WNBA champs Mercedes Russell and Lexie Brown are among the new players announced as part of the overall pool of 44.
Athletes Unlimited has confirmed its full list of 44 players who will compete in its first-ever women’s basketball league season, the company announced Tuesday.
Among the 31 newly announced players include star Indiana Fever star Kelsey Mitchell, WNBA champ Lexie Brown of the Chicago Sky, and Seattle Storm center Mercedes Russell. The trio joins previously announced stars who will compete from Jan. 26 to Feb. 26 in Las Vegas like Natasha Cloud, Sydney Colson, Ty Young, Courtney Williams, Tianna Hawkins, and Odyssey Sims.
“I am honored and thrilled to be part of Athletes Unlimited’s inaugural basketball season,” said Mitchell, who was No. 8 in the WNBA in scoring last season at 17.8 points per game. “AU offers women another opportunity to play professional basketball in the United States and will provide national television exposure that will help us grow the game we love to play.”
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Athlete’s Unlimited will play nationally televised basketball games on CBS Sports Network, Fox Sports 2 ,and on Bally Sports’ regional sports networks. Other notable names on the full roster include Atlanta Dream center Kalani Brown, Dallas Wings forward Isabelle Harrison, and former Dallas, Atlanta, and Chicago center Imani McGee-Stafford.
Becca Wann-Taylor, Taj Cole, Briahanna Jackson, and Takoia Larry earned AU roster spots from open tryouts that took place last month in Atlanta.
“We are very pleased with the diverse and dynamic Athletes Unlimited Basketball roster for our inaugural season,” said Kristen Miles, Athletes Unlimited’s Director of Basketball. “True to our intentions from the beginning, we are providing an additional opportunity for women to play professional basketball in the U.S., whether on a current roster or not. A whole new breed of women’s pro hoops is soon to be unleashed on Las Vegas, and these incredible athletes will surely make for a historic first season that can’t be missed.”
2022 Athletes Unlimited Basketball Roster
| POS. | NAME | HOME TOWN | COLLEGE | CURRENT TEAM |
| G | Ciara Andrews | Glenside, Pa. | Saint Joseph’s ‘16 | – |
| G/F | Antoinette Bannister | Jacksonville, Fla. | East Carolina ‘17 | – |
| C | Kalani Brown | Slidell, La. | Baylor ‘19 | Hatayspor (KBSL-Turkey) |
| G | Lexie Brown | Suwanee, Ga. | Duke ‘18 | Chicago Sky (WNBA) |
| G | Kirby Burkholder | Bridgewater, Va. | James Madison ‘14 | Santurce (BSNF-Puerto Rico) |
| G | Marjorie Butler | Knoxville, Tenn. | Georgia ‘16 | – |
| G/F | DiJonai Carrington | San Diego, Calif. | Stanford ‘20 | Connecticut Sun (WNBA) |
| G | Essence Carson | Paterson, N.J. | Rutgers ’08 | – |
| G/F | Brittany Carter | St. Louis, Mo. | Ball State ‘14 | Keltern (DBBL-Germany) |
| G | Natasha Cloud | Broomall, Pa. | St. Joseph’s ‘15 | Washington Mystics (WNBA) |
| G | Taj Cole | Richmond, Va. | Georgia ‘19 | Unicaja Málaga (LF2-Spain) |
| G | Sydney Colson | Houston, Texas | Texas A&M ‘11 | – |
| F/C | Drew Edelman | Sunnyvale, Calif. | USC ’16 | Hollywood Wonder (WUBA) |
| F/C | Nikki Greene | Diboll, Texas | Penn State ‘13 | Angers (LFB-France) |
| F | Kiki Harrigan | Pembroke Pines, Fla. | South Carolina ’20 | Seattle Storm (WNBA) |
| G | Rebecca Harris | Belleville, Ill. | Illinois ‘08 | Dynamo NPU (SuperLeague-Ukraine) |
| F | Isabelle Harrison | Nashville, Tenn. | Tennessee ‘15 | Dallas Wings (WNBA) |
| F | Tianna Hawkins | Washington, D.C. | Maryland ‘13 | Atlanta Dream (WNBA) |
| G | Ariel Hearn | Memphis, Tenn. | Memphis ‘16 | Sherbrooke Suns (Big V-Australia) |
| G | Grace Hunter | Raleigh, N.C. | NC State ‘20 | |
| G | Briahanna Jackson | Tampa, Fla. | Louisville ‘17 | Club Aztks (LMBPF-Mexico) |
| G/F | Meme Jackson | Murfreesboro, Tenn. | Tennessee ‘19 | Santurce (BSNF-Puerto Rico) |
| G | Tyce Knox | Humble, Texas | Texas A&M ‘17 | – |
| F | Jessica Kuster | San Antonio, Texas | Rice ‘14 | – |
| F | Takoia Larry | South Bend, Ind. | Texas Wesleyan ‘14 | – |
| F | Jantel Lavender | Cleveland, Ohio | Ohio State ‘11 | Indiana Fever (WNBA) |
| C | Akela Maize | Greensboro, N.C. | NC State ‘18 | La Glacerie (LF2-France) |
| F | Lauren Manis | Franklin, Mass. | Holy Cross ‘20 | Cegledi (NB I/A-Hungary) |
| G/F | Danielle L. McCray | Olathe, Kan. | Kansas ‘10 | Poznan (EBLK-Poland) |
| F | Danielle M. McCray | West Palm Beach, Fla. | Ole Miss ‘16 | Hannover (DBBL-Germany) |
| C | Imani McGee-Stafford | Los Angeles, Calif. | Texas ‘16 | – |
| G | Laurin Mincy | Newark, N.J. | Maryland ‘15 | – |
| G | Kelsey Mitchell | Cincinnati, Ohio | Ohio State ‘18 | Indiana Fever (WNBA) |
| F | Chelsea Phillips | Long Beach, Calif. | Park | FSV Rijeka (Premijer Liga-Croatia) |
| F | Toccara Ross | Davenport, Iowa | Iowa State ‘09 | Pioneras de Delicias (LBE-Mexico) |
| G | Tina Roy | Kaplan, La. | South Carolina ‘16 | – |
| C | Mercedes Russell | Springfield, Ore. | Tennessee ‘18 | Seattle Storm (WNBA) |
| G | Odyssey Sims | Irving, Texas | Baylor ‘14 | Atlanta Dream (WNBA) |
| G | Antoinette Thompson | Fort Worth, Texas | TCU ‘12 | Saarlouis (DBBL-Germany) |
| G | Destinee Walker | Orlando, Fla. | North Carolina ‘19 | Niki Lefkadas (A1 National-Greece) |
| G/F | Becca Wann-Taylor | Chesterfield, Va. | Richmond ‘14 | – |
| G | Courtney Williams | Folkston, Ga. | South Florida ‘16 | Atlanta Dream (WNBA) |
| G | Dominique Wilson | Powder Springs, Ga. | NC State ‘17 | Wroclaw (EBLK-Poland) |
| G/F | Ty Young | Wilmington, N.C. | James Madison ‘08 | Manati (BSNF-Puerto Rico) |
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