Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart‘s new Unrivaled basketball league has taken off like a rocket, featuring stars such as Sabrina Ionescu and Angel Reese. But how much are they going to be paid?
The new three-vs-three league sees the use of a full court at the Wayfair Arena in Miami, Florida to create an intriguing game full of individual battles and talent with an emphasis on offensive play. Although quarters have been dashed to seven minutes each.
The league will run from January 17 through to March 17, when the finals will be played, and the winner could stand to make millions from their efforts. But how much will they take home as a salary?
With a salary pool of over eight million dollars, all 36 players will be paid at least $100,000 and they are also being offered equity too, to continue to make their bank accounts seem a bit healthier.
Additionally, they will also earn $250,000 if they win the one-vs-one tournament, and each player on the winner’s Unrivaled team will also get $10,000.
Why does Unrivaled pay such a high salary?
Part of why Unrivaled pays such a high salary is to raise awareness to the pay discrepancy between WNBA players and NBA players, as well as allowing women professionals to not have to go abroad to continue making enough to live.
For example, the Golden State Warriors’ Steph Curry was the highest-paid player in the NBA in 2023/24 and he made $51.9 million dollars. By comparison, the Las Vegas Aces’ Jackie Young made $252,450.
This has been a long-term criticism of the WNBA, as its stars continue to call for a salary that will let them live the lives of the professional athletes they are.
“We called ourselves Unrivaled,” Collier told media, as per CBS Sports. “And we’re trying to set the bar and what it means to be a professional athlete.
“Especially on the women’s side. With the salaries, we didn’t want to compare them to the WNBA because we want more.”