1-on-1 tournament revealed one obvious next step for Dominique Malonga

Dominique Malonga is thriving in her first Unrivaled season. She is averaging 15.4 points on very efficient shooting around the basket, and 10.6 rebounds. Her stint in the 1-on-1 tournament revealed one thing Malonga has to work on to take the next step: handling the ball on the perimeter.

Malonga was comfortable enough attacking Aaliyah Edwards and taking the ball to the rim early in their matchup. But once Edwards tightened her defense on the perimeter, Malonga ran into some problems with handling the ball behind the 3-point line. 

When she was up 6-0, for example, she tried to get past Edwards, but couldn’t and had to chuck a bad three that missed. On another instance, when Edwards was up 9-8, Malonga attacked Edwards’s left side, but was forced to pick up the ball and launch another bad three. 

Malonga already plays great in the paint and runs the floor well. If she can also add a perimeter game and feel more comfortable handling the ball away from the basket, she will be a much more complete player. 

Dominique Malonga is just scratching the surface

At nineteen, Malonga was the youngest player in the WNBA last season. Now, she is also the youngest player in Unrivaled. Nevertheless, she has proven that she can hang with older, long-time pros. 

In the W, Malonga went from riding the bench to playing meaningful minutes against A’ja Wilson in the playoffs in just a few months. In Unrivaled, she edged out Cameron Brink for a starting spot on the Breeze and is one of four players averaging a double-double. She also ranks tenth in field-goal percentage, scoring the ball very efficiently at 52.4%. 

The thrilling—and somewhat scary—thing about this is: this is the worst Malonga will ever be. Every experience, whether that’s playing against WNBA stars, going up against some of the best players in Unrivaled, or competing in the 1-on-1 tournament, will only help her get better and rise closer to her ceiling. 

Versatility has become the most important skill to have as a big in the modern WNBA. Malonga’s athleticism, ability to run the floor, and willingness to expand her range already make her one of the most versatile young bigs in the game. Improving her handles and comfort level on the perimeter will only add to that—and prepare her for becoming the face of the Seattle Storm. The franchise hired a first-time head coach wand all of its All-Stars are free agents. It would be easy for the Storm to change the focus from competing for a championship to rebuilding around Malonga and their 2026 lottery pick.