{"id":278301,"date":"2025-11-12T12:57:08","date_gmt":"2025-11-12T12:57:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/278301\/"},"modified":"2025-11-12T12:57:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-12T12:57:08","slug":"which-wnba-players-are-joining-the-startup-basketball-league","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/278301\/","title":{"rendered":"Which WNBA Players Are Joining the Startup Basketball League?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The WNBA<\/a> might soon face its biggest challenge yet in the form of Project B. For years, women\u2019s basketball has revolved around three major leagues \u2014 the WNBA, EuroLeague, and, more recently, the Unrivaled, with United Athletes hanging on as a distant fourth. But the arrival of Project B, a new global startup league, could upend everything.<\/p>\n

Project B, co-founded by former Facebook executive Grady Burnett and Skype cofounder Geoff Prentice, plans to launch in November 2026, running for about five months across Asia, Europe, and Latin America. The league will feature 66 players divided into six teams, with top-tier contracts and global exposure.<\/p>\n

According to Front Office Sports, multiple stars were offered seven-figure salaries \u2014 some reportedly as high as $2 million per season, with multi-year deals even crossing into eight-figure totals. For comparison, the current WNBA supermax sits at just $249,244.<\/p>\n

In addition to the salaries, Project B is offering players equity stakes in the league, a business model similar to Unrivaled\u2019s. Financial muscle and ownership opportunities make this league an unprecedented threat to existing women\u2019s basketball structures. Below is the list of the players who have signed for the new league:<\/p>\n

Tracking Every WNBA Player Who Has Signed With Project B
\n1. Nneka Ogwumike<\/p>\n

The first major domino to fall was Nneka Ogwumike, who made history as the inaugural signing for Project B on Nov. 5, 2025.<\/p>\n

2. Alyssa Thomas<\/p>\n

Shortly after Ogwumike\u2019s announcement, Alyssa Thomas became Project B\u2019s second major signing<\/a>\u00a0on November 11, 2025, solidifying the startup\u2019s legitimacy.<\/p>\n

What Does Each WNBA Player Bring to Project B?<\/p>\n

Ogwumike, a 2016 WNBA MVP and champion, has long been one of the most respected voices in women\u2019s basketball. Beyond her accolades \u2014 10 All-Star selections, eight All-WNBA honors, and four Sportsmanship Awards \u2014 the Seattle Storm\u2019s star is also the president of the WNBPA, the players\u2019 association that has led ongoing CBA negotiations for higher pay and better conditions.<\/p>\n

Ranked No. 6 on the WNBA\u2019s all-time scoring list with 7305 points, Ogwumike\u2019s decision to join Project B carries symbolic weight. Her signing signals that Project B isn\u2019t merely targeting younger stars looking for exposure; it\u2019s landing seasoned, legacy players who can lend credibility and influence to a new league.<\/p>\n

Thomas, the WNBA\u2019s all-time leader in triple-doubles, has built a reputation as one of the league\u2019s toughest and most versatile players. A six-time All-Star and three-time gold medalist (2024 Olympics, 2022 FIBA World Cup, 2012 World Championship), she\u2019s also made waves overseas, winning accolades in EuroLeague Women, including Defensive Player of the Year (2023).<\/p>\n

Her inclusion gives Project B a major name with global recognition. Thomas also has experience with Unrivaled, having competed in the league\u2019s 3-on-3 format during its inaugural 2025 season, showing she\u2019s open to new and innovative basketball formats.<\/p>\n

This tracker will be updated as new signings are announced in the coming days and weeks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The WNBA might soon face its biggest challenge yet in the form of Project B. For years, women\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":278302,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[629],"tags":[49,48,82,630],"class_list":{"0":"post-278301","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wnba","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-sports","11":"tag-wnba"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/278301","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=278301"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/278301\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/278302"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=278301"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=278301"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=278301"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}