Project B, the startup basketball league set to launch next winter, has hired Landry Fields to oversee the men’s basketball division.Fields, 38, is a former Atlanta Hawks general manager who once played for the New York Knicks. Fields was the Hawks’ GM from 2022 through 2025 and became an executive for the San Antonio Spurs organization after his five-year NBA playing career. He has been the president of league operations for Overtime Elite, a men’s league for players ages 16-20, since January 2026.His is the most prominent name added to the men’s side thus far.“What drew me to Project B was the ambition,” Fields said in a statement.Project B, set to tip off in January, was created by several Silicon Valley executives and backed by venture capital funding. It has already signed several high-profile WNBA players to play in its women’s league.
Nneka Ogwumike, an 11-time WNBA All-Star and president of the WNBPA, was the first to sign on. Project B has also signed 2026 No. 1 pick Azzi Fudd, Jewell Loyd, Alyssa Thomas and Jonquel Jones. Former WNBA star Alana Beard is the chief basketball officer.No men’s players have signed yet, but the league is being advised by Maverick Carter, a friend and longtime business partner of LeBron James, who has been working with the league since last year. It has not hidden its ambitions to add players from the NBA and European leagues and will also invest in a developmental program for younger players.“We have a blueprint that we followed on the women’s side that brought us those top players,” Grady Burnett, the league’s co-founder, told The Athletic this spring. “We’re applying the same blueprint on the men’s side that focuses on developing the best young talent in the world and extending the careers of established players.”He added, “We want real culture-setters that can help and connect us to fans globally. And I think if you look at the track record of Maverick, you look at the track record of (sports agent) Miško (Ražnatović), you look at the track record of what we’ve done on signing the top women’s players, we’ll follow a similar format and bring the stars of today and the stars of tomorrow.”Project B intends to barnstorm around cities in Asia and Europe for two weeks at a time. Players who have already signed have received equity in the league, along with sizable salaries.Jul 9, 2026Connections: Sports EditionSpot the pattern. Connect the termsFind the hidden link between sports terms
