Everyone wants to be a pro baller nowadays, but sometimes life as a famous athlete isn't all good. As she starts her offseason early due to injury, Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese reflected on whether she would rather be rich than famous, and her answer might surprise her fans or even her haters. In her new podcast, “Unapologetically Angel,” Reese discussed the hardships of WNBA fame with rapper Polo G.

Asked what she wished somebody told her before starting her WNBA career, Angel Reese was forthcoming.

“I'd rather be like rich than famous,” the Sky rookie said, per a snippet uploaded on X, formerly Twitter. “Everybody want to be famous, but like they don't really know what comes with it? Like, it's fun, like all the connections and stuff you make, but like sometimes you just want to live a normal life, like we were talking about just being able to walk down the street casually, and not have to always take pictures and sign autographs. Like, sometimes, I just want to live a normal 22-year-old life.”

The Sky star sounds off on fame

Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese (5) looks to pass the ball against the Las Vegas Aces during the first half at Wintrust Arena.
© Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

The former seventh-round pick was already famous before entering the WNBA. She led the LSU Tigers to their first national championship in 2023, where she established a rivalry between Iowa star Caitlin Clark during the title game. This rivalry continued until the two players arrived in the WNBA, where Angel Reese went to the Chicago Sky and Clark went to the Indiana Fever.

Their rivalry even provoked WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert to compare Reese and Clark to Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, who, like the two women, brought more eyes to the product after years in the doldrums. Some of her related comments didn't sit well with the WNBA Players Association, though.

As expected, Clark went No. 1 overall while Reese fell to seventh. Still, both players had spectacular rookie seasons, where each broke longstanding WNBA records seemingly during every other game.

Last month, the Clark played the most 20-10 games in a single season, which happened, ironically enough, against the Sky. She also broke the record for most double-doubles by a guard in league history.

Meanwhile, as a rookie, Angel Reese broke Sylvia Fowles' record of the most rebounds in a single WNBA season, and she also averaged a league-best 12.9 rebounds before her injury. Likewise, she became the fastest player in WNBA history to reach 20 double-doubles in one season.

Besides basketball, she also made the most of her rising fame by starting a podcast, like many other athletes. Like the title of her show, “Unapologetically Angel,” Reese got real about dating life, where she admitted only dating athletes. She also set things straight about her relationship with Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant.

Still, she will have to stay at the sidelines as her team holds on to the eighth seed ahead of the playoffs. Can they make a deep run without their star rookie?