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Unrivaled League Explained + Week 1 Predictions | New Women's 3x3 Basketball League Debut
11 Plays3 days ago
I’m breaking down everything you need to know about the Unrivaled League, the new women’s 3x3 basketball league founded by WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier. This groundbreaking league debuts on January 17, 2025, on TNT and Max and is already changing the game. I’ll explain how this player-owned league works, highlight Week 1’s epic matchups—like Breanna Stewart’s Mist Club vs. Napheesa Collier’s Lunar Owls—and share my predictions on what to watch for in this exciting new era of women’s basketball. Tune in to find out why this league is a game-changer and how it could impact WNBA trade scenarios, player chemistry, and the offseason. Don’t miss my thoughts on stars like Angel Reese, Arike Ogunbowale, Kahleah Copper, and more!
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Transcript
Introduction to The Post-Up and the Unrivaled League
00:00:00
Speaker
On today's episode of The Post-Up, we'll be talking about the Unrivaled League, what this league is all about, who started it, why this league is even a thing, and some things that you can look forward to. If you're new here, I'm DJ Tree C. Trees and The Post-Up is a show where I run my mouth about sports. Make sure you like, share, and subscribe.
00:00:21
Speaker
You definitely don't wanna miss this episode or anything got dropped for that matter. Let's jump into today's episode. In
Unrivaled League Origins and Media Day Recap
00:00:28
Speaker
case you missed it, the Unrivaled League just had their media day, y'all. And all of us were jealous on the internet just looking at how beautifully and creatively, strategically made this league rollout has been. If you've
Purpose and Founding of Unrivaled League
00:00:43
Speaker
never heard of the Unrivaled League, it is a brand new women's three on three league started by WNBA stars Nafisa Collier and Brianna Stewart. The Unrivaled League starts this week in January of 2025 and is aimed to be a high quality competitive alternative to going overseas for WNBA players in the off season.
00:01:08
Speaker
Now for those of you who are new to women's basketball, there is another league called AU Pro Hoops that WNBA players can play in and have played in in the offseason. So I want to give a big shout out to AU Pro Hoops because they have existed stateside since before the Unrivaled League starts. They are traditionally a 5 on 5 league where Unrivaled is doing something a little bit different with the 3 on 3 format.
00:01:34
Speaker
Some
Ownership and Financial Structure
00:01:35
Speaker
other things that Unrivaled has been celebrated for is each player who is a founding member actually owns a stake in the basketball club that they play for. That's huge news for women's basketball players because the pay gap has been big for a long time. So to come out with this high quality and highly invested in league and allow players to be owners in the teams that they're playing for,
00:01:59
Speaker
Chefs kiss. We love to see it. All right,
League Structure and Notable Features
00:02:01
Speaker
this league features six teams that will have six players. Again, it's only three on three, so we need some room for subs. Since the players are part owners of the team, it's called a basketball club instead of a basketball team. This mirrors how soccer leagues have been started and grown all over the world. So we're going to call these basketball clubs. The league is based in Miami and it's got some pretty famous coaches. Check out the coaching roster. It's also got some notable investors. Here's a list of all of the investors so far who's invested in the league. The season will run for eight weeks, which packs everything in tight and allows players to rest up in enough time for training camp for WNBA season. The average
Player Salaries and Broadcast Details
00:02:47
Speaker
projected salary for each player is $250,000, y'all. That's equivalent to the WNBA vet maximum. This is definitely a game changer for players' earnings. There's tons of sponsorships out as well, and they've even got some NIL deals with college players who are popular, like Paige.
00:03:08
Speaker
and Flauze from LSU. Games tip off on January 17th and can be watched on TNT and streamed on HBO Max. That's
First Week Highlights and Anticipation
00:03:18
Speaker
two major TV deals, y'all. The first week's matchup is a double header, so I figured I'd go ahead and give y'all my projections on the first week since we're here. The first game is the Myst Club versus the Lunar Owls Club. The Myst Club is coached by Phil Handy, formerly of the Lakers, the players that are on the team, co-founder of the league, Brianna Stewart, Dejanay Carrington, Courtney Van Der Sloot, Jewel Lloyd, Aaliyah Edwards, and the l LA Sparks all, Rekia Jackson. The Lunar Owls Club is coached by DJ Sackman, and their team is made up of the second co-founder, Nafisa Collier,
00:03:56
Speaker
Courtney Williams, Skylar Diggins, Alicia Gray, Shakira Austin, and Cameron Brink. But Cameron Brink has just announced on social media that she will not be competing because she's coming off of an ACL injury and needs to get ready for the WNBA season. Well understood, I expected that to happen.
