Sabrina Ionescu joining Unrivaled made headlines across the WNBA last week. The New York Liberty guard — one of the league’s most visible stars — is fresh off of a career season that was punctuated by one of the biggest shots in WNBA history.
To some fans, perhaps the coolest part of Ionescu joining Unrivaled is that she’ll be reunited with former Oregon teammate Satou Sabally on the Phantom club. Sabally and Ionescu played together for four seasons, and their senior year season at Ducks was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, more than four years later, the duo will join forces once again.
Ionescu and Sabally didn’t get a chance to compete for an NCAA championship in 2020, and while they’ll never get that chance, this winter they’ll get an opportunity to compete for an Unrivaled title.
Unrivaled, the new 3-on-3 basketball team formed by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart, tips off next month in Miami. Ionescu and Sabally are one of many duos that will get to reunite in this brand-new basketball environment.
We took a look at some of the fun pairs and reunions that will take place this winter in each club.
Laces: a mega Aces reunion
Jackie Young (Aces), Tiffany Hayes (Aces), Kayla McBride (Lynx), Alyssa Thomas (Sun), Kate Martin (Valkyries), and Stefanie Dolson (Mystics).
The Laces are fittingly named. Three of their six players (Jackie Young, Tiffany Hayes, and Kate Martin) were on the Las Vegas Aces last season. And Kayla McBride was on the Aces from 2014 to 2020 and was teammates with Young for two seasons.
There are a few other reunions on this roster; Jackie Young and Alyssa Thomas, for example, are reuniting after playing together on the U.S. Olympic team in Paris.
Phantom: Oregon stars Sabrina Ionescu, Satou Sabally reunite
Satou Sabally (Wings), Marina Mabrey (Sun), Brittney Griner (Mercury), Natasha Cloud (Mercury), Katie Lou Samuelson (Fever), and Sabrina Ionescu (Liberty)
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Satou Sabally and Sabrina Ionescu, teammates at the University of Oregon for four years, will reunite.
Additionally, the Phantom Club features two Mercury players — Brittney Griner and Natasha Cloud — who shared the floor in 2024.
The Phantom will also double as a Dallas Wings reunion of sorts — Marina Mabrey, Katie Lou Samuelson, and Satou Sabally were all teammates in Dallas in 2020, and Mabrey and Sabally ultimately played three seasons together before Mabrey was traded to Chicago.
Like several of the other clubs, there’s also an Olympic connection on the Phantom — Griner and Ionescu played together on Team USA this past summer.
Vinyl: Dearica Hamby, Rhyne Howard get another chance at 3×3
Arike Ogunbowale (Wings), Rhyne Howard (Dream), Aliyah Boston (Fever), Jordin Canada (Dream), Rae Burrell (Sparks), and Dearica Hamby (Sparks)
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