Nigerian-born female basketball star, Nneka Ogwumike has etched her name in the history books by becoming the first player to sign up for a new women’s league that was recently launched in the United States of America.
Sports247 learnt that Ogwumike, who opted out a call-up by Nigeria and won two FIBA Woman’s World Cup gold nedals with USA, signed on Wednesday with the new championship tagged Project B, thereby becoming the first player to publicly recognize the latest women’s professional basketball league.
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The chief basketball officer for Project B, Alana Beard disclosed that the league has signed some current Woman’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) players like Ogwumike, who will receive equity and a salary that ‘cannot be matched elsewhere in the sport.’
Beard added that she considers Ogwumike as a sister and they have known each other since the Nigerian-born star’s first year in the WNBA, when they were teammates at Los Angeles Sparks.
The were both part of The Sparks’ 2016 WNBA title-winning team and Beard knows that Ogwumike’s agreement with Project B comes at a critical time for the WNBA.
This is because she is the current president of the players’ union (WNBPA), which is trying to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement with the league.
However, Project B would give the 35-year-old Ogwumike an opportunity to play regularly, which she last did when she spent winters in Russia and Poland, but she has not played in Europe since 2019.
Ogwumike said.
“It’s not something that’s usually offered to us, and by us, I mean women athletes. So, for there to be an entry level of equity across the board was eye-catching. It’s something that I stand for.
“There’s so many different opportunities for players outside of (the WNBA) and that’s always been the case. This is just another one of those opportunities.
“I know that a lot of players are doing what they can to ensure that they can maximize on the short time that they have in their playing careers. This is my chance to be able to do that.”
