from NCAA villain to WNBA rebounding royalty embodies the ultimate brand multiplier, one that echoes beyond the basketball court. She’s unapologetic, magnetic, and polarizing in ways that make her unforgettable. Angel Reese embodies a cultural moment that brands can no longer afford to overlook.
The question is WHY ANGEL REESE?
Angel Reese is the most followed WNBA player on social media with over 5 million followers on Instagram. However, it is not the number of followers that makes her stand out. Her audience stretches beyond traditional basketball circles, they include people who admire her beyond the court, outside of basketball. An audience that wants to know who Angel Reese is.
Reebok didn’t just partner with a star; they harnessed a super diva. When fans lace up, there’s a feeling of closeness to Angel. That level of integration between athlete identity and brand identity is where the real magic happens.
WHY BRANDS NEED ATHLETES WHO ARE NARRATIVE MAKERS
The corporate stuff is nice but let’s cut it. Today’s consumers, bombarded by an average of 5,000 ad impressions daily, don’t buy products; they buy people. A 2023 Nielsen report pegged purpose-driven marketing as a $1 trillion opportunity, with 78% of global consumers more likely to engage with brands aligning on social values. But here’s the kicker: When that purpose pulses through the veins of an athlete, conversion rates skyrocket. Michael Jordan’s Air Jordan empire didn’t thrive on his jump shots alone; it fed on his underdog ascent from North Carolina farms to Chicago glory.
The lesson isn’t “sign Angel Reese.” The lesson is: find the Angel Reese in your space. Find that ‘personality athlete’ whose off-court activities rival their on-court brilliance. These aren’t flawless heroes; they’re flawed firebrands, raw and relatable, whose scars become brand scars. Data from sports marketing firm Navigate backs this: Campaigns featuring athletes with “narrative depth” see 40% higher engagement than those with pure performance metrics. Why? Because stories forge tribes and they transform passive viewers into evangelists.
Every sport and every league has athletes with untold stories, cultural relevance and strong personalities. However, a lot of brands often chase the safe bets and miss out on athletes who move culture. Angel Reese is proof that the future of athlete partnerships and collaborations lies in authentic alignment, which is finding athletes who aren’t afraid to speak, dress, or play in ways that break moulds, and then building with them instead of sanding down their edges.
Reebok’s gamble on the Bayou and ChiTown Barbie exemplifies this. Reebok, a one-time basketball behemoth which was home to basketball’s culture leaders, Allen Iverson and Shaquille O’Neal, had faded into irrelevance. Their 2023 return to hoops, helmed by Shaq as president, needed more than nostalgia; it craved a catalyst. Angel Reese became that catalyst. An athlete whose story isn’t scripted, an athlete who isn’t shy of her scars and an athlete who is relentlessly real. And in partnering with her, Reebok has reignited a revolution.
ANGEL REESE: BARBIE BUT BULLETPROOF
You might be asking yourself this: ‘How did Angel’s pull get so magnetic?’
To understand this, let’s rewind to Baltimore’s Randallstown suburbs, where a 6-foot-3 teen with braids first pulled up. A star in the making, Angel Reese transferred to the LSU Tigers in 2022, and that was where it all started. Her Tigers’ 2023 NCAA championship run, crowned with a taunting gesture to Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, won headlines. Overnight, Reese became the villain and a symbol of everything the old guard resented about the evolution of women’s sports.
The backlash was insane. Death threats flooded her DMs.
“I just try to stand strong,” she later confessed in a Black Enterprise interview. “I’ve been through so much, I’ve seen so much, I’ve been attacked so many times… Death threats, I’ve been sexualized, threatened…so many things, and I’ve stood strong. Every single time.”
However, the Bayou Barbie refused to crumble and instead, she crystallized. On and off the court, that ‘never say die’ attitude manifested. Her toughness isn’t performative. As she told Elle, post-launch: “Every comment, every doubt, it all fuels me.”
This is a lesson to brands to always partner with the unbreakable.
The Mebounds Mutiny
If Reese’s resilience is her engine, “Mebounds” is her exhaust. The saga ignited in mid-2025, amid Chicago Sky’s terrible season. Critics, fixated on her offensive rebounding prowess (a league-leading 4.8 per game), coined “mebounds” as a slur: selfish boards, they sneered, more ego than team play. It was all over TikTok and X, and it was starting to get toxic. It was that kind of micro-aggression designed to make a person feel less.
Angel Reese lawyered up. In a viral TikTok, she teased: “Y’all gave me a six-figure brand idea with ‘mebounds’. Watch this.”
Days later, her team filed a trademark for the term, eyeing apparel lines from hoodies to hats emblazoned with the phrase. By June 20, merch dropped: “Mebounds” tees, shorts, and socks, hash-tagged #HatingPaysToo. Sales? Brisk. Even Barstool’s Dave Portnoy, self-proclaimed Reese hater, grumbled admiration: “I hate how brilliant it is.”
It felt like deflection, but it was domination. She reframed the insult and made it empowering. To crown it all, Reebok immortalised it as a colourway on the AR1, two-tone pink, debuted at the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game, where Reese dropped 15 rebounds in them. In business terms, it’s genius jujitsu. Reese proved that controversy, when owned, compounds value. For brands, it’s a siren call: Lean into the mess. Your athlete’s scars aren’t liabilities. They are lore.
Leading the Reebok Resurrection
When you read how Reebok landed Angel, you feel like you’re reading a romcom. A girl meets a faded giant, chooses it over titans, and together they storm the castle and conquer cities. The Angel and Reebok’s romance kicked off in 2023, Reese fresh off her NCAA title, signing a multiyear NIL deal as Reebok’s first hoops signee in a decade. “I wanted to be a priority,” she explained, eyeing the brand’s underdog vibe. “I could have signed easily with Nike. I could easily sign with Jordan. But everybody’s doing that… I like to do the complete opposite. I’m bringing Reebok back.”
The fast-track to signature status? Reese’s rocket rise. A 2024 extension locked in the AR1, originally slated for 2026, but her record-shattering rookie year and 2025’s continued dominance accelerated it. Reebok’s decision to accelerate Reese’s sneaker timeline, moving the release from 2026 to 2025, was bold. But it was also savvy. In today’s culture, relevance has a shelf life. Waiting a year might have meant missing the moment. By striking while Reese was peaking on the court, in media, in fashion, Reebok positioned itself as a cultural ally.
The launch was symphonic. Reebok was well and truly back. Reebok CEO, Todd Krinsky called it a “major milestone,” the first sig since their hoops hiatus. The shoes sold out instantly and the buzz led to a bump in Reebok’s valuation.
What is the Lesson for Brands?
- Sell a story, not just a product: As phenomenal as Angel Reese is as an athlete, her rebounds and points don’t sell the sneakers. What sells is her story, her attitude and her ability to own both triumph and criticism.
- Hunt for Diamond in the Rough: Skip the safe bets. Seek athletes who are human and can convert passive audiences to believers.
- The new economy is driven by personality: Athletes today aren’t just athletes. They are media platforms, fashion icons, activists, and entrepreneurs. Angel’s engaging online persona makes her followers feel invested in her journey. That investment translates into consumer action.
- Speed beats tradition: Reebok’s willingness to move fast to get the AR1 into the world while the buzz was high is a model for brands stuck in the slow churn of approval cycles. Culture won’t wait for your marketing calendar.
SUMMARY
Angel Reese and her partnership with Reebok is a covenant which proves that brands thrive not by avoiding the fray, but by fueling it. In a world weary of whispers, Reese roars. She’s bold about her stories..
The lesson is clear: Tell the stories that scar and watch your empire soar.
