In order to stay occupied during the WNBA offseason, Angel Reese, a rookie for the Chicago Fever, has joined a 3-on-3 league that was formed by Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier, two other professional athletes.
The Unrivaled league, which will launch in Miami in January 2025, has already secured pledges from players like Arike Ogunbowale and Kelsey Plum.
In a collaborative Instagram post, Reese and the league revealed the news along with a graphic dubbed “305 Barbie.”
Notably, the players in the league will own stock in it, and supporters including Megan Rapinoe, Alex Morgan, Carmelo Anthony, and Steve Nash have all committed to support it.
“Historic contract opportunities offering the highest average salary in women’s professional sports history” is another claim made by Unrivaled.
Since the WNBA season only lasts from May to September, Unrivaled will provide a significant winter income stream for elite women’s basketball players.
In a press release from May, Stewart stated, “For years, women have relied heavily on off-court sponsorships for a majority of their income.”
“We’re changing the game with Unrivaled by putting our stars first and making sure their on-court success is reflected in their compensation.”
‘With the increased popularity of women’s basketball and the WNBA, this is an opportunity for us to extend our visibility into the traditional basketball season,’ Collier continued.
Notably, the players in the league will own stock in it, and supporters including Megan Rapinoe, Alex Morgan, Carmelo Anthony, and Steve Nash have all committed to support it.
As Collier touched on, there has been significant growth in the popularity of the WNBA – in large part to the additions of rookies Reese and Caitlin Clark.
The USA Olympic team was defeated by the WNBA All-Stars in last weekend’s WNBA All-Star Game, which attracted a record 3.44 million viewers on ESPN.
Additionally, the league and the Walt Disney Company—owner of NBC Universal, Amazon Prime Video, ABC, and ESPN—signed a hefty $2.2 billion media rights agreement on Wednesday.
The W’s current media deal is thought to be worth approximately $60 million, but that might change at any time. The deal is set to start for the 2026 season.
The new agreement was negotiated by the NBA, which controls roughly 60% of the WNBA.
