Angel Reese shows out on and off the court! The LSU women’s basketball champion modeled for the 2023 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.
In the cover story, Reese spoke about her strong and healthy body. “I work out a lot,” Reese told SI. “I embrace my body and who I am and every mark on my body. I probably feel the sexiest in a bathing suit.” The LSU star who was also accompanied by fellow Tiger Livvy Dunne, are the only two college athletes in the magazine, and the first college athletes to ever be featured.
“Angel is combating the double standard in sports, especially for women,” said SI editor-in-chief, MJ Day. “She is making a name for herself as a fierce competitor and an equally fierce advocate for growing the game of women’s basketball. Her intensity, drive, and passion around being unapologetically herself and speaking up for what she believes in is helping move the needle forward for women in sports and is liberating the next generation to feel seen and heard. Our goal here is to help empower as many women as we can, and we’re beyond excited to do that alongside Angel Reese in the 2023 issue.”
Speaking with the magazine, Reese said, “We’ve done so much within a year. We weren’t even supposed to be in the Final Four. We had nine new players, and it was coach [Kim Mulkey]’s second year in the SEC, so we didn’t know what to expect. We just went out there and had fun all the time and put in a lot of work all season.”
“I’m excited and blessed to be able to have these opportunities to go out and be who I am,” she adds.
Last month Reee and the LSU Women’s Basketball team won the 2023 NCAA National Championship game over Iowa, 102-85. Although it was a big win for her, Reese told SI she has a plan in place to keep putting in the work to reach her long-term goals.
“I’ve worked hard to get to the life hopefully that I am at in five to 10 years, so just being able to be free and happy and traveling and just having fun,” she says. She went on to say, “There’s always room to be better. I’m about to go to USA Basketball, so my goal this summer is to win a gold medal.”
After gaining massive attention during the women’s NCAA tournament, she is now the highest-paid player in college women’s basketball. She has also been labeled the GOAT player to come out of LSU by Hall of Famer Shaq.