Sabrina Ionescu, a Liberty player, has entered the Unrivaled league, leaving Caitlin Clark out.
The guard is Unrivaled's final addition for Phantom BC's WNBA champion inaugural season. Ionescu helped New York win its first championship this year before joining the off-season league.
She postponed her announcement while recovering from a right thumb procedure this month to fix her ulnar collateral ligament, which she broke in the WNBA Finals. The 27-year-old wrote on social media, “Getting my thumb fixed was quite the bday present.” She was unaware of the treatment until after the finals.
According to ESPN's Kendra Andrews, Unrivaled called Ionescu's signing a "historic agreement" and said she would earn a wage that "puts her in a category of her own," among the 36 players in the season. Her contract is unknown, but the league's pay pool exceeds $8 million.
WNBA Rookie of the Year Clark cannot play in the 3v3 league because the Liberty star is in. Clark's fans hoped for a late surprise addition, but Ionescu's announcement leaves no room on the roster. Clark declined Unirvaled's offer of nearly $1 million for the eight-week league's initial season.
Ionescu joins the league, formed by Liberty teammates Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier, to give WNBA players an alternative to playing overseas in the winter and the ability to compete against the greatest players in the world.
The 2020 No. 1 pick will play Natasha Cloud, Brittney Griner, Marina Mabrey, Satou Sabally, and Katie Lou Samuelson for Phantom BC under Adam Harrington.
The former Oregon Ducks standout hopes to maintain her strong league form into the new competition, averaging 18.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 6.2 assists.
Ionescu earned her third straight All-Star and All-WNBA selection and sixth in MVP voting. She helped Team USA win gold at the summer Paris Olympics.
Early this year, league co-founder Collier said: "For a long time, going overseas was the only choice for offseasons, so this is altering the narrative and giving another option. Players can make money, play basketball, and improve overseas, but it shouldn't be their only option."