Is Mist BC a Dallas Wings Reunion?

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Unrivaled co-founder Breanna Stewart will look for clarity with Mist BC, which has assembled a new crew after missing the first postseason.

“Bienvenidos a Miami,” women’s basketball.

Photo courtesy of Unrivaled

Some of the game’s finest are taking their talents (back) to South Beach as the second season of Unrivaled is set to tip off on Jan. 5.

Co-founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart and backed by a lauded group of investors, Unrivaled is a domestic three-on-three league that can and is meant to host more localized offseason endeavors for players who have made their names in the WNBA. Many familiar faces are making their way back to the action, which will briefly make its way to Philadelphia, while others will join the fray for the first time.

In anticipation of tip-off, Ballislife takes a look at each of the eight squads in a dedicated analysis. We’ll gain clarity on Mist BC next…

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The Team: Mist BCThe Debut: 5-9 (missed playoffs)The Coach: Zach O’Brien (1st season)

Mist BC: The Team

—Veronica Burton—Allisha Gray—Arike Ogunbowale—Alanna Smith—Breanna Stewart*—Li Yueru

(*Returning to team)

Perhaps no returning team on the Unrivaled circuit has more to prove than the Mist, which hosts the three-on-three endeavors of league co-founder Stewart.

The current New York Liberty star got the league off to a sterling start by scoring the first points in its history but it was hard to retain those heights, leaving the Mist off the original Unrivaled playoff bracket.

What was missed on the Mist? In a word, defense. The Mist let up at least 75 points on five different occasions last season, including a 92 in a shellacking at the hands of the mighty Lunar Owls in the finale.

Stewart and her former metropolitan collaborator O’Brien (now a Los Angeles Sparks assistant who replaces Phil Handy at the helm) sought to remedy that with the selection of Smith, who shared the most recent WNBA Defensive Player of the Year title with A’ja Wilson. Stewart and O’Brien are well-versed in Smith’s defensive work, having overcome to secure the Liberty’s first postseason championship in the fall of 2024.

Allisha Gray, Breanna Stewart Headline Mist BC

The Mist also left a bit to be desired on the offensive end last season, but could at least be partly excused due to the injuries of DiJonai Carrington and Jewell Loyd, neither of whom made the return trip to Miami. That could explain the arrival of three-on-three extraordinaire Gray, fresh off both a career-best WNBA season with the Atlanta Dream and another three-on-three honor in the FIBA AmeriCup in Leon. Gray was also on the original American team that captured gold at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo.

Gray and Smith aren’t the only recent WNBA decorations to get a call from the co-founder, as newly-crowned Most Improved Player Veronica Burton likewise joins the fray after both a breakout campaign with the Golden State Valkyries and an invite to Team USA’s first official five-on-five camp on the road to the Los Angeles Olympics. A pair of Dallas Wings round out the sizable six, as Li and Ogunbowale take the floor. Li is making her Unrivaled debut, while Ogunbowale is back for another go after spending the debut with original finalist Vinyl.

The Spotlight’s On: Arike Ogunbowale

On a team with plenty to prove, Ogunbowale probably has the most to gain or lose in baby blue this time around.

During the first go-around, Ogunbowale reached the final with Vinyl and was also among the last-standing quartet in the one-on-one tournament, where Collier defeated then-Mist rep Aaliyah Edwards. Unfortunately, a series of ailments prevented her from playing in the final against Rose, and she struggled from the field, shooting just over 35 percent.

Such struggles carried over into her WNBA endeavors, where her veteran woes and further injuries partly marred an otherwise hopeful aura for the Dallas Wings, who enjoyed breakouts from fellow Unrivaled participants Paige Bueckers and Maddy Siegrist as well as the in-season arrival of Li. A return to the beach could prove to be the perfect cure for Ogunbowale, who has another chance to put on a show for potential professional suitors. All she and Li have sought through the Wings’ struggles are opportunities. Both will get them in droves this Unrivaled season.

They Said It

“It was a very thoughtful process on our end, as a staff … We knew we had Stewie, which is an easy foundation. You can kind of plug around her as much as you want, in any way that you want. I think Allisha Gray is no different. [That was] a really great start for us and, honestly, while I do think all of our players are going to be successful in this format and some have [been] already, this is a team I would take into a five-on-five game. It is really different, but I think the skills that we were looking to get on this Mist roster are ones that really translate over to any type of game.”—O’Brien on the roster he assembled around Stewart

“Honestly, it’s a year that I’ve been trying to soak in. Obviously, there’s a lot of opportunity that’s been presented to me this year, and I’m really grateful for that. It’s been a year full of blessings. But it has also been difficult in some areas, in embracing all the newness, embracing a different role in the Valkyries. Being able to win Most Improved was definitely a goal of mine and something I wanted to get better, even for my own self. So it was definitely validating in that sense. But I definitely do think the year has exposed some areas that I can continue to grow in. That’s definitely been motivating for me.”—Burton on her 2025

Outlook

No matter what happens, teams will be looking up to the Mist this season: any team that has to face Li, Smith, and Stewart will literally have to do that to keep their eye on them. That should work wonders for the Mist’s already-impressive rebounding ranks led by Stewart, which placed second on the Unrivaled ledgers last season.

Eager to atone for last year’s struggles, the Mist went out and assembled a new class of award-winners that should point them in the right direction. Much like what has been assembled under Barclays Center’s grassy roof up north, Stewart has partaken in quite the roster formation, one that can be explosive in both the best and dangerous ways. Gray’s presence alone, being one of the most accomplished three-on-three players in the history of the game, makes them a force to be reckoned with, while Smith adds panache to an already formidable post presence.

The Mist has an opportunity to take the biggest leap…but that also places it in the precarious position of being an early tab for biggest disappointment.