On Friday night in Greensboro, North Carolina and Jacksonville, Florida, a new professional women’s basketball league will play its first games.
The Upshot League will embark on its ambitious debut season with the goal of providing chances for players to develop and prove themselves amongst other elite athletes. The teams are full of recognizable names — ones who were all-conference players in college and powered their teams to championships at the NCAA level, and some who were squeezed out of the WNBA.
Spearheading the Upshot League is Donna Orender, who once served as the president of the WNBA from 2005 to 2010 and before that worked for the PGA Tour for 17 years. In addition to being a co-founder of Upshot, she is also its commissioner.
“The Upshot League is about building something that the sports landscape, the basketball ecosystem and — most importantly — communities across the country are waiting for, ready for, and are looking for,” Orender said. “The appetite for (women’s basketball) has never been bigger, the talent pipeline has never been deeper, and yet there’s still enormous unmet demand for high level opportunities.”
Another co-founder of the Upshot League is Andy Kaufmann, who is also the CEO of Zawyer Sports & Entertainment, which owns and operates 15 minor league hockey, soccer and baseball teams throughout the U.S. — including in markets where Upshot will have teams based.
“The model was built off the success we’ve had at Zawyer Sports in the same arenas with NHL affiliated teams, which is sponsorship revenue, ticket sales revenue,” Kaufmann said. “It’s built for sustainability… We will grow over the long term. And we see this ultimately as a 30-team league nationwide.”
Former WNBA player Taj McWilliams-Franklin — a six-time All-Star and winner of two WNBA championships — will also play a big role in running the Upshot League as its Vice President of Basketball Operations.
“As someone who played in the ABL, the WNBA and overseas for multiple decades, I know how hard it is to get a leg up in any professional league,” McWilliams-Franklin said.
The success of the Upshot League by the general women’s-basketball-watching public will not be measured by just ticket sales, revenue and overall buzz, but also if its players can perform well enough in it to earn chances to make rosters in the WNBA. Leaders of the Upshot haven’t directly said that they want to be a minor or developmental league partner for the W, but ultimately, that is a void that it can fill.
“It is a league of opportunity,” Orender said. “We are creating a league where players can grow… I don’t see a similar league to us. I think we are really unique as we come out into the marketplace. We have carved out the space for elite athletes to play at the highest level.”
Orender added: “Of course, we recognize for all of us, the more reps you get at a high level of competition, the better you get. We also see ourselves as a natural addition to the overall basketball ecosystem.”
Here’s everything you need to know about the Upshot League:
How many teams are in the Upshot League?
In its inaugural season, Upshot will have four teams based primarily in the southeastern United States. There are two teams in North Carolina, the Charlotte Crown and Greensboro Groove, and then the Savannah Steel and Jacksonville Waves in Georgia and Florida, respectively.
The Crown will play in Bojangles Coliseum, the Waves will take the floor at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena, the Steel will feature at Enmarket Arena, and the Groove will play at the Novant Health Fieldhouse in the Greensboro Coliseum Complex.
The Upshot plans to add at least two more teams in 2027, with expansion plans for teams in Nashville, Tennessee and Baltimore, Maryland already announced.
“Make no doubt, we’re coming to the midwest, we’re coming to the Gulf, we’re coming to the northeast, we’re coming to the west coast,” Kaufmann said of future expansion. “Upshot is a national league.”
Currently, each team has 11 roster spots and two additional developmental spots.
