{"id":113045,"date":"2025-08-02T13:16:10","date_gmt":"2025-08-02T13:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/113045\/"},"modified":"2025-08-02T13:16:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-02T13:16:10","slug":"flaujae-johnsons-reasons-for-joining-unrivaled-resurface-as-major-moves-at-wnba-all-star-weekend-dictate-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/113045\/","title":{"rendered":"Flau\u2019jae Johnson\u2019s Reasons for Joining Unrivaled Resurface As Major Moves at WNBA All-Star Weekend Dictate Future"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Flau\u2019jae Johnson\u2019s endorsement of Unrivaled carries serious weight in women\u2019s college basketball. When one of LSU\u2019s\u00a0biggest stars throws her support behind the professional 3-on-3 league, people pay attention. Her partnership with Unrivaled shows how the league is building bridges between college and professional basketball, creating opportunities that didn\u2019t exist before.<\/p>\n<p>    Why Did Flau\u2019jae Johnson Choose Unrivaled Over Other Options?<\/p>\n<p>Unrivaled made some smart moves during the WNBA All-Star Weekend, and the timing couldn\u2019t have been better for the league\u2019s growth. The 3-on-3 league announced NIL deals with 14 of college basketball\u2019s biggest names, with Johnson and JuJu Watkins\u00a0leading the group.<\/p>\n<p>Johnson didn\u2019t hold back when explaining what drew her to the league. \u201cUnrivaled was lit. When I watched the first game, I was like, this is real. It was super professional and catered to the athletes,\u201d Johnson <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DM0ioa3vC_6\/?img_index=4&amp;igsh=aGQzNGJxZ244dG45\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow noreferrer\">explained<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The LSU guard sees even bigger things ahead for the league. \u201cIt\u2019s going to get more and more active, more and more competitive. I don\u2019t know what\u2019s happening in the back, but I think there\u2019s just going to be more incentive to turn up,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-captioned=\"\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DM0ioa3vC_6\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\">\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>What Makes This Partnership Different From Johnson\u2019s Previous Deals?<\/p>\n<p>Johnson\u2019s relationship with Unrivaled has evolved since she first joined. Her initial December 2024 NIL deal included equity in the league, giving her an ownership stake. However, her July 2025 renewal\u00a0follows the standard NIL format without additional equity.<\/p>\n<p>The 14 college players who signed represent elite talent across women\u2019s basketball. USC\u2019s JuJu Watkins, UConn\u2019s Azzi Fudd, and Notre Dame\u2019s Hannah Hidalgo\u00a0joined Johnson in this partnership, creating a showcase of the sport\u2019s future stars.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">NEWS: Unrivaled is signing 14 women\u2019s college basketball players to NIL deals.<\/p>\n<p>The signing class includes players such as JuJu Watkins, Lauren Betts, Hannah Hidalgo, Azzi Fudd and Flau\u2019jae Johnson. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/qOx6qAgtH6\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/qOx6qAgtH6<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 The Athletic (@TheAthletic) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheAthletic\/status\/1946676546280010134?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow noreferrer\">July 19, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>The WNBA All-Star Weekend provided perfect timing for these announcements. With women\u2019s basketball popularity soaring, Unrivaled used the spotlight to showcase their commitment to developing college stars.<\/p>\n<p>Beyond the financial benefits, Johnson sees value in what Unrivaled offers athletes. The league focuses on professional competition, player-friendly policies, and opportunities that traditional leagues don\u2019t always provide. For a player balancing basketball and music careers, this flexibility matters.<\/p>\n<p>Johnson\u2019s influence extends far beyond her on-court performance. As one of college basketball\u2019s most recognizable faces, her endorsement carries weight with fans and fellow players alike. When she speaks positively about Unrivaled, others listen.<\/p>\n<p>This partnership positions Unrivaled perfectly for future growth in women\u2019s basketball. Having Johnson as both partner and advocate gives the league credibility as they expand their reach. Her genuine enthusiasm for the league\u2019s mission resonates with fans and creates momentum for upcoming seasons.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Flau\u2019jae Johnson\u2019s endorsement of Unrivaled carries serious weight in women\u2019s college basketball. When one of LSU\u2019s\u00a0biggest stars throws&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":113046,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[62,67,132,68,232],"class_list":{"0":"post-113045","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wnba","8":"tag-sports","9":"tag-united-states","10":"tag-unitedstates","11":"tag-us","12":"tag-wnba"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114959363874334107","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113045","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=113045"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113045\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/113046"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=113045"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=113045"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=113045"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}