Tackling WNBA pay disparity, star Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier founded the WNBA ‘Unrivaled’ league. In the latest update, there was news circulating about the league securing seed funding which had all the fans excited. As per CNBC, athletes will be given equity in the new league and will feature the highest contract opportunities. While most of the names of seed investors were expected, one that surprised everyone was that of the former NBA star Carmelo Anthony.
Anthony is famous for launching a Cannabis Brand StayMe7o Cannabis, some portion of the proceeds of it will go to a non-profit fighting the war on drugs. Meanwhile, with the latest announcement, Anthony joined reputed names such as Geno Auriemma, Ann & Richard Sarnoff, Moira Forbes, Gary Vaynerchuk, Ashton Kutcher, Dan Rosensweig, Desiree Gruber, Dan Benton, Tyus & Tre Jones. The standout names from the sporting field include that of Alex Morgan who is a professional soccer player and Stewart who plies her trade for the New York Liberty. Other names are that of Auriemma who is the UConn women’s head coach and the former Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash.
In addition to John Skipper (frmr ESPN Pres.) & David Levy (frmr Turner Pres.), other seed investors i/c Range Group, Geno Auriemma, Ann & Richard Sarnoff, Moira Forbes, Carmelo Anthony, Gary Vaynerchuk, Ashton Kutcher, Dan Rosensweig, Desiree Gruber, Dan Benton, Tyus & Tre Jones
— Arielle (Ari) Chambers (@ariivory) May 30, 2024
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
The league will feature some of the most revered players in the world. It will be a 3*3 format and will capitalize on the player’s skills. The players will utilize the full court but less than 94 feet. LED court will aesthetically please the fans and the game will last almost an hour. The league is set to begin in January next year and will have multi-year contracts for its stars.
The league, fortunately, comes at a time when there is much hype about the WNBA. Stars like Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark, and Cameron Brink among others have popularized the league. For the first time, the WNBA athletes were allowed to travel through charter planes arranged by the league. Therefore, Unrivaled can be sure of providing top-notch facilities to its stars.
Carmelo Anthony gives his takes on cannabis
Meanwhile, Anthony’s agency was launched in April this year and will hit the product on shelves in Oregon first. StayMe70 Cannabis was under the agency Grand National which operated with Lowd Cannabis executives. It has the CEO Jesce Horton and CCD Brandon Drew aka ‘Beedy’ on the list. The agency will focus on branding, strategy, advertising, and marketing in order to expand its hold.
Meanwhile, Anthony also talked about the benefits of cannabis. “I was always into the benefits and the science and education of cannabis. Over the years, I was studying it, paying attention to the industry, seeing where it was going, the trajectory, taking in the feedback. Given all the research, why not do it? Talk about the benefits of cannabis, what to consume, how to consume,” Anthony spoke as per Forbes.
Back then, Anthony had also spoken about the agency name ‘Grand National.’ He spoke about how the brand name reflected timelessness and also helped bring the businesses of all three partners together. “I grew up on the Grand National car, we just wanted to tap into something that was very timeless, combining the businesses of all three of us,” Anthony had said.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Fans can be sure that Anthony will bring his expertise to the basketball league and just how he has grown his cannabis business will help the league get more attention.
Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato had to say about the marketing genius, watch this video.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad