Unrivaled, the 3×3 professional women’s basketball league co-founded by WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier is set to kick off on Jan. 17 in Miami, Florida.
The games will be played 3-on-3 on a slightly shorter full court with dimensions of 70 feet by 50 feet. According to Unrivaled’s website, it is a “compressed full-court.” The Unrivaled court is about three-fourths the size of a regular WNBA court, which is 94 feet long, but the widths of the two courts are similar.
Although the specific design of the court has not been revealed to fans yet, Stewart provided a tour of the facilities that Unrivaled will use in Miami. A brief video was shared on Unrivaled’s YouTube channel on Dec. 4.
“We found our new home in Miami, and we’re thinking through every detail to make sure that the player experience is lit,” Stewart said. (1:24)
She also showcased the area where the main court, practice court, and weight room will be located.
“And in this soundstage, we’ll have a practice court, a weight room, and obviously the main court where I’ll be averaging 40 points per game,” Stewart said. (1:50)
Instead of the 10-minute quarters used in the WNBA, Unrivaled will have seven-minute quarters with a shot clock and regular game clock. While no official set of game rules has been released, Collier indicated in a response that the game will resemble regular basketball.
“Gonna feel like normal basketball with more spacing,” Collier said.
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Who will be playing in the inaugural season of Unrivaled?
The league will feature 36 of the biggest stars in women’s basketball. The entire player roster of Unrivaled was finalized on Tuesday when New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu was announced as the second wildcard. She will join the Phantom BC, which includes Brittney Griner, Natasha Cloud, and Marina Mabrey, among others.
The league consists of six teams with six players each. The star-studded roster includes Skylar Diggins-Smith, Allisha Gray, DiJonai Carrington, Kahleah Cooper, Chelsea Gray, Arike Ogunbowele, Jewell Loyd, Angel Reese, Jackie Young, and more.
According to ESPN’s Michael Voepel, Time’s 2024 Athlete of the Year Caitlin Clark was invited by the league but has reportedly declined to play.
Each team will also have a coach, with notable names like WNBA legend Teresa Weatherspoon and NBA assistant coach Phil Handy leading the way. Handy has been a part of the coaching staff for three NBA championship teams (2016, 2019, 2020).
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Edited by Debasish