2026: UCLA Bruins
2025: Connecticut Huskies
2024: South Carolina Gamecocks
2023: LSU Lady Tigers
2022: South Carolina Gamecocks
2021: Stanford Cardinal
2019: Baylor Lady Bears
2018: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
2017: South Carolina Gamecocks
2016: Connecticut Huskies
2015: Connecticut Huskies
2014: Connecticut Huskies
2013: Connecticut Huskies
2012: Baylor Bears
2011: Texas A&M Aggies
2010: Connecticut Huskies
2009: Connecticut Huskies
2008: Tennessee Lady Volunteers
2007: Tennessee Lady Volunteers
2006: Maryland Terrapins
2005: Baylor Lady Bears
2004: Connecticut Huskies
2003: Connecticut Huskies
2002: Connecticut Huskies
2001: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
2000: Connecticut Huskies1 / 26
NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2026: UCLA Bruins
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2026: UCLA Bruins
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2025: Connecticut Huskies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2024: South Carolina Gamecocks
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2023: LSU Lady Tigers
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2022: South Carolina Gamecocks
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2021: Stanford Cardinal
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2019: Baylor Lady Bears
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2018: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2017: South Carolina Gamecocks
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2016: Connecticut Huskies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2015: Connecticut Huskies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2014: Connecticut Huskies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2013: Connecticut Huskies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2012: Baylor Bears
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2011: Texas A&M Aggies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2010: Connecticut Huskies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2009: Connecticut Huskies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2008: Tennessee Lady Volunteers
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2007: Tennessee Lady Volunteers
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2006: Maryland Terrapins
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2005: Baylor Lady Bears
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2004: Connecticut Huskies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2003: Connecticut Huskies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2002: Connecticut Huskies
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2001: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
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NCAA women's basketball tournament champions since 2000
2000: Connecticut Huskies
Who is playing in the Upshot League?
The rosters are filled with many players who were college stars, and some who were either WNBA Draft picks or even spent some time playing in the top-tier pro women’s basketball league.
AD Durr is one notable name, playing for Charlotte. After twice winning the ACC Player of the Year award at Louisville, Durr was the second overall pick in the 2019 WNBA Draft by the New York Liberty, but hasn’t played in the WNBA since spending the 2023 season with the Atlanta Dream.
Other noteworthy names include three-time All-Big Ten selection Shyanne Sellers, former Ivy League Player of the Year Harmoni Turner, three-time All-ACC selection Deja Kelly, former MEAC Player of the Year Diamond Johnson, and Tennessee’s Zee Spearman — who was selected in the third round of this year’s WNBA Draft. Kelly, after starring at North Carolina and Oregon in college, impressed in preseason action with the Las Vegas Aces last year but didn’t make the regular season roster. Sellers was drafted by the Golden State Valkyries in the second round last year and also spent time in WNBA camp this year with the Dallas Wings.
“Something that drew me — I mean, obviously, getting cut is really tough — but to have another opportunity to go against some of the best people in the world. And at the end of the day, I love basketball, so this is just what I do,” said Sellers, who will play for Jacksonville. “I felt like, why not be the first? Why not be the ones to grow this and expand this league and see what we can do with it.”
Former South Carolina guard LeLe Grissett, who played in 150 games for Dawn Staley’s program, recently signed with the Charlotte Crown as well.
Full rosters can be found at this link.
Who are the coaches in the Upshot League?
The head coaches of the four teams this season are Trisha Stafford-Odom in Charlotte, Janice Washington in Greensboro, Jessica Bogia in Jacksonville and Coretta Brown in Savannah.
Stafford-Odom, who was an All-Pac-10 player at Cal, had a long career as an assistant coach at the Division I level with stops at UCLA, Duke and North Carolina. She was most recently the head coach at NC Central for six seasons.
Washington, who was a record-setting player at Campbell, was most recently the head coach at Division II Lincoln where she led the team to the NCAA Tournament. She was also the head coach at a junior college, Daytona State.
Bogia has two decades’ worth of college coaching experience with stops at Hofstra, Jacksonville, Memphis, Eastern Illinois, Buffalo and Keystone College.
A three-time All-ACC selection for Sylvia Hatchell at North Carolina, Brown played four seasons in the WNBA and has been a Division I assistant coach at Tennessee Tech, Georgia Southern and Eastern Kentucky.
“I’ve always been a player’s coach,” Brown said. “And so, it’s another opportunity for me to help these young women reach those new heights and an amazing opportunity for them to continue to go up.”
Learns where these WNBA stars went to high school starting with Cheryl Miller, who attended Riverside Polytechnic High School in Riverside, California. She went on to play college basketball at the University of Southern California.
