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In the midst of a labor standoff between the WNBA’s players union and the league office, Alyssa Thomas of the Phoenix Mercury has announced (via Instagram) that she’s joining Project B. It’s a major move for the upstart league, a venture so new it doesn’t even have its official name yet, and one that could further legitimize yet another competitor to the WNBA.
The union and the league have extended the deadline to negotiate the new CBA but there has been little movement toward a resolution, and the status of the 2026 WNBA season is still up in the air. Players, Thomas included, have gone on the record as saying they’re preparing for a potential lockout.
While the world’s most famous women’s basketball league is undergoing massive change during a time of rapid growth, new alternative leagues have been popping up, most notably Unrivaled, a 3X3 league that has proven popular amongst WNBA players looking to make good money (and receive better treatment) during the W’s offseason. But recently, Project B, a new league with a supposed “F1-style” scheduling model (which will take place entirely during the WNBA offseason) has emerged as a potentially lucrative option, offering players equity stakes in the league.
Reportedly, the salaries will be higher than those of both the WNBA and Unrivaled, which could result in an arms race of sorts as the leagues battle to provide the most attractive incentives to top talent. With Nneka Ogwumike already publicly on board, Project B now has commitments from two of the world’s best women’s basketball players.
The new league has also attracted a lot of attention for its ties to Saudi Arabia. Per Front Office Sports, the Saudi Investment Fund’s subsidiary, Sela, is an events partner, but cofounder Grady Burnett claims there will be no direct financial backing from Saudi Arabia. As is typical of its tech startup-esque model, the full financial details of the league, including how much capital has been raised, are still unclear.
The host cities for the league’s various tournaments have not yet been announced, but the league is expected to have a global presence, with games on multiple continents.
Many of the details of the new project are still under wraps, but this is a huge announcement at a pivotal moment in the history of women’s professional basketball. And for one of the world’s best players, this could shape up to be a legacy-defining move.
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