October 2023 marked a renaissance in Reebok. After orchestrating the acquisition of Reebok by Authentic Brands Group, Shaquille O’Neal stepped into the role of president of the basketball division. With him was one of Reebok’s icons, Allen Iverson as VP. Very quickly, both were teasing their first signature athlete. The GOAT, as both hinted. Now that Shaq had dethroned himself as LSU’s GOAT, then in favor of the player who brought the school a championship, it made sense that their first signee was Angel Reese. While speaking to EssentiallySports, O’Neal’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato underlined that Angel Reese has had a mass appeal since her NCAA dominance. As the brains behind the Shaq brand, he delved deeper into the sentiments within this deal.

Reese was then the reigning NCAA champ, who secured an NIL deal under Reebok. She’s now a WNBA pro with Chicago Sky and working on a signature shoe under Reebok. What doesn’t make this a standard signature sneaker deal is the endearing personal relationship between the athlete and the prez.

Armato: “Angel Reese is a great, great sort of like personality in and of herself. She’s unique and special, you know? Shaq was really infatuated with her and signed her to Reebok.”

O’Neal was the LSU stalwart in Reese’s corner during her infamous clash with Caitlin Clark in the 2023 NCAA championship game. But they’d meet in person for the first time when his youngest, Me’Arah, was on a college tour at LSU in February 2023. He proactively encouraged Meezy to look beyond the family connection to LSU (her siblings Shareef and Amirah attended LSU too) and she picked Florida.

Meanwhile, Angel found a mentor, father figure, and honorary uncle in Shaq. He had from his LSU connections that Reese had a big fanbase drawn to her big personality. And larger than life Big Diesel loves a big personality. He thought she was perfect for Reebok at their first meeting. Armato emphasizes it’s no superficial bond and that personal touch is a nice embellishment to the Reebok deal.

Armato: “She calls him like a big brother and he calls her like a little sister. Whatever so you know there’s a real bond there and she has become a star in and of her own. [She’s] a little bit of a maverick out there and she says certain things but I think people are making too big of a deal of it. I mean, who cares?”

Reese hasn’t had a smooth journey to stardom. She’s been subjected to a lot of trolling. But she’s had a 7’1″ shield to keep her grounded.

Shaquille O’Neal’s relationship with his ‘little sister’

Armato emphasized that Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese are very different personalities. Their rivalry, he echoed, has been hugely beneficial to the WNBA, which has seen a massive rise in viewership, attendance, and revenue in a month of these rookies playing. Shaq even congratulated Reese via social media for bringing about WNBA’s growth.

When she was missing games in the 2023-24 season, Shaq gave her sound advice against the haters. She’d invite him to join her mother to escort her on LSU’s senior night. Their communication is so open, that Reese even called him to say she was upset he didn’t defend her against Charles Barkley’s “petty” rant.

The best lesson Reese says she learned from Shaq is to be conscious that the world is at her fingertips when she makes decisions. That’s how she knew that Reebok needed a prominent female face to lead the brand’s revolution. So it made it easy for her to pick Reebok and her ‘Uncle.’