Athletes Unlimited Returns to Dallas for Season Three, Featuring Most WNBA Talent Ever

This article was initially published with a partial roster on December 13, 2023, but has been updated on January 30, 2024 with the complete list of AU participants.

Athletes Unlimited is running it back at Fair Park Coliseum in Dallas, Texas, with its third campaign taking place from February 29, 2024 through March 23, 2024. Its unique weekly redraft structure and fantasy sports-esque scoring system has been a proven success among its talented roster of players, and it will continue to provide professional-level domestic hoops during the WNBA’s offseason. 

Last spring, Lexie Brown—who has been with the league since its inception in 2022 and is now the chairperson of the Player Executive Committee—joined Owen Pence and me on an episode of Pull Up with Myles and Owen to express what makes AU such a fun way to spend her offseason. “Not having coaches and owners and front offices, that alone makes basketball way more fun,” Brown said. “That’s how we played when we were kids, that’s how we played in college. Everyone’s just playing for the love of the game, to have fun and just to win.”

Several other big returners include a pair of defending WNBA champs, Sydney Colson and Kierstan Bell (Las Vegas Aces), Kelsey Mitchell (Indiana Fever), Odyssey Sims (Dallas Wings), and Allisha Gray (Atlanta Dream). 

And Gray won’t be the only former Gamecock hooping in Dallas this winter. There will be a large contingent for South Carolina fans to follow. Laeticia Amihere (Atlanta Dream, SC ‘23), Zia Cooke (Los Angeles Sparks, SC ‘23), and Tiffany Mitchell (Minnesota Lynx, SC ‘16). Sims and Maddy Siegrist, who both played for the Wings this past W season, will offer some local representation at AU.

Of the new additions, Angel McCoughtry might be the most exciting. “As the newest member of the AU family, I am beyond excited to start this journey,” McCoughtry said. “Basketball has always been a passion that drives me. My focus is clear: I just want to hoop again, to be on the court where I feel most alive. I can’t wait to show the world what I got.” McCoughtry, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and five-time WNBA All-Star, has played just three games since the conclusion of the 2020 bubble season, so it will be wonderful to see her play again.

“We are thrilled to tip off season three of Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball with such an exciting roster featuring elite talent from across the women’s basketball landscape, and to be back in Dallas, a hotbed of basketball talent and culture,” said Megan Perry, Director of Basketball for Athletes Unlimited. “Fans will be treated to an exciting brand of basketball as these athletes compete to be crowned the champion.”

In addition to the players on the court, each weekly team will have one of four facilitators, a retired player or coach that will help assist in the week’s gameplay. Three-time Olympic gold medalist, eight-time WNBA All-Star, and 2011 WNBA Finals MVP Seimone Augustus will be the one returner this season, alongside three newcomers: former WNBA champion Briann January (currently an assistant coach for the Connecticut Sun), Karima Christmas-Kelly (currently an assistant coach for the Indiana Fever), and former WNBA player and coach Chasity Melvin. To go with those four, Danielle Viglione (currently an assistant coach with the LA Sparks) will serve as Player Development Coordinator.

By mid-December, 25 players had signed up to participate in season three. As of January 30, the complete roster stands at 40 players, with the new additions highlighted in the table below.

See Also

Unrivaled Season 2 Primer

* represents players with WNBA experience

Tickets are now available at www.auprosports.com.