Indiana Fever’s Kelsey Mitchell, Sophie Cunningham remain committed to Europe’s Project B

LOS ANGELES – Indiana Fever stars Kelsey Mitchell and Sophie Cunningham remain committed to upstart women’s basketball league Project B, despite some earlier mixed messages about how the Women’s National Basketball Association’s (WNBA) new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) might affect their desire to play overseas.

Mitchell had told reporters on April 22 that it would take a “drastic, unique situation” to play overseas after the new CBA increased player salaries from a maximum of around US$250,000 (S$319,000) to US$1.4 million.

However, she told Front Office Sports on April 25 that the nature of Project B – a touring league with seven two-week long tournaments across Europe, Asia and Latin America from November 2026 to April 2027 – provides her with the flexibility to return to the United States in between the five-on-five league’s tournaments.

“There’s a big difference and I think people recognise what that difference is,” said Mitchell, a 2025 All-WNBA First-Team selection. “Project B gives you a chance to do both, go in and come out, whereas (with) overseas basketball you’ve gotta be over there, eight months or seven months, just to get everything you want.”

The 30-year-old will be entering her ninth WNBA season. She is a three-time All-Star and averaged a career-high 20.2 points last season and finished fifth in the Most Valuable Player balloting.

Her Fever teammate Cunningham is also still committed to playing for Project B, with which she said she initially signed out of a desire for “security” when it was unclear whether a 2026 WNBA season would take place amid the ongoing CBA talks.

Project B will reportedly pay out seven-figure salaries starting at US$2 million and offer players equity in the league.

“When they’re offering that type of money, plus the signing bonus, plus having equity in the company, it’s a no-brainer. I have financially smart people around me and they’re like, ‘You got to do it’,” said Cunningham, who spent her first six seasons with the Phoenix Mercury before being obtained by Indiana before last season.

“When companies pour into us, they really see our value,” the 29-year-old added. “That’s not just on the basketball court – that’s just in life as a businesswoman.”

Both players signed one-year deals with the Fever, with Mitchell making US$1.4 million on a supermax deal and Cunningham earning US$655,000 for the season.

Mitchell and Cunningham are among more than 10 players who have signed up for Project B and play is expected to begin in November and conclude in April 2027. REUTERS