Women's 3-On-3 League Coming, Promises To Pay Players Much More Than WNBA
With women's basketball gaining popularity in the United States, two WNBA players – Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier – are bringing a new professional league to the United States called Unrivaled.
The league is going to look similar to Ice Cube's Big3 league except with female basketball players. Ice Cube reportedly offered WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark a huge sum of money to join the league, which is open to any basketball player.
However, it doesn't appear that Clark is going to join the league. Instead, expect her to join with other WNBA players for this new league that's expected to start in January.
According to CNBC, "Athletes will be given equity in the new league, and Unrivaled said it will also feature contract opportunities that will offer the highest average salary in women’s pro sports league history."
There has been a lot of talk about WNBA player salaries, especially once Clark was drafted #1 overall by the Indiana Fever. Of course, Clark is worth far more to the WNBA than her annual salary, and she's going to make well over 8-figures based on her endorsement deals.
Expect to see Caitlin Clark suit up in a new women's professional basketball league created by WNBA players Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier.
(Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
That being said, WNBA salaries are low because, historically, the league has never made a profit. It is subsidized by the NBA. That could very well change with Clark in the mix, because the WNBA is seeing higher attendance and television ratings this season than ever before.
What's interesting about this new league is that it's not subsidized by anyone and is a for-profit business. According to CNBC, investors in the league include "former ESPN president John Skipper, ex-Turner president David Levy, and former Warner Bros. CEO Ann Sarnoff, as well athletes including NBA All-Star Carmelo Anthony and others who invested through the venture capital firm led by U.S. women’s national soccer team captain Alex Morgan."
Breanna Stewart joined Pat McAfee on Wednesday and said the league season will last for 10 weeks and will be played in the winter in Miami. One of the other major advantages for the athletes, outside of the financial benefits, is that all the games will be played in Miami, Florida.
Many WNBA players spend the off-season overseas playing in international leagues where they generally earn more money than they do from their WNBA salaries. The idea is to keep these players in the United States and pay them. A very admirable cause, indeed.
Will the league succeed and be popular? We'll have to wait and see about that. But involving Caitlin Clark certainly seems like a recipe for success right now, and it makes sense to strike while that iron is white-hot.
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