The Unrivaled League’s inaugural season is in full swing, pitting many of the best WNBA athletes against each other in a unique 3-on-3 experience. Minnesota Lynx star and Unrivaled co-founder Napheesa Collier recently sat down with Taylor Rooks to discuss the launch of the highly anticipated endeavor.
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Rooks asked the four-time All-Star which player pitch she remembers the most when the idea for Unrivaled first came about. Collier’s mind immediately landed on Las Vegas Aces guard Chelsea Gray, who Collier underlined was one of the earliest. In fact, the 28-year-old believes Gray was the first to hop on board with Unrivaled.
Collier dove into how she and Breanna Stewart prioritized getting the buy-in from other players, emphasizing how important it was for them to have the very best competing in their league. It wasn’t an easy assignment, as the two WNBA stars had to pitch their peers an idea that had never been done before.
However, Collier explained how selling other players on ownership and the ability to have equity in a league they’re competing in was a big step.
WNBA players don’t play basketball for eight figures a season like NBA athletes do, so the possibility of extra earnings was a big talking point for Collier. The 2024 Defensive Player of the Year explained how Unrivaled would allow her and her peers to have more of an impact on the game while also adding extra salary.
“Just like how revolutionary we thought this could be, selling that dream to them, I remember just doing that in the early days it was like scary and fun,” Collier said. “Just trying to get them to buy in it’s crazy to think back on.”
Collier and Stewart prioritized the player experience with Unrivaled
While the Unrivaled League is a way for WNBA athletes to play domestically and bypass complications from the WNBA’s prioritization rule for players who choose to play overseas in the WNBA offseason, Collier and Stewart had even bigger plans for the venture.
Collier revealed that at first, she had to convince players with the equity and innovativeness of Unrivaled before she could talk about the others who were already on board.
“Yeah, because when you’re going after the first people, you can’t say ‘These people are already gonna do it, so we already have some people who are in.’ Again, you have to sell them on the dream,” Collier continued.
The Lynx forward emphasized in her pitch that the league could take off if enough players participated. Collier explained how she could use the names of stars who were already on board to convince others who were on the fence. Now, Unrivaled boasts 36 players throughout 12 teams, setting up the league for a successful first season.
