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JuJu Watkins, Flau’Jae Johnson and Azzi Fudd are three of 14 top women’s college basketball players that Unrivaled is signing to name, image and likeness deals, the league announced Saturday.
It’s the second consecutive year that the 3-on-3 league that was founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart has had NIL with college players. In its inaugural season, Unrivaled had deals with Paige Bueckers and Johnson.
Watkins, who plays for USC but is sidelined with an ACL injury, has also previously been involved with Unrivaled as an investor in its Series A funding round.
Johnson, who is at LSU, and Fudd, at UConn, both were on hand for the announcement, as were Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo and UConn’s Sarah Strong.
Other players signed include TCU’s Olivia Miles, UCLA’s Kiki Rice and Lauren and Sienna Betts, Texas’ Madison Booker, Iowa State’s Audi Crooks, LSU’s MiLaysia Fulwiley, South Carolina’s Ta’Niya Latson and Michigan’s Syla Swords. The players range from sophomores to seniors.
Women’s basketball players have been able to take advantage of NIL opportunities over the last few years with Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Bueckers and Johnson at the forefront of it. Reese played in Unrivaled in its first season.
[MORE: Top 10 Women’s College Basketball Players with the Highest NIL Valuations]
As a part of the initiative, the category will probably be attending a multi-day occasion on the league’s headquarters in Miami, which can embody talent improvement and content material shoots.
“This transformational, first-of-its-kind initiative brings collectively the very best of the very best and displays our deep dedication to elevating the ladies’s sport and holistically supporting athletes,” Luke Cooper, President of Basketball Operations at Unmatched, mentioned within the initiative’s announcement. “Investing in elite ladies’s basketball expertise is central to Unmatched’s mission.”
Unmatched accomplished its inaugural season this previous March, and is gearing up for its second this coming January.
Reporting by The Related Press.
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