College Basketball Star Angel Reese Transferred to LSU to Prepare for the WNBA

The Gist:

• Angel Reese is one of the most heralded basketball players in the country, and she transferred from Maryland to LSU following her sophomore season.
• Angel entered the transfer portal because she wanted to find a coach who could better prepare her for a career in the WNBA, which is almost definitely where she's headed.

As one of the biggest stars in college basketball, Angel Reese has already proven that she has a bright future ahead of her. In early December, Angel returned from a mental health hiatus, and credited Shaquille O'Neal of all people with helping her through that time.

Following her return to on court action, though, many are wondering why Angel decided to enter the transfer portal to play for LSU. Angel started her career in Maryland, and now that she's part of the LSU team, it's only natural to wonder why she decided to make a change.

After a successful high school career playing basketball in Baltimore, Angel found herself attracted to Maryland for college because of its proximity, her connection with head coach Brenda Freese, and its strong academic portfolio. Angel had 24 scholarship offers from Division I programs, but she ultimately settled on Maryland and entered her freshman season as part of the starting lineup.

The following year, she was also a part of the starting lineup, and led the team to the Sweet 16 in the March Madness tournament.

After her sophomore year, Angel announced that she would be entering the transfer portal along with several of her teammates. In spite of the success that she had had in Maryland, she wanted to find a coach who develop her into a stretch four and help her prepare for a career in the WNBA.

Ultimately, then, Angel made the decision to transfer out of self-interest, understanding that she could get better prepared for a professional career at another school. She was the most heralded transfer in the country, and took visits to a number of major programs before ultimately landing with LSU.

She has flourished with the team since joining, and entered her senior season as the most heralded player in the country.

At the end of November 2023, Angel sat out four LSU games for undisclosed reasons. After returning, Angel told Nola.com that she had been taking the break to focus on her mental health.

“My mental health is the most important thing before anything, and I’m gonna make sure I’m okay before anything because I don’t wanna cause any harm or any cancer within the locker room, so being able to take a reset to myself — like I said before, I am human,” she said.

“I’m not just an athlete, and that’s okay to do. Pros do it all the time," Angel continued. During that time, Angel also said that she received calls from Shaquille O'Neal every day that seemed to encourage her to get back to playing.