WNBA’s Angel Reese Joins New Women’s Hoops League

Angel Reese is not leaving the WNBA, but she is, apparently, taking her talents to another league. The star rookie of the Chicago Sky, and one of the most popular young players on the circuit, will be joining a new 3-on-3 league, Unrivaled, that will begin play in Miami in January of 2025.

The league is promising to be an athlete-first offseason showcase for women’s basketball stars who often go to Europe during the WNBA’s dormant months—where they can make more money than they do on their WNBA slate. It was founded by Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier and New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart, and has backing from a wide range of familiar names including soccer stars Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan as well as former NBAers Carmelo Anthony and Steve Nash.

The news first came from the league’s account on Twitter/X, which wrote, “THE BARBIE IS UNRIVALED,” referring the Reese “Baltimore Barbie” nickname.

Reese responded by posting, “305 BARBIEEEE,” referring to Miami’s area code.

WNBA Stars Can Stay Home With Unrivaled

Angel Reese is the 10^th player to be announced in the Unrivaled roster of WNBA stars. Collier and reigning WNBA MVP Stewart are also in the mix, along with Chelsea Gray, Arike Ogunbowale, Jewell Lloyd, Kelsey Plum, Rhyne Howard, leading scorer Kahleah Copper and Jackie Young, who, along with Gray, has a gold medal in 3-on-3 Olympic basketball.

The mission statement of the league is to bring increased attention, as well as offseason paychecks, to stars of women’s basketball. Unrivaled’s website notes that it is, “An innovative 3v3 professional women’s basketball league founded by two current U.S. Olympians, Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart. The league will feature 6 teams, with 5 players on each team. The inaugural season is January of 2025 in Miami.”

Games will be played on a compressed, 70-by-50 court, over a period of eight weeks, which includes a four-team playoff after a round-robin tournament.

“In a typical women’s basketball life, you play in the WNBA and you go overseas, and there’s a seven-month gap where our W players are not home, are not in-market,” Stewart explained on Good Morning America.

Getting rid of that gap is the goal.

“Just be home, be in-market … continue to grow the game and build brands” Stewart said.

The important part, though, is that all 30 original players in Unrivaled will have a stake in the league’s earnings. “This has never happened before,” Stewart said. “This is the largest average salary in women’s sports.”

Angel Reese Double-Double Streak at 18 Games

For Reese, the announcement comes during the WNBA’s Olympic break. Individually, she has been impressive during her rookie year with the Sky, posting an average of 13.5 points and 11.9 rebounds on the season.

She has set a new record in the WNBA for consecutive double-doubles, a run of 18 straight games that extends back to June 4. She will carry that streak into the second half of the WNBA season, which will pick up on August 15.

While Reese has done well in putting up individual numbers, she has not been efficient as a scorer, especially not for a forward—she’s shooting just 40.2% from the field. The Sky in general has struggled, too, going 10-15 on the season.

They had their biggest win of the season in the first-half finale, beating the defending champion Las Vegas Aces on the road.