Top WNBA free agents Courtney Vandersloot, Breanna Stewart and Emma Meesseman are joining forces for EuroLeague club Fenerbahce this offseason.
Vandersloot signed with the Turkish team this week and will join the team on Feb. 15. While her deal creates a veritable superteam, it also creates questions for the players and the WNBA due to a controversial new rule.
The prioritization rule requires WNBA players to return from overseas play by the time the league opens its season on May 19. Players who fail to do so will be ineligible to play in 2023.
The EuroLeague playoffs are set to end April 16, in plenty of time for the Fenerbahce players and others to return in time for the start of WNBA training camps on April 30. But in 2022, the Turkish league playoffs did not end until May 15; if the 2023 schedule follows a similar footprint, then Vandersloot, Stewart and others could face a quick turnaround.
How does the prioritization rule work? And how did it come to be? Just Women’s Sports breaks down the answers.
How does the prioritization rule work?
The rule requires players to prioritize the WNBA over international leagues. It was codified in the 2020 collective bargaining agreement but goes into effect for the first time for the 2023…