00:04:16
Speaker
Stay with me. My projections are coming after I talk about the second matchup. The second game is the Rolls Club versus the Vinyl Club. The Rolls Club is coached by former l LA Sparks assistant coach and now Dallas Wings assistant coach. One of my personal favorites, Nola Henry. The Rolls Club players are Angel Reese, Chelsea Gray,
00:04:39
Speaker
Britney Sykes Kalia Copper, the l LA Sparks-owned Azaree Z Stephens, and Lexi Hull. The vinyl club is coached by former Chicago Sky head coach and WNBA legend Teresa Witherspoon.
00:04:54
Speaker
The vinyl club players are Arike Ogumbuwale, LA Sparks own Ray Burrell, Ryan Howard, Aaliyah Boston, Jordan Canada, and another LA Sparks fave, De'Arca Hemby. Here's what I'm looking forward to in week one. I don't think it was an accident that the co-founders of the league made the very first game a match up between their two teams.
00:05:17
Speaker
I am looking forward to Nafisa Collier and Brianna Stewart battling it out again, just like the WNBA Finals, where the New York Liberty face the Minnesota Lynx. I think it's pretty dope that they will open up their own league on their own terms with their own team, so I'm excited for that first game.
00:05:35
Speaker
I was looking forward to Cameron Brink and Rakia Jackson playing against each other, but with Cameron outside of the mix now, I'm still looking forward to Rakia just balling and picking up from her rookie year, getting a quick preview into seeing what her sophomore year would look like. A lot of y'all know I am the co-host of the l LA Sparks Weekly Show, so I spend a whole lot of time with the LA Sparks, and I'm sensitive about my girls, so I'm excited to see how our rookie moved into a sophomore will continue to grow not only in the Sparks franchise, but as a basketball player in general. Another fun
Exciting Player Scenarios and Match-ups
00:06:11
Speaker
matchup is Kalia Copper and Angel Reese playing together on the same team. This kind of gives you a preview of what it might've looked like if Kalia Copper had a stay with the Chicago sky instead of moving to the Phoenix Mercury. If she had a stay with Chicago, Angel Reese could have been drafted there and they could have played together.
00:06:31
Speaker
Now, Chicago probably wouldn't have been in a good enough position to get that pick if Kalia didn't go, so it's kind of a double-edged sword here, but it is fun to play around with the idea of watching them play together. I'm excited to see Enrique, Ryan, Howard, and Dierka Hanby be a big three that we probably haven't seen before.
00:06:52
Speaker
Now, Ryan Howard and D'Erica Hamby have played three on three together with USA Women's Basketball. In my opinion, it's interesting to throw Arike in there because she got the handles. I mean, she can ball like Kyrie, shoot from way back behind. I'm excited to see how these three are going to play together because it would be hard to get the three of them all on one team, to be honest, as they have um built their leadership paths and made a name for themselves in their respective teams.
00:07:20
Speaker
The final thing that I'm excited about is just watching some of our favorite WNBA players play with people that you've never imagined they have the opportunity to play on the same team with outside of the WNBA All-Star game. These unrivaled matchups are going to be great basketball.
00:07:39
Speaker
three on three is fast pace. The NBA has been criticized for having boring games and imagine the WNBA growing at the pace that is growing. And now we have an opportunity to watch an even faster pace, more competitive version of that with the top players in the league. Some people who can play on both sides of the ball.
00:08:00
Speaker
offense, defense, and are some great playmakers. I'm excited. You should be excited and make sure you stay locked in with the post up. I am going to talk about it every single week. Women's basketball is one of the top things that I've talked about for years. Most of you are actually probably here because of some women's basketball clips or some women's basketball shows that I have done. What will
Impact on WNBA and Future Prospects
00:08:22
Speaker
the unrivaled league mean for the WNBA? Are coaches going to be watching this league and decide who they want to trade and how things go? With two expansion years coming up here y'all, this is a great time in women's basketball to have so many options. I could talk about women's basketball year round now. so
00:08:43
Speaker
I'm excited for that. I'll stop right in my mouth. Thank you
Conclusion and Viewing Reminder
00:08:46
Speaker
so much for watching this video and learning a little bit more about the Unrivaled League. Again, tap in on January 17th, live on TNT and streamed on HBO Max. I'll see y'all for the next episode of The Post-Up. It's DJ Triesi Tries, keep it locked.