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 DolsonKate MartinKayla McBrideKelsey PlumAlyssa ThomasCourtney 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 AustinNatasha CloudNapheesa CollierSky…
