Unrivaled women's 3v3 basketball league: more competitive opportunities
Watch 3v3 women’s pro basketball tonight.
Unequal pay and opportunities between men's and women's sports have long existed, but WNBA players Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart are aiming to change that with their new league, Unrivaled.
The league aims to give players higher-paying offseason options, rather than playing abroad, and keep fans engaged during the WNBA off-season. It airs on networks like TNT and HBO Max and, in its second season, has continued to grow its audience.
The league aims to develop young players and let them show WNBA coaches and scouts what they can add. It’s also become a place for established players to get offseason reps, despite early worries about injury risk before the official WNBA season.
Unrivaled is just five games into the season, but top-ranked Laces and Rose have already stood out with consistent players and strong coaching.
The Laces are ranked No. 1, but none of their players lead any major stat categories. Top WNBA forward Alyssa Thomas scored a career-high 19 points on Jan. 16 and added 12 points on Jan. 18.
The Laces have a balanced team: two starters scored over 20 points per game and the others at least five. Historically, balanced women's teams outperform those built around one or two stars, especially with rising injury risks.
The Rose fit top-team expectations: starting shooting guard Chelsea Gray leads the league with 30.6 points per game and makes about five 3‑pointers per game.
The Laces and the Rose meet just once more this season, on Feb. 22, right before the playoffs. If they stay first and second, that game could greatly affect playoff seeding.
The Unrivaled season runs through February, with the first playoff round on Feb. 28 in Miami. It lasts two months so WNBA players have time to recover before the WNBA season starts, usually in May.
Because the Collective Bargaining Agreement is still being negotiated, the 2026 WNBA dates aren’t set. The season will add teams in Portland and Toronto, and each team is expected to play about 44 games.
Thank you for reading Female Athlete News. Clara Romae Slowinski is a student-intern at Penn State University.