Aces guards Jackie Young, Chelsea Gray and Dana Evans are all suiting up for the Unrivaled Basketball league this year. Unrivaled is a women-only league co-founded by Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier.
Unrivaled Basketball is a 3v3 style league located in Miami, Florida. It features eight different teams and hosts 48 of the best WNBA players to compete for a championship. With tipoff set for Jan. 5, it marks the second year of the league. Last year’s champions were Rose BC, led by Aces guard Chelsea Gray. The team also featured Angel Reese and Azura Stevens.
Unrivaled Is Taking Over
Unrivaled might still be a baby in the sports industry. However, it has the star power and the sponsors to soar far. State Farm, Sprite, Wilson and Under Armour are among its sponsors. This league is trying to take over the WNBA’s offseason by offering players a highly competitive league still in the states. 50 percent of the players go overseas in the winter. With this new league, that number could drop soon.
In just the first year, the league achieved 589 million social media impressions. It also reached more than 11.9 million total viewers. The instant success in this industry is unheard of. The NBA and WNBA took years to build similar sponsor and audience reach. Everyone needs to start looking out because this league is looking to become the best.
As the women’s game improves each year, Skylar Diggins-Smith has said the WNBA is “the most competitive league in the world. It’s only 144 women that get this blessing to be able to have this opportunity.”
Aces’ fans are excited to see all three Aces on different teams battling it out. Young is on Laces, Gray is on Rose and Evans is on Phantom. Fans are looking forward to seeing if Gray and team Rose can defend their championship or be dethroned this year.
Jesse Vanderveer is a basketball reporter and writer for Dice City Sports. You can follow him on X via @JesseVanderveer22
