- Jonquel Jones has partnered with BetterHelp to headline its newest mental health campaign, opening up about overthinking and self-criticism in a candid video for BetterHelp's ongoing Billboard video series.
- This is Jones's first sponsorship with BetterHelp, which has previously tapped athletes like Tom Brady, Kiki Rice, and Joakim Noah to help destigmatize therapy.
- The campaign lands during a career-strong 2026 season for Jones, who just earned her sixth WNBA All-Star selection while anchoring the New York Liberty's frontcourt.
- Jones has been a busy face on the brand circuit lately, fronting campaigns for goop Kitchen and Robinhood, while also featured alongside the New York Liberty’s team-wide partnership with Fenty this year.
Jonquel Jones is putting her mental health journey front and center. The New York Liberty star has partnered with BetterHelp to headline its latest awareness push, appearing in a candid video for the platform’s ongoing Billboard video series, where she discusses her struggles with overthinking and self-criticism and makes the case for therapy.
Jones joins a growing roster of athletes the brand has enlisted to normalize seeking help, including Tom Brady, Kiki Rice, and Joakim Noah.
This is part of a broader wave of athlete-fronted wellness campaigns this year, from Diana Taurasi’s canine dental health push with GREENIES to Deion Sanders turning his own health scare into a Depend campaign, and even Caitlin Clark fronting Eli Lilly’s youth exercise initiative.
Off the court, Jones has hardly slowed down: she recently fronted goop Kitchen’s “Made for New York” launch campaign, starred in Robinhood’s “Your Move” financial series, and participated in the Liberty’s franchise-wide partnership with Fenty Beauty and Fenty Skin.
On the court, the timing couldn’t be better. Jones, the 2021 MVP and 2024 Finals MVP, was just named to her sixth career All-Star Game, currently ranking as New York’s second-leading scorer and top-10 in the WNBA in rebounding this season. She’ll represent the Liberty at the July 25 All-Star Game in Chicago.
BetterHelp has built a consistent strategy around athlete partnerships to destigmatize mental health care, previously working with NFL legend Tom Brady during Mental Health Awareness Month, college stars Kiki Rice, Zoe Brooks, and Chance Gray on its “Stop the Madness” campaign, and former NBA All-Star Joakim Noah on its “Mind Over Madness” tournament-season activation.
Takeaways
There’s real logic here beyond star power. BetterHelp isn’t just picking a big name, it’s leaning into athletes at the peak of visible success, arguing that even MVPs and champions carry an inner critic. Pairing a performance-year All-Star with a message about self-doubt lands harder than a generic celebrity spot would.
This also reflects where BetterHelp’s playbook has been heading all year: fewer one-off ad drops, more sustained editorial partnerships (like the Billboard series) that treat mental health as an ongoing conversation rather than a single campaign moment.
Does hearing a six-time All-Star talk about self-criticism actually change how fans think about their own mental health? Is BetterHelp’s athlete-heavy roster building genuine credibility, or just brand familiarity?
