WNBA fans are still digesting the news that Alyssa Thomas has become the second player in the league to sign with Project B, a new international women's basketball league that will debut in the fall of 2026. Thomas joins Nneka Ogwumike, who announced she will play in the league's 2026-27 league last week.
The decision of both players to sign on with the new league raises a lot of questions. The league is reportedly funded in part by Sela, an entertainment company founded in Saudi Arabia. Sela is funded by the Public Investment Fund, a sovereign wealth fund established by the Saudi royal family that is estimated to be worth at least $900 billion. Plenty of people are concerned about the idea that WNBA players may be willfully accepting money from a government that is considered to have a troubling history in terms of human rights, especially since the WNBA has often been described as an activist-driven league.
The team behind Project B have made it clear that they aren't planning to be direct competition for the WNBA... yet. The league's first season will be played from November 2026 to April 2027, which means players will be home for the WNBA that summer... but that same team have also made it clear that they are completely open to becoming a major threat to the WNBA's long-term existence and success.
If this doesn't concern WNBA leadership yet, it probably should. Player announcements are also getting a lot of attention because of the timing of their release: the WNBA and the players are currently still gridlocked in stalled CBA negotiations, and the fact that two of the league's biggest stars have joined Project B has many fans wondering if there will be a 2026 season at all. Even if the WNBA is played in 2026 (which is very likely), more players may decide to sign with Project B due to simple economics: players need to get paid one way or another, and for some, political concerns may not be as crucial as that bottom line.
What is Project B?
Project B will be played in the traditional 5x5 format with 11 players per team roster. The league is set to be played in two-week tournaments in various locations throughout Europe and Asia, and, notably, is offering some players at least $2 million to play in the first season. Project B was dreamt up by Skype cofounder Geoff Prentice and former Facebook executive Grady Burnett. In addition to Candace Parker, Steve Young, Novak Djokovic, and Sloane Stephens, LeBron James reportedly has an advisory role in the league.