Ball Around

Giannis, Michael Phelps Join World Class Athletes in $28 Million Investment for Unrivaled

Matt Levine

Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

We are getting close to the start of the new women's basketball league, Unrivaled. It will be a 3-on-3 league that has generated a ton of buzz since being announced earlier in the year.

The league will debut on Jan. 17 and the league has revealed revealed coaches and rosters.

More Ball Around: Full List of Rosters, Coaches for Unrivaled Inaugural Season

Just ahead of their debut, the league has brought in $28 million in investment money. Some of the biggest investors include Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, USC Trojans star guard JuJu Watkins, South Carloina's Hall of Fame head coach Dawn Staley, and Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps.

This is certainly a star-studded cast and shows the excitement level for this upcoming league.

"Today, groundbreaking professional women’s basketball league announced the close of an oversubscribed Series A investment round headlined by superstar investors, including NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo, Olympic Gold Medalist Michael Phelps, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Member and University of South Carolina Women’s Basketball Coach Dawn Staley, University of Southern California Women’s Basketball Star JuJu Watkins, and many more," an email attached wrote.

"Given their contributions, Unrivaled secured more than $28 million in Series A funding to go along with the $7 million raised during the league’s seed round, which was announced in May 2024. The $35 million total reflects the tangible enthusiasm for Unrivaled that both transcends and elevates women’s sports."

This is a massive win for women's sports as a whole and the energy levels are through the roof for this league. The league was co-founded by WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier.

Collier spoke about the league last year and what the plan was for it.

"Women's sports is on such a rise, and it feels like everyone is benefiting from that except the women in the sport, and obviously that's something we're trying to change and then also create generational wealth for these women," Collier told CBS Sports' "We Need to Talk" last year. "From the beginning, [Stewart] and I really set out to create a league that was founded on that principle that players deserve compensation and ownership that reflect their value."

With these new investments, this league could go the distance. This type of money invovled is sure to field a strong product and fans will be tuning in to see how the excitement plays out.

More Ball Around: Phil Handy, Teresa Weatherspoon Among Inaugural HCs for New Unrivaled Basketball League

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Matt Levine
MATT LEVINE

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