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Dallas Wings star Paige Bueckers has had a busy WNBA offseason, which means she’s had a very productive Unrivaled season. She’s currently third in scoring and second in assists for the league, and will be in consideration for MVP, even if Chelsea Gray is likely the favorite.
It continues a strong calendar year for her, though. 11 months ago, she was winning a national championship at UConn, and she has since been the first overall pick of the WNBA Draft, been a starter in the WNBA All-Star Game, won WNBA Rookie of the Year, and is now having this impressive Unrivaled campaign.
She recently did interviews for Elle Magazine for Coach’s “Explore Your Story” campaign, where she discussed many topics, including the Unrivaled League and how she’s grown in the league.
“It’s been really great just to be able to have a league in the off-season where you can continue to get better, continue to compete against the best, build new relationships, and all be in one area, just learning so much from each other and growing in our friendships, too,” Bueckers said. “That’s been fun. Obviously, the basketball part is amazing. It’s a different format than five-on-five, just three-on-three, and so it provides us with a different way of improving our game and gives the fans a different experience watching. It’s been really competitive. We’ve grown a lot.”
She also recognizes that because it’s a player-led league, they’re willing to listen to the players a lot more than the WNBA does.
“It’s a player-run, player-led league, so they really care about us and our opinions and take our input and implement it into what they’re doing. It’s really well-run, and you can tell that for sure.”
Bueckers and Breeze BC have already clinched a spot in the Unrivaled playoffs, but their seed is still up in the air. The last game of the regular season will be on Friday night as they play Laces BC at 845 p.m. EST.
The MVP race is also coming down to the wire between Bueckers and Rose’s Chelsea Gray, who is the prohibitive favorite. But a big game from Bueckers could make her the favorite if Gray slips and has an underwhelming performance in their last game.
Oftentimes, the MVP goes to the best player on the best teams, but Breeze and Rose each have a 6-7 record. Bueckers’ and Gray’s numbers have just been that much better than everyone else.
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