UPshot League hires Women’s Basketball HOF, former WNBA Champion, coach and executive, Taj McWilliams-Franklin as Vice President of Basketball Operations

Hall of Famer &Two-Time WNBA Champion Will Oversee Day-to-Day Operations of New League

JACKSONVILLE, FL – UPshot League Commissioner Donna Orender is pleased to announce that Taj McWilliams-Franklin (6'3''-C-1970, college: St.Edward's) has been hired as the first Vice President of Basketball Operations for the league. The Upshot League is a new professional women’s basketball league which will begin play in May of 2026, providing opportunities for elite athletes and communities to participate in the tremendous momentum and growth of women’s sports.

“Taj’s distinguished career on and off the court, her passion, commitment to the game and those who play it, make her an ideal leader for our league,” said Orender. “Highly respected, with extraordinary experience, she will bring her unique skill set to UP everyone’s shot who is connected to this amazing effort.”

McWilliams-Franklin has served the past five years as the go-to person in player relations & development in the WNBA. From 2018 to 2020, she served in Basketball Operations for the NBA. A 6-time WNBA All-Star, she played 14 seasons in the WNBA, winning WNBA Championships in 2008 and 2011. She was an All-WNBA Second Team selection as well as winning the Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award. Internationally, her two decades plus career yielded multiple championships and other accolades. Her coaching resume includes stops at Rice University, Boston University, Post University, the New York Liberty (WNBA) and the Dallas Wings (WNBA).

McWilliams-Franklin will work with the outstanding Zawyer Sports team and Commissioner Orender to oversee basketball operations, including the hiring of coaches, support staff, travel, team budgets, and the development of league procedures.

“Basketball has opened an amazing gateway to the world for me,” said McWilliams-Franklin. “I am looking forward to helping the UPshot League move women’s basketball forward as well as UPlift the communities we inhabit and serve. The UPshot League will give elite athletes the opportunity to play, to serve and to grow. The excitement about UPshot in the marketplace gives me a great deal of confidence that this league is an answer to helping to elevate communities and women’s basketball.”

The UPshot League will be a place for first rate, family focused, affordable entertainment, creating a strong community asset that is all about the UPtick and UPbeat of developing athletes, coaches, front office personnel and our fans. The league will inspire and motivate athletes and fans alike to UP their shot, in an effort to UP their game to better compete in this world.

UPshot will launch with a minimum of four teams and aims to bring exciting and dynamic women’s basketball played by elite athletes to markets across the country.

UPshot League is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and will open play in May of 2026 with teams set to begin play in Jacksonville, Savannah, Charlotte

The league will play a 40-game regular season (20 home, 20 away). Teams have already begun collecting season ticket deposits of $44 per seat, to match the 44 new player opportunities being created by the UPshot League in its inaugural season.

Courtesy of UpShot