Brittney Griner before her first game back in the WNBA on May 19 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. (Photo credit: Rashad Milligan for rolling out)
A pair of WNBA stars have come together to announce one more solution to one of the league’s most glaring issues. With the average WNBA salary being $113,295, according to Yahoo!, most of the league’s players go overseas in the offseason to make more money.
In 2022, going overseas in the offseason backfired for one of the league’s biggest stars Brittney Griner. Griner got off a flight from America to Russia where she played in the offseason for a $1 million salary, but was immediately detained or having hash oil in a vape cartridge. At the time, the United States put out an advisory to American citizens to avoid travel to Russia due to tension with U.S.-ally Ukraine. Griner ended up in a Russian prison for 10 months before being released in a prison swap in December 2022. She’s currently back in the WNBA for the 2023 season and said she’s not leaving U.S. soil again unless she’s representing America in international competition.
New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart and Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier told ESPN they are creating a 3-on-3 and one-on-one league for the top 30 women’s basketball players in the world in Miami. The league would feature six teams and run from January through March.
The Athletes Unlimited league also exists, during the same period as the newly-announced league, in one city, a group of women’s professional basketball players compete against each other on American soil. Some players are there to stay in shape and make some more money, while other athletes are there to play for a WNBA roster spot.
The new league is also to fight back against the WNBA’s prioritization rule. The rule mandates players return from overseas by the start of training camp to be eligible for the season.
