Skylar Diggins-Smith Joins Unrivaled Basketball League

Skylar Diggins-Smith Sets the Stage for Women’s Sports

The list of WNBA stars slated to participate in the Unrivaled Basketball League continues to grow. On Thursday, the league’s official social media accounts announced that Seattle Storm point guard Skylar Diggins-Smith will head to Miami during the WNBA offseason to participate in the brand-new 3x3 league for the sport’s top players. Unrivaled is set to launch in January, run for 8 weeks, and include 30 of the WNBA's best players — 17 of whom have already been announced.

The league was founded by stars Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart and offers a minimum salary of $100,000, along with player equity. It will include six teams with five players each, and 3x3 games will be played on a compressed full court for four quarters.

Skylar Diggins-Smith's Impact on Women's Professional Basketball

Skylar Diggins-Smith is a six-time All-Star and has been named to the All-WNBA team six times as well. Historically, she has not played overseas during the WNBA offseason. For her career, she has averaged 16.4 points and 5.1 assists per game.

This season, she’s averaging 13.8 points and 6.5 assists per game. The Storm are currently 19-11, good for fourth overall in the WNBA standings. Earlier this week, Diggins-Smith criticized her team’s effort in a loss to the Mystics.

Her participation underscores her significance as a prolific guard in the WNBA over the past decade. Diggins-Smith was a member of the U.S. Olympic team that won gold in Tokyo and currently ranks 33rd in WNBA history scoring. Additionally, at age 34, she becomes the oldest player to join Unrivaled so far.

Diggins-Smith’s involvement could signal the participation of other league veterans, not just young stars. WNBA All-Stars like Alyssa Thomas, DeWanna Bonner, Diana Taurasi, and Brittney Griner have yet to publicly commit to Unrivaled, but Diggins-Smith's decision may encourage them to join.

Her opportunity to play in Unrivaled highlights the changing landscape around professional women’s basketball in the U.S. With Diggins-Smith’s addition, 17 WNBA players have now committed to playing in Unrivaled this winter, with more names expected to be unveiled soon.