Unrivaled Basketball

Women's basketball is hot right now.  Record NCAA Tournament ratings carried over into the WNBA's biggest season ever, and, to top it off, the U.S. won gold at the Paris Olympics.  The time was ripe for the women's basketball to continue that momentum.  Which is exactly what they've done with the launch of Unrivaled.

The brainchild of Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier (UConn teammates whose teams played against each other in the WNBA Finals last season), Unrivaled is a six-team, full-court 3x3 league featuring some of the best players in the WNBA.  The rosters are made up entirely of WNBA players, giving them the opportunity to play and make money during the WNBA offseason without having to travel overseas.  The season is only seven weeks long, so it'll be over before the NCAA Tournament and they'll still have a decent break before training camps start in late April.

It's fun to see rivals as teammates, and the format is both fast-paced and exciting.  Full-court 3x3 lends itself to a wide-open style of play, and it really is a totally different game than the halfcourt 3x3 we see at the Olympics.  Unrivaled is also a different type of showcase, allowing the players to display their skills in a setting unlike the WNBA.

There's plenty of innovation in Unrivaled, too.  Every foul is only one free throw, with the number of points awarded depending on the value of the original shot.  If you're fouled on a three-pointer, the foul shot is worth three points.  A regular shooting foul gets you two points if you make the free throw.  And an and-one is just that.  The standard one point.

Quarters are seven minutes long, but only the first three are timed.  The fourth quarter uses the Elam ending, which was introduced in The Basketball Tournament and was also used in the NBA All*Star Game for a little while.  In Unrivaled, they take the leading team's score after three quarters and add 11 to get the "target score."  Whoever reaches the target score first wins.

While I've never been a fan of the untimed fourth quarter and the Elam ending, it does provide for some exciting finishes.  And every game is guaranteed to end on a walk-off.  I watched the first night of Unrivaled and saw Skylar Diggins-Smith's team make an impressive comeback, with her sinking a trey to hit the target score and win it.  It was effectively a buzzer beater.  Except there was no buzzer.

I get that plenty of people like the Elam ending.  I just don't happen to be one of them.  Although, I'll admit the chances of a comeback are definitely greater when you aren't also going up against a clock.  And the target score does seem to work in 3x3.  Olympic 3x3 games are 10 minutes long or first to 21, so 21's essentially the target score in those games.  They just carried it over into an indoor, full-court format.

My favorite thing about Unrivaled, though, is how the league has brought together so many WNBA stars in the same place.  Not all of them.  Caitlin Clark notably isn't participating.  But most.  And it's mighty impressive that so many of them decided to take the leap and sign on for a new venture that was totally different.  That showed a lot of faith.  Yes, there was plenty of incentive.  The players have equity in the league, and there's a prize pool for the playoffs and the midseason 1v1 tournament that will pay them beyond their salary (which is guaranteed to be at least six figures).  But, still, they took a risk.

Six teams are competing in Unrivaled's inaugural season, but it's easy to see that number expanding, perhaps as early as 2026.  Paige Bueckers and Flau'jae Johnson have already signed NIL deals with Unrivaled, so they'll presumably join the league after their WNBA rookie season.  Ditto about Hailey Van Lith.  And the Cavinder twins.  Cameron Brink couldn't play this year because of her torn ACL.  And you'd have to think Clark would obviously be welcome when and if she ever decides to join Unrivaled.  See, that's two more teams right there!

Another great thing about Unrivaled is something that people didn't even think about initially, but has proven to be a tremendous benefit for both the players and WNBA teams.  Everybody's in the same place.  That makes it super convenient and easy for everyone.  Especially since free agents can begin signing with teams on February 1.

Brittney Griner is testing the free agent waters for the first time in her WNBA career.  Brittney Griner is currently playing in Unrivaled.  Instead of traveling around the country to meet with WNBA coaches and general managers, they came to her.  Same with Courtney Vandersloot and all the other free agents.  It takes away a lot of the stress that would otherwise come with the free agency process.  And they likely wouldn't be able to meet in-person at all if they were playing overseas instead of in Unrivaled.

Likewise, Unrivaled gives WNBA front office personnel the opportunity to meet in person.  And it's already resulted in one massive trade.  In a three-team deal, Kelsey Plum went from Las Vegas to Los Angeles, while her Olympic teammate Jewell Loyd was traded from Seattle to Las Vegas.  The teams also swapped draft picks, with Seattle getting the No. 2 overall pick from Los Angeles in the trade.  Would it have happened anyway?  Perhaps.  But Plum needed to sign off on the deal and it was much easier to ask her in person.  (Loyd wanted a trade, but had a year left on her contract.)

Perhaps the most important thing about Unrivaled is that it has so much support.  The league has some big-name investors and a TV deal with Turner, so the financial backing is there.  And so many people want to see it succeed.  Based on the early returns, there's no reason to believe it won't.  Unrivaled is something new, something different, and a showcase for a sport that's on the rise.  Most importantly, the players are all in.  It's a winning combination.

Much like the WNBA itself, there's probably still plenty of skepticism about Unrivaled.  I was skeptical myself at first.  But, having seen the product, it's definitely a worthwhile venture.  And, remember, this is just year one.  You've got to think it'll improve over time.  Even if it doesn't, Unrivaled came around at the perfect time.  Because women's basketball has that momentum and this new league will only help the sport grow even more.