Diana Taurasi, Don Antonio Lugo High School (CA)
Sue Bird, Christ the King Regional High School (NY)
Candace Parker, Naperville Central High School (IL)
Maya Moore, Collins Hill High School (GA)
Tamika Catchings, Duncanville High School (TX)
Caitlin Clark, West Des Moines Dowling High School (IA)
Sylvia Fowles, Gulliver Preparatory School (FL)
Nancy Lieberman, Far Rockaway High School (NY)
Sheryl Swoopes #22, Brownfield High School (TX)
Breanna Stewart, Cicero-North Syracuse High School (NY)
A’ja Wilson, Heathwood Hall Episcopal School (SC)
Elena Delle Donne, Ursuline Academy (DE)
Brittney Griner, Nimitz High School (TX)
Dawn Staley, Murrell Dobbins High School (PA)
Lynette Woodard, Wichita North High School (KS)
Nneka Ogwumike, Cypress Fairbanks High School (TX)
Olympic Legend Ann Meyers Drysdale (R) and daughter Drew / Sonora High School (CA)
Cynthia Cooper, Locke High School (CA)
Lusia Harris, Amanda Elzy High School (MS)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Learns where these WNBA stars went to high school starting with Cheryl Miller, who attended Riverside Polytechnic High School in Riverside, California. She went on to play college basketball at the University of Southern California.
1 / 20
Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Learns where these WNBA stars went to high school starting with Cheryl Miller, who attended Riverside Polytechnic High School in Riverside, California. She went on to play college basketball at the University of Southern California.
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Diana Taurasi, Don Antonio Lugo High School (CA)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Sue Bird, Christ the King Regional High School (NY)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Candace Parker, Naperville Central High School (IL)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Maya Moore, Collins Hill High School (GA)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Tamika Catchings, Duncanville High School (TX)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Caitlin Clark, West Des Moines Dowling High School (IA)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Sylvia Fowles, Gulliver Preparatory School (FL)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Nancy Lieberman, Far Rockaway High School (NY)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Sheryl Swoopes #22, Brownfield High School (TX)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Breanna Stewart, Cicero-North Syracuse High School (NY)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
A’ja Wilson, Heathwood Hall Episcopal School (SC)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Elena Delle Donne, Ursuline Academy (DE)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Brittney Griner, Nimitz High School (TX)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Dawn Staley, Murrell Dobbins High School (PA)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Lynette Woodard, Wichita North High School (KS)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Nneka Ogwumike, Cypress Fairbanks High School (TX)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Olympic Legend Ann Meyers Drysdale (R) and daughter Drew / Sonora High School (CA)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Cynthia Cooper, Locke High School (CA)
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Who's women's basketball's GOAT? 21 players to debate
Lusia Harris, Amanda Elzy High School (MS)
What sponsors and investors are involved in the Upshot League?
The balls that teams will play with are provided by Molten, the same product used by some international FIBA tournaments. The Upshot League is the first American-based professional basketball league to partner with Molten. The brand also provides balls for the NCAA volleyball tournament and CONCACAF competitions in soccer.
Shaquille O’Neal’s DUNKMAN brand is the official uniform provider.
Women’s basketball legends like Tamika Catchings, Cheryl Miller and Ann Meyers Drysdale are investors in the Upshot League.
“We’ve already raised $40 million,” Kaufmann said of investment in the league. “We have over 90 partners, all equally amazing… Really, we came together, all with similar hearts and minds and passion and commitment, and I’m super proud of the group that came together to fund the start of this long term, sustainable, amazing opportunity for a professional women’s basketball league.”
How to watch games in the Upshot League
All of the Upshot League’s games will be broadcast live on its free YouTube channel. The league has also partnered with Scripps’ new FAST channel platform for a 15-game national broadcasting slate.
Additionally, games can be watched on local over-the-air channels in each of the four markets. Charlotte’s WCCB will carry 24 live games and 10 more on delay, Greensboro’s WMYV will have seven live broadcasts, Jacksonville’s WXJT will air nine games, and Savannah’s WJCL will have four live broadcasts.
The Upshot League will also be spotlighted on Action Sports Jax’s weekly women’s sports show, “Talk It Up.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Upshot League: What to know about players, coaches, how to watch
