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Chicago Sky star Angel Reese has made headlines not just for her debut WNBA season, but for a bold decision to reject a high-profile, six-figure basketball challenge.
While her team battles to find its rhythm early in the 2025 season, Reese is also navigating attention from outside the court-including an unusual offer from sports media figure Clay Travis.
Reese, who ed the WNBA this year after a decorated college career, has had a rocky start with the Chicago Sky. The team has dropped its first two games of the season, suffering blowout losses to the Indiana Fever and New York Liberty. Reese, despite showing her prowess on the boards with 14 rebounds per game, is struggling offensively.
She's averaging just 7 points per game and shooting below 25 percent from the field. The Liberty game was especially brutal, as New York broke a league record with 19 made three-pointers while holding Reese scoreless on 0-for-8 shooting.
Still, Reese remains one of the most marketable young stars in the sport. Though her WNBA salary hovers around $70,000, she earns millions annually through brand endorsements, including deals with Coach, Amazon, and Reebok. That financial freedom likely played a role in her recent decision to turn down a $100,000 offer for a one-on-one basketball game.
A Challenge Rejected: Reese vs. Travis
The offer came from Clay Travis, founder of OutKick and a controversial voice in sports media. Travis proposed a pay-per-view, winner-take-all one-on-one match between himself and Reese, with the victor claiming $100,000. It was an unusual challenge-especially since Travis is not a professional athlete and has no history of playing basketball competitively.
The spectacle would have drawn major attention, particularly as it pitted a rising WNBA star against a media provocateur. But Reese declined the challenge, and even went so far as to block Travis on social media, signaling she had no interest in entertaining the proposal.
Travis responded with mock disappointment.
"I guess this means @reese10angel is turning down my one-on-one challenge. A pity. I spent today working on the sky hook," he posted on Twitter.
His comment, complete with a jab at his own athletic ability, added fuel to the online chatter surrounding the proposal.
While some might view the challenge as light-hearted or even lucrative for Reese, her decision to decline appears strategic. Participating could have distracted from her goals in the WNBA and would've likely granted Travis more attention than she felt he deserved.
In a time when women's athletes are increasingly standing up for how they're portrayed and engaged with in media, Reese's choice reinforces a message: not every dollar is worth the spotlight it brings.
As the Sky prepare for their next matchup on Sunday evening, all eyes will remain on Reese-not for gimmicks or viral moments, but for how she grows through this early adversity. If she can find her rhythm on the court, the noise off of it won't matter.