Angel Reese admits special bond with Allen Iverson after attracting stunning praise

Angel Reese has faced challenges in her sophomore season, struggling offensively for the Chicago Sky. However, she received support from "The Answer" himself, Allen Iverson.

On Thursday, in a conversation with People, NBA great Iverson dropped a big, encouraging statement about Reese and said that the Sky star reminded him of his sister.

"I love everything about her," Iverson said. "I love what she stands for. She reminds me of my little sister. She's dope to me. She reminds me of myself hoop-wise and on a personal level too."

Iverson and Reese also have a professional connection. Angel Reese is the face of the Reebok brand, where Iverson is currently serving as Vice President of Basketball.

During the Chicago Sky's curt practice media interaction, Reese was asked about her thoughts on getting love from the NBA legend. She said that she hadn't come across Iverson's full statement yet.

"I haven't watched it yet. I haven't had time to watch it yet," Reese said with a big smile on her face. "I saw a couple of things that he said. Obviously, with Allen Iverson, I have a great connection, obviously building with Reebok brand."

Shaquille O'Neal reveals the star player he went to before signing Angel Reese for Reebok

It is hard to believe, especially for the younger generation, that Reebok once controlled the sneaker market. From the 1970s to the late 1980s, it dominated the market, ahead of Nike, and even revolutionized the technology of basketball sneakers.

After its market stagnated in the 1990s, Nike cemented its dominance, while Reebok was acquired by Adidas in 2006. Nearly two decades later, Reebok is making a push to reclaim its status in the industry.

In 2023, the shoe company appointed Shaquille O'Neal to lead the charge in its quest to reclaim prominence. However, the NBA legend said that he got an early shock as a negotiator.

"I had to deal with something I never had to deal with: budgets. Because I'm like, I'm gonna sign Shai, I'm gonna sign all these players. But hollering at their agents, they want $60 million. And now I gotta go back to the Board and they said, 'Man, you ain't got $60 million.'"

O'Neal said that he wanted Reebok to reach the young generation, and that's why he focused on signing Angel Reese.

"Since we're starting all over, we going to start with the younger generation," added Shaq (Time stamp: 35:05). "And then I said, 'let me make a power call real quick. Angel, you want to go with Nike where they're just gonna give you a regular shoe. Or do you want to deal with a motherfu**** that will give you your own shoe? For real, you can do that?' 'Yeah, I can do that.' So signing Angel was my (work).''

Signing Angel Reese was not a bad decision by Shaq. The Sky star has a large fan following on social media, and she has been very instrumental in the sports brand's marketing. Perhaps, the company is just one big star away from a steep climb to being back in the market.