Nneka Ogwumike, the Seattle Storm forward and president of the WNBA players' union, has signed with Project B, becoming the first prominent WNBA player to join the upstart women's basketball league ahead of its planned launch this month.
Her deal reportedly pays more than her WNBA salary and includes an equity stake in the league, according to reporting on the signing. Ogwumike, a 10-time WNBA All-Star, is also serving as the players' union's top negotiator ahead of a new collective bargaining agreement with the WNBA, a dual role that has drawn scrutiny given Project B's position as a competing league.
A roster takes shape
Project B has since signed roughly two dozen players for its inaugural season, including veterans Alyssa Thomas and Jonquel Jones, according to a running tally from Front Office Sports. The league, co-founded by Grady Burnett and Geoff Prentice, plans to stage 5-on-5 tournaments across Asia, Europe and Latin America, with one report pointing to a Tokyo stop in spring 2027.
The league's financing has become a point of contention. Sela, an events company owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, has been described as an event partner, though Burnett has said the league's own fundraising includes no Saudi money, and the two sides have given conflicting accounts of whether that partnership is still active.
Pressure on the WNBA
Project B's rapid player pickups have put it "officially on the WNBA's radar," as one Sports Illustrated report put it, with the established league watching closely as it heads into its own labor negotiations. Whether Project B becomes a genuine rival or a short-lived sideline for players chasing extra income during the WNBA offseason remains to be seen, but Ogwumike's signing has already made it harder to dismiss.