WNBA: Fans can attend 2025 draft at The Shed in New York on April 14

Draft details, ownership stakes, endorsement deals, exhibition games and more. Catch up on the recent announcements from around the world of women’s basketball:

WNBA dishes 2025 draft details

On April 14 at The Shed in New York City at 7:30 p.m. ET, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert will call the name of the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft.

And for the second-straight year, fans will be in attendance for the festivities, with individual tickets, as well as exclusive experiences for purchase, going on sale on Friday, Mar. 21 at 10 a.m. ET. Before then, fans can register their interest in tickets at https://wnbaexperiences.com/wnba-draft-2025.

The draft will be preceded by the iconic “Orange Carpet,” where prospects can show off their style before they hear their names called. Starting at 7 p.m. ET, ESPN will broadcast WNBA Countdown before airing the draft. The WNBA App and WNBA.com’s “Draft Central” also will feature more pre-draft and draft day content for fans.

As Engelbert said in a statement anticipating the event:

At a time when the passion and excitement surrounding the WNBA has never been higher, we continue to focus on creating elevated events that WNBA fans won’t want to miss. The tremendous fan engagement we enjoyed at draft last year was a precursor to a season in which we ultimately set records for viewership, attendance, digital consumption and merchandise sales. Now, on the heels of an interesting free agency period and with draft serving as the official start to the upcoming WNBA season, we look forward to welcoming in a new set of WNBA rookies in a memorable way.

Serena increases the Tempo, Sabrina buys into the Bay

On Monday, Mar. 3, Serena Williams was introduced as an owner of the Toronto Tempo, with tennis legend and 23-time major champion announcing:

I am thrilled to announce my ownership role in the first Canadian WNBA team, the Toronto Tempo. This moment is not just about basketball; it is about showcasing the true value and potential of female athletes — I have always said that women’s sports are an incredible investment opportunity. I am excited to partner with Larry and all of Canada in creating this new WNBA franchise and legacy.

According to the team, Williams “will contribute to bringing the Tempo to life visually. She’ll play an active role in future jersey designs and will help forge unique merchandise collaborations with the team.”

And Williams is not the only women’s sports star crossing over to ownership in another sport, as Sabrina Ionescu is an investor and advisor for Bay FC, the NWSL team in her home region. Like Williams, Ionescu will have an active role, assisting the organization with marketing and branding strategies.

Ionescu told ESPN:

That was a big part of it for me—I want to invest, but I want it to be more than just transactional. I want to grow my relationship with the team and the players and be able to bring in the relationships that I have and what I’ve learned on the business side of things to help with their overall brand partnership strategy.

Unrivaled keeps making moves

In its inaugural season, Unrivaled has been a model of the business and branding acumen of women’s basketball players. Co-founders Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier were recognized for their foresight, named as Changemakers by CNBC.

Ally Financial, a founding sponsor of Unrivaled, is taking the league’s footprint from the boardroom to the racetrack. The company sponsors the No. 48 NASCAR car of Alex Bowman, which will feature an Unrivaled paint scheme for the race at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Mar. 23.

Ally CMO Andrea Brimmer explained to decision to use Bowman’s car to promote Unrivaled to The Athletic, saying:

We’ve got such a massive footprint in women’s sports…..We thought, “Why not bring it into NASCAR … where we could shine a light on that with a group of fans who appreciate sport but don’t know much about it?” What better way to do that than on a car that is going to be going around a track 160 mph?

Unrivaled co-founder Breanna Stewart offered a similar outlook, sharing, “I hope NASCAR fans are going to be curious. I hope they’re going to be like, ‘What is this? Why is the car this color? What’s Unrivaled?’ And then just be able to educate themselves on what we had just finished.”

Stewie undergoes minor scope

This is an Unrivaled-related move that Stewart likely did not want to make. However, following Mist’s elimination from the Unrivaled season, Stewart revealed on Instagram that she had a minor procedure on her right meniscus.

It is unclear when the injury occurred, although Stewart uncharacteristically sported a leg sleeve in Mist’s final game, suggesting the issue was recent or had become more troublesome. She addressed the leg sleeve in her post, writing, “might or might not retire the leg sleeve but definitely getting rid of all that tape, iykyk,” before thanking the Unrivaled trainers and her doctor.

She is expected to be ready for the New York Liberty’s training camp, which begins April 27.

Nika inks deal with Under Armour

The Seattle Storm’s Nika Mühl has signed an endorsement deal with Under Armour, joining the Los Angeles Sparks’ Kelsey Plum and (for now) Connecticut Sun’s Marina Mabrey as the brand’s WNBA faces.

A native of Croatia who was a four-year standout at UConn, the fan-favorite Mühl has the potential to expand the reach of Under Armour’s investment in women’s basketball.

More on-campus WNBA exhibitions

Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever are playing in an already sold-out exhibition game at Carver Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, IA. Angel Reese’s Chicago Sky are heading to Pete Maravich Assembly Center for an exhibition game in Baton Rouge, LA.

And now, Purcell Pavilion, on the campus of Notre Dame in South Bend, IN, will host an exhibition game between the Las Vegas Aces and Dallas Wings, which will feature three Fighting Irish alums in Jewell Loyd, Jackie Young and Arike Ogunbowale. The game is scheduled for May 2.

Then, on May 12, the New York Liberty will travel to Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, OR, where Sabrina Ionescu and Nyara Sabally hooped as Oregon Ducks, to play an exhibition game against the Toyota Antelopes of the Women’s Japan Basketball League.