Copyright CBS Sports
Alyssa Thomas is the second major signing for the new Project B women's basketball league that will play in the WNBA offseason. Thomas joins Nneka Ogwumike as veteran WNBA All-Stars to sign with the league that will play a global, 11-week schedule in its inaugural season from November 2026 to April 2027. Project B is a Saudi-backed startup league with a long list of high-profile investors, including Candace Parker, that has lofty aspirations and promises players big salaries and equity stakes in the league. It joins Unrivaled, Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart's 3-on-3 league that launched last season, in offering offseason opportunities for WNBA players to play and bring in significant salaries beyond the current overseas options. Former WNBA star Alana Beard is the league's chief basketball officer, and has led the charge in signing Ogwumike and Thomas as the Project B's first major signings. "Alyssa is the kind of player and person you build around," Beard told the AP. "Her leadership, competitiveness and professionalism elevate everyone around her. As one of the most respected players in the world, she represents the new era of player partnership and global competition that Project B stands for." Thomas played for Unrivaled in their inaugural season and is listed as a participant for the upcoming Unrivaled season, but by joining Project B she will not continue in the 3-on-3 league after this spring as the two leagues will have overlapping schedules. The massive expansion in the women's basketball world comes at a fascinating time for the WNBA, as the league and the WNBPA are in the midst of a contentious CBA negotiation. Among the biggest hangups is players' desire not only for a significant increase in salaries, but a greater piece of the pie when it comes to the league's revenue being guaranteed for players. That has made the business models promised by Project B and Unrivaled so appealing, and the emergence of those leagues as significant opportunities for earnings puts unique pressure on the WNBA in CBA negotiations that few other major sports leagues face with few alternatives. The big question facing Project B is its ability to land WNBA stars in their prime. Ogwumike will be 36 and Thomas will be 34 when the league gets started next November, and Unrivaled has secured commitments from the likes of Paige Bueckers and some of the WNBA's most promising young stars. A global schedule may be more appealing to older players, but they'll have to prove they are an intriguing option for younger stars in order to fulfill their lofty goals. Given its ties to the Saudi Public Investment Fund and desire to create a global schedule, Project B has garnered comparisons to LIV Golf, which had similar problems early on in landing top young, American talent away from the PGA Tour. The big difference that helps Project B in their recruitment compared to LIV is they don't have to pry players away from the WNBA, but instead convince them to spend their offseasons playing basketball around the world.
