The strongest collection of talent in Athletes Unlimited Basketball history will be on display this season in Nashville as the women’s professional league kicks off its fifth championship season.
The 40-player roster features a mix of veterans and rising pros, with 20 returning players and 20 newcomers gracing the court at Nashville’s Municipal Auditorium.
The four-week season opens Wednesday, Feb. 4 and finishes Sunday, March 1. Tickets are available for around $20, and games will be broadcast on ESPN platforms and the WNBA app.
It’s the second season the league has been played in Nashville after previously calling Las Vegas (2022) and Dallas (2023, 2024) home.
“We’re excited to be back in Nashville. The city has provided such a warm welcome, and it’s an amazing destination for women’s basketball and for our players and their experience,” says Megan Perry, vice president of AU Basketball. “Nashville is rich with women’s basketball history and a place that deserves to have professional women’s basketball available to it and on display.”
Among the WNBA veterans taking part in AU this season are Tina Charles, the all-time WNBA leader in rebounds and field goals made, Ariel Atkins, Alysha Clark, Kia Nurse, Aerial Powers, Odyssey Sims, Kiah Stokes, Brianna Turner, Lexie Brown and Bria Hartley. The younger crop of players includes Aneesha Morrow, Nalyssa Smith, Te-Hina Paopao, Grace Berger, Jacy Sheldon, Zia Cooke, Deja Kelly, Jaylyn Sherrod and Aaliyah Nye.
Several AU players have Tennessee ties, including Clark, a Mt. Juliet native, who starred at Middle Tennessee State, and Nashville natives Isabelle Harrison (University of Tennessee) and her younger sister Dorie Harrison (Lipscomb).
Former Lady Vols standout Mercedes Russell, a two-time WNBA champion with Seattle, is returning for the first time since the inaugural season in 2022.
Collectively, the AU roster consists of 18 players selected in the first round of the WNBA Draft and 20 players who earned All-America honors in college.
They will be competing for $500,000 in prize bonuses through AU’s innovative scoring system, where athletes accumulate individual points during each game for various categories in a quest to be crowned the overall individual champion.
AU teams change on a weekly basis following a draft process, and a running leaderboard is kept to track each athlete’s individual standing. This season, the league is debuting team names and logos: Gold Rush, Glow, Rhythm and Eclipse.
“I am really excited about playing in this league for the first time,” says Sheldon, a 2024 Ohio State graduate and guard for the WNBA Washington Mystics. “I love the way the league is set up. I love the girls they get year in and year out. I love the roster this year, so I’m looking forward to it. I think it’s a really good opportunity.”
Growing the game
AU was the first winter pro women’s basketball league to launch in the United States when it began in 2022 and remains the only 5-on-5 pro basketball opportunity for players domestically outside of the WNBA.
This AU season comes amid the backdrop of an ongoing labor dispute between the WNBA and the players union. The sides have been locked in negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement, with much of the disagreement centered around salary and revenue sharing. Given the uncertainty of the upcoming season, some WNBA players have joined AU while in a waiting pattern about the future.
“The CBA is obviously something that we’re focusing on right now. That’s super important, and a chance for us to change some things that have needed to change for a while,” Sheldon says. “We’re staying in the loop there and obviously want to come to an agreement to make things a little better.”
Kelly, who went undrafted out of Oregon in 2025, is making her professional debut in Nashville with AU. Kelly signed a training camp contract with the Las Vegas Aces last year but didn’t make the regular season roster. The WNBA is adding two new expansion teams this season, and Kelly is hoping she can showcase her potential during AU to gain attention from WNBA coaches and general managers.
“I’ve seen so many players develop like crazy and get opportunities in the W post-AU,” says Kelly, who played four years at the University of North Carolina before transferring to Oregon for her final college season. “Just seeing all the opportunities that come from it – even opportunities outside of basketball – I think that’s something that’s super important, and something that was so intriguing to me to join the league.”
Upgrading the experience
The professional basketball opportunities for women domestically have expanded over the last few years as the sport has surged in popularity. Instead of having to remain overseas for months at a time, players can stay in the United States and compete.
Unrivaled, a 3-on-3 league backed by WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier, launched last year in Florida with a season that runs from January-March. A new league, Project B, is scheduled to launch in 2027 and will be a global circuit season format with stops in the U.S. that runs from November through April.
Perry doesn’t view the options as a threat, but rather a complement.
“The expansion of the ecosystem and having more people buy in is a good thing for women’s basketball. This is what we wanted,” Perry says. “The community has been asking for growth, and I think this is part of the growth process to create more opportunities. I think for AU, we see it as very distinct differences among the different options. I think that’s important, and that’s OK, because every player needs something different. And here at AU, we offer amazing, high-quality 5-on-5 basketball, and it serves a number of players who are looking to compete at a high level.”
AU has worked with its player executive committee to try to improve the product each season. This year, the league has added more skill development opportunities and strength and conditioning options. It has an expanded coaching pool that includes former NBA player Dee Brown, the father of AU player Lexie Brown, as a player enhancement specialist, and will be implementing innovative broadcast features.
“We’re not the new thing on the block anymore. We’re established and I think that has resonated with our followers,” Perry says. “We’re entering season five and we’ve tested some things and figured some things out, and we continue to grow. We continue to get better. We continue to elevate season after season.”
Community impacts
Sheila Gibson was a member of the Nashville Sports Council last year when the city and AU agreed to a deal to bring the league to Middle Tennessee.
Gibson says both parties have benefited from the arrangement.
“In 2025, I challenged Nashville to show up and embrace these amazing athletes and show them the support they deserve. The AU athletes brought their A-game and Nashville embraced them and delivered the support,” Gibson says. “I am confident Nashville will continue to support these professional women athletes this season and show the world how Nashville champions top-level talent and inspires our community of next generation female athletes.”
Throughout their stay in Nashville, AU athletes will be engaging with the community, including reading to children in local elementary schools and interacting with fans at other planned activities.
The sense of belonging and camaraderie is part of what attracted Kelly to join AU.
“I wanted to be a part of such a joyful league. That’s just what it looks like from the outside looking in,” Kelly says. “From what I’ve seen, the girls genuinely just have so much fun just hooping and competing. That is what I need right now too. I’m excited to get better.
“I’m excited to learn from the vets around me. I’m gonna really take advantage of trying to learn and grow from that.”