On Wednesday, November 20, Unrivaled announced the six participating clubs – and the six associated head coaches, who had been introduced last week – for its first season, set to tip off its opening game on January 17, 2025. On a livestream, the coaches worked collaboratively to select even squads, incentivized to keep it equitable by not knowing who they’d end up mentoring during the campaign. Each of the six rosters, named below, will have three starters and (eventually) three subs, with all games taking place in a 3×3 format on a modified full court. Even now, a pair of teams remain slightly incomplete, with two “wild card” athletes still to be named, but before we get into that, here are how it all broke down (with presumed starters bolded):
Laces (Head Coach Andrew Wade)
Stefanie Dolson
Kate Martin
Kayla McBride
Kelsey Plum
Alyssa Thomas
Courtney Williams
My takeaway: At first glance, a really balanced roster here, with tons of open court potential in its starting three. Thomas loves to push pace, and Plum and McBride are a couple of the best lane-fillers in the W, both of whom also have the ability to pull up and knock down a transition three. Off the bench, Courtney Williams has played alongside both Thomas and McBride, so that fit should be seamless; Stef Dolson is a 3×3 gold medalist (albeit in the half-court setting) and is coming off the best long-range shooting year of her career (making 72 threes on 46.5 percent shooting, ranking third in the W); and Kate Martin showed as a rookie (and in college) that she could slot in alongside some of the best hoopers in the world and make game-winning impacts on the court.
Lunar Owls (Head Coach DJ Sackmann)
Shakira Austin
Natasha Cloud
Napheesa Collier
Skylar Diggins-Smith
Allisha Gray
Wild Card
My takeaway: None of these teams are going to be bad, with this league overflowing with talent. Even with that disclaimer, this is one of the most complete lineups you could ask for, given the format. Collier, one of the co-founders of Unrivaled, is perfectly suited for the format, and she’ll be flanked by a pair of veteran lefties in Diggins-Smith and Gray, both of whom are capable of taking anyone off the dribble and creating contact. Off the bench, Cloud and Austin are reunited; Cloud left the Washington Mystics to join the Phoenix Mercury last offseason, but there’s likely to be an early advantage gained by players that have already worked out some earlier chemistry. The wild card spot is exactly that – there have been rumors of Unrivaled trying to lure basketball (and ratings) superstar Caitlin Clark to Miami with a seven-figure deal, but that feels like it would misalign the balance. Hopefully we get clarity on these mystery players shortly.
Mist (Head Coach Phil Handy)
DiJonai Carrington
Aaliyah Edwards
Rickea Jackson
Jewell Loyd
Breanna Stewart
Courtney Vandersloot
My takeaway: The other co-founder, Stewart, headlines this squad, reuniting with her former Seattle Storm teammate, Loyd, and with the WNBA’s 2024 Most Improved Player, Carrington. Like Collier, Stewart thrives in unscripted end-to-end play, and her rangy defense will be huge, especially alongside the ball pressure Carrington brings tirelessly. Add Loyd’s shotmaking to that, and you quickly see the vision. Off the bench, Vandersloot will be in her element, thriving in space as one of the greatest creators in W history; Jackson quickly announced herself as a bucket that knows how to get to her spots on the floor during her rookie campaign; and Edwards, also a rookie, has tons of game tape showcasing her ability to run the floor as a big and finish on the move.
Phantom (Head Coach Adam Harrington)
Brittney Griner
Tiffany Hayes
Marina Mabrey
Satou Sabally
Jackie Young
Wild Card
My takeaway: Ah, the Notre Dame reunion, as NCAA champions Mabrey and Young will share a court again, this time alongside Sabally. This trio projects to be really complementary, three players that can take turns getting hot while also punishing defenses from anywhere on the court. Off the bench, Griner can control the gameflow while still having touch to swish any shot from beneath the hoop out to midrange; Hayes is a downhill threat that can also knock down an open three and create opportunities from nothing; and the other wild card spot lives here, just to keep us guessing.
Rose (Head Coach Nola Henry)
Kahleah Copper
Chelsea Gray
Lexie Hull
Angel Reese
Brittney Sykes
Azurá Stevens
My takeaway: Having not seen a second of play from any of these squads, this is the roster that excites me most. First off, Gray and Copper is a dream pairing for highlight reels, between Gray’s handle and Copper’s ability to slice through defenses, both in the half-court and full (or three-quarter court, in this case). Pair that with Reese, who set the WNBA’s per-game rebounding record as a rookie and will have even more room to attack the basket in this format, and these starters are explosive. And that’s before you even get to Sykes, who epitomizes that word, “explosive”; Stevens is yet another stretch-big who has the instincts to thrive in this style of play; and Hull is coming off a campaign where she knocked down 47.1 percent of her shots from three, after really showcasing her defensive abilities last winter at Athletes Unlimited. Top to bottom is depth here, and this roster is an early favorite.
Vinyl (Head Coach Teresa Weatherspoon)
Aliyah Boston
Rae Burrell
Jordin Canada
Dearica Hamby
Rhyne Howard
Arike Ogunbowale
My takeaway: Coach T-Spoon is back on the sidelines, and she’s got major talent to work with. Howard and Ogunbowale are arguably the two best shot generators in the W, and Boston is an All-W center. Alongside the other starting bigs (Collier, Reese, Sabally, Stewart, and Thomas), I do wonder if Boston’s build as a more traditional center is going to pose any problems, but being that the other two can create a look from anywhere, the Vinyl might be able to force teams into playing at their pace, assuming the shot quality is high. This second unit is also a ton of fun: Canada will be a full-court menace whose rim pressure has grown these past two years (and should continue to improve in this format); Hamby feels like she’s been waiting her entire career for this version of the sport; and Burrell is coming off a strong season with the Los Angeles Sparks where she showcased her talent as both a shotblocker and a scorer.
Which of these teams are you picking to win it all when the teams come together in January? Better yet, who do you think wins the 1v1 tournament that takes place in mid-February? Sound off in the comments, and keep following Winsidr for more Unrivaled news.
