At first blush, the event space inside Fanatics‘ New York headquarters could have been mistaken for a typical business school class last Wednesday, as a lecturer at the front of the room connected Christopher Booker’s seven basic plots to social media marketing. Dozens of learners took notes.
This was not a typical group, however.
After the lesson transitioned to an interactive session, Indiana Fever star Lexie Hull spoke to a Mitchell & Ness designer about her upcoming makeup brand, 2025 Sixth Player of the Year Naz Hillmon talked content strategy with a video expert and 2023 MVP Jewell Loyd discussed her investments, including the 160-acre farm she owns in Minnesota.
Eleven WNBA players attended the two-day business immersion program run by Fanatics and Boardroom, eager to seize the moment as their own industry grows and grows. An influx of NIL, media and marketing dollars has made players aware of the opportunities available to them—and the need to handle them appropriately. Meanwhile, an ongoing CBA negotiation has offered a B-school level crash course on the economics of professional sports.
“We are a business in ourselves,” New York Liberty guard Natasha Cloud said. “I don’t think we always think about ourselves in that light.”
Fanatics and Boardroom held their first immersion program over the summer, hosting more than two dozen NBA, NFL and NHL players during their respective offseasons. This time around, MLB, NWSL and WNBA players came to town for two days of conversation with business leaders, hands-on practice sessions, a personality assessment and business breakdowns, including a study of Fanatics’ growth. USC professor Anthony Borquez came to lead a course specifically on using AI.
“There’s a certain archetype that chooses to do something like this in their offseason,” Fanatics chief people officer Toretha McGuire said. “There’s a very genuine interest in business.”
In recent years, W players have launched merch lines, podcasts, restaurants and even their own basketball league.
“They all have an incredible understanding of how to build audience, maybe even better than NBA players,” Boardroom CEO Rich Kleiman said. “And there’s a hunger that they all have… a different type of hunger to take advantage of a lot of these opportunities.”
Hillmon was tipped off to the event by her agent. “I want to learn as much as I can, especially as women’s basketball is blowing up,” she said. “The audience wants—they have an appetite for it, and I want to be able to feed the people.”
More than a year of conversation around the WNBA’s next CBA has only fueled business curiosity—and knowledge—among the players. Kleiman said he had four different conversations with players about the negotiations on the program’s first day.
The two sides have appeared to make progress, with proposals going back and forth and a second deadline extension that allows talks to continue until early January. But plenty of frustration remains.
WNBPA VP Kelsey Plum, speaking Friday at Team USA camp, said that the talks have been “a little bit disheartening.” She conceded that the league and union remained far apart. Even though a philosophical salary cap and revenue-sharing structure might be agreed to, the details of what revenue the players share in and how much they get requires further wrangling.
Cloud has been among the league’s vocal critics, posting online last week about a reported proposal for teams to no longer handle player housing as their salaries increase. The agenda only strengthened her resolve, she said.
“Great CEOs and really just badass people [on stage have said], ‘You know what? We’re not anything without the product,’” she said. “And we are the product for the W. You don’t go anywhere without your players. … Standing firm on our value and understanding how to leverage that is what really excites me.”
If and when a new deal is signed, players are in line for significant raises. Based on a recent reported proposal, the league’s new minimum salary, expected to exceed $225,000, would be close to the top of last season’s payscale. There’s already been an increased curiosity around finances among players over the last couple years, said Loyd, who earned the W’s second highest salary in 2025.
“Passing all the wisdom I have to my teammates and friends, it’s been really nice,” Loyd said. “People have a lot of trouble with money. So understanding all those dynamics and how to actually make it work—that’s really important.”
Parts of the agenda covered how to handle that wealth, from detailed discussions of real estate investing to lessons on the importance of knowing where your money is going, even once you’ve found yourself in a new tax bracket.
Sooner or later, women’s basketball stars will return to WNBA courts. In the meantime, the business must go on.