Unrivaled has signed an Iowa Hawkeye – and may pave the way for another.

Las Vegas Aces rookie Kate Martin, Caitlin Clark’s college teammate, has agreed to a deal with the upstart women’s basketball league.

3

Unrivaled is a new 3-on-3 league that has recruited the best female basketball players in the world for its eight-week season, including Angel Reese.

There were only 30 places available, and after the announcement of Martín’s signing, 27 have been filled.

Three positions, with hopes Clark will accept one amid reports of a lucrative offer.

Martin appeared in 34 games with the Las Vegas Aces last season, averaging 2.6 points and 1.6 rebounds in 11 minutes per game.

The numbers don’t exactly jump off the page, but Martin is very close to former Iowa teammate Clark, something not many of the other 26 enrolled members bring to the party.

Unrivaled has set its sights on women’s basketball’s biggest star, with a ‘Lionel Messi-like’ deal on the table awaiting Clark.

The incomparable president, Alex Bazzell, confirmed this in an interview with sports business journal.

“We’re going to make that offer,” Bazzell said.

“It’s going to be a historic offer, but we’ll give him time to mentally escape basketball before we sit down and have that conversation.

3

“But one way or another, I think this league is made for stars, and I think we can move the needle in a different way for those stars and give them long-term advantages as well.”

It’s no secret that Clark is one of the most polarizing figures, not just in women’s basketball, but in all of sports.

Love her or hate her, she moves the needle.

She attracts attention.

And that’s what Bazzell is counting on.

He hopes they can sign Clark and she can make an impact as that global superstar. Messihas had in the MLS.

The hope would be for Clark to boost ticket sales and ratings for the television partner. TNT Sportswhile attracting big-name advertisers, which Clark has proven to do, after just one season in the WNBA.

3

Unrivaled was co-founded by Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier (Bazzell’s wife), hoping to create a league that will pay its 30 players the “highest salaries in the history of the professional women’s sports league.”

League sources confirmed Reception sports that Unrivaled will not take a one-size-fits-all approach to compensation. Instead, players will be paid on a sliding scale.

The bigger the star, the more they earn and there is no bigger star than Clark.

He’s going to have a big decision to make in the near future, and with one of his best friends now in the league, that decision may have just become a little easier.