Sabrina Ionescu 'In a Category of Her Own' With Lucrative Unrivaled Deal, per Report
The inaugural season of the Unrivaled 3x3 women's basketball league is now less than one month away, with the first slate of games taking place in Miami, Florida on January 17.
Unrivaled made waves over the weekend when a three-team trade was announced that included star players like Courtney Williams and Jackie Young switching (Unrivaled, not WNBA) teams.
This announcement also made it clear that only one more of the league's 36 roster spots still needed to be filled, although there hadn't been any indication about who that final player would be.
But fans found out on Monday over social media that New York Liberty superstar Sabrina Ionescu — who is teammates with one of the league's co-founders Breanna Stewart — would be the final player announced to play in Unrivaled during its first season.
SABRINA is UNRIVALED 👑 Filling the last wildcard spot ✅ SHE'S A PHANTOM 👻 pic.twitter.com/kShoP3rcY2
— Unrivaled Basketball (@Unrivaledwbb) December 23, 2024
There is already a ton of excitement around Ionescu (who is certainly one of women's basketball's biggest superstars) joining Unrivaled, and it's yet another massive win for the new league.
And a December 23 article from ESPN's Kendra Andrews conveys that it's a massive financial win for Ionescu.
"New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu has signed with the Unrivaled 3-on-3 league, it was announced Monday," Andrews wrote.
"The deal 'puts her in a category of her own' among the women participating in the new league, sources told ESPN on Monday."
Sabrina GOT PAID to join Unrivaled !!
— Vanshay Murdock 🎥🎥 (@VanshayM) December 23, 2024
MORE: https://t.co/Lxx0vIE8sI pic.twitter.com/16CnbnIe3g
It has been reported that Unrivaled's average player salary is $222,222 this season, but that each player will not receive an equal salary.
While it's unknown just how much Ionescu is getting paid, this ESPN report makes it clear that Unrivaled was willing to break the bank to bring the superstar and 2024 WNBA champion on board.
Ionescu will be joining the Phantom, where she’ll be playing alongside former University of Oregon teammate Satou Sabally, Connecticut Sun standout Marina Mabrey, Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner, Mercury guard Natasha Cloud, and Indiana Fever forward Katie Lou Samuelson.
Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.