UConn women’s basketball star Paige Bueckers has signed a NIL deal with Unrivaled Basketball, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. Bueckers is the first NCAA player to join the 3-on-3 competition, which takes place during the WNBA midseason.
UConn’s Paige Bueckers signs a NIL deal with the new women’s basketball league Unrivaled, making her the first NCAA athlete to receive ownership in a league. Bueckers is expected to play in Unrivaled, along with the WNBA, after her college career is over. photo.twitter.com/NkPImheHig
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 1, 2024
Bueckers is the latest big name to join Unrivaled, which was founded by WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier and will feature six-figure salaries for all players. Players, including Bueckers, will also receive ownership stakes in the league.
According to Charania, Bueckers will play on Unrivaled after her college career ends, in addition to joining the WNBA. Bueckers opted to remain at UConn for a fifth season in February after missing her junior season with a torn ACL.
In July, Unrivaled began announcing the players who will be part of its 30-player league, which the league says will feature 10 WNBA All-Stars. The league named a slew of WNBA stars, including Jewell Loyd, Chelsea Gray and Arike Ogunbowale, in addition to Stewart and Collier, to start, and rounded out the first 10 with Kelsey Plum, Rhyne Howard, Kahleah Copper, Jackie Young and ending with rookie phenom Angel Reese.
Unrivaled has said it will wait to announce more players until after the Olympics, which seven of the top 10 are participating in. As a result, the league has not made an official announcement about Bueckers.
The competition will take place in Miami for three months, beginning in January and ending before the WNBA season resumes.
