Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball is set to return to Nashville this winter, bringing players from across Middle Tennessee, the WNBA and the country back to Nashville Municipal Auditorium. The league held its first season in Nashville last year and rode a surge in popularity for women’s basketball, setting attendance and merch sales records for its four-year history.
The new season, which tips off Feb. 4, will feature WNBA champions like Syd Colson and Theresa Plaisance; Nashville natives Alysha Clark (also a three-time champion) and Izzy and Dorie Harrison; younger stars like Te-Hina Paopao and Aneesah Morrow; and all-time great Tina Charles. And with the 2026 WNBA season in jeopardy thanks to stalled negotiations between the league and the players’ union, Athletes Unlimited provides a guaranteed spot to see high-level hoops in the U.S.
The Scene spoke to AU veteran Izzy Harrison and newcomer Aneesah Morrow during a preseason visit to Nashville this week. Both players say they’re excited to see expanded opportunities for players, especially within the United States.
The pro women’s league just wrapped up its season at Municipal Auditorium
“The viewership is continuously growing, and people are investing into the sport, [and] everybody sees why it is so lit,” Harrison tells the Scene. “I know it's going to grow even more."
Athletes Unlimited was founded in 2022, before players like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese helped fuel a massive wave of interest in women’s basketball in 2024. The league provides a place to ply their trade stateside during the WNBA offseason, which is especially important in a sport where even the biggest stars have historically played overseas to supplement income.
“Being able to stay home and play is the best part of it all,” says Harrison, who’s played on teams based in South Korea, Poland and beyond. “Honestly, I've missed so many big events — from my family to nieces and nephews growing up, weddings — and my own brand development.”
Harrison in 2025 joined AU’s Player Executive Committee, which leads decisionmaking for the league. She says a successful AU season wouldn’t just mean a great fan experience and packed stands at Municipal Auditorium (although she and sister Dorie alone brought dozens of fans throughout the 2024 season). She wants to provide better opportunities for players like Morrow, who hasn’t needed to play abroad during her young career.
"They have no idea what it used to be like," Harrison says, laughing. "But you know, that's the reason why we build and we grow and connect, so younger players can get these opportunities. It makes us happy."
The Athletes Unlimited league uses a unique scoring system that emphasizes efficient individual performance, and the champion each season is an individual player rather than a team. That gives players a chance to showcase their individual skills. Last season, several players earned larger roles and call-ups to the WNBA on the back of strong AU performances.
Aneesah Morrow, a promising forward who just wrapped her first season in the WNBA after graduating from LSU in 2025, says she’s enjoyed getting to know her AU teammates and competitors during her first trip to Nashville.Â
"When it comes down to AU, [you’re] able to go to another league and it be player-driven,” Morrow says. “You have that player leadership, and it translates."Â
And even though she’s new to the professional leagues, Morrow is aware she’s playing during a “very historic time” for the sport.
“Being able to see that and be around it and see how much growth every year is just crazy,” she says.
The increased attention on women’s sports has brought huge profits for the WNBA and its franchises, but even the biggest stars have said they haven’t necessarily shared in the benefits. Ahead of the WNBA Finals, Minnesota Lynx superstar Napheesa Collier said the WNBA had “the worst leadership in the world” and called for better player compensation and improved officiating, among other changes.
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The collective bargaining agreement between the WNBA and the players’ union is set to expire at the end of November, which could lead to a players’ strike for at least part of the 2026 season. Harrison, a longtime WNBA player, says negotiations are at a “standstill.”
“It’s really disgusting, like, our distaste for what they presented to us,” says Harrison. “Kind of disrespectful. And they haven't really backed down, and there hasn't been any progress. So, shoutout to Phee [Collier]. I mean, everybody's been having their own individual conversations about it, but I think she really put pressure on the W side to make some real change and progress in these discussions."Â
With that context, leagues like AU Pro Basketball or the Miami-based Unrivaled might be the only place to watch professional women’s basketball in 2026.Â
“We want to have a [WNBA] season," Harrison says. "We don’t want to have a lockout. We want to be able to play, because we love what we do.”
