How Unrivaled plans to become women's basketball's Champions League

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How Unrivaled plans to become women's basketball's Champions League

Mitchell Northam, USA TODAY · USA TODAY Sports

Mon, Jan 5, 2026 ·

4 min read

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Alex Bazzell has a vision for Unrivaled, the 3-on-3 professional women's basketball league beginning its second season on Monday, Jan. 5, in Miami, Florida.

"What we want to build this into is the Champions League of women's basketball," said Bazzell, the president of Unrivaled. "And that's not a competition towards the WNBA. It's just where we feel like we can kind of position ourselves in the market."

Comparing the fledgling 3-on-3 basketball league to arguably the most popular in worldwide soccer isn't exactly apples to apples, but Unrivaled will be home to most of the best players in women's basketball. The 54 players on eight teams feature former WNBA MVPs like Breanna Stewart , Olympians like Kelsey Plum , former collegiate national champs like Aliyah Boston and rising stars like Dominique Malonga .

As Unrivaled starts its second season, money is flowing into the league. Games will once again be broadcast by TNT Sports, airing on TNT, truTV and HBO Max. Big name sponsors, including Sephora, Maker's Mark, Samsung and Cheez-It, have signed on.

Bazzell is confident in the league's long-term outlook and believes this is just the beginning of a long and successful venture.

"We're still in inning one or two of what women's basketball is inevitably going to become," said Bazzell, who is married to Unrivaled co-founder Napheesa Collier . "My strong belief is, once people remove the women's sports blinders and start looking at it relative to what's going on in the ecosystem in terms of the data, it points to that right now. So we are very bullish on not just where we are today, but where we're going tomorrow."

Paige Bueckers headlines new stars in Unrivaled

Paige Bueckers, a former national champion at UConn and the reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year for the Dallas Wings , enters Unrivaled this season with Breeze. She'll play alongside Cameron Brink , Rickea Jackson , Kate Martin , Aari McDonald and Malonga.

"She's been really ahead of her time, not just on the court, but off the court, her maturity level," Bazzell said. "You know, Paige is a superstar, and Paige is someone that raises the level of everyone else, and I think that's what's really important."

Bueckers is no stranger to the 3-on-3 game, having featured for the U.S. national team in a pair of international tournaments in 2019.

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Ranking the top 10 women athletes of 2025

1. A'ja Wilson, Las Vegas AcesLas Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson had one of the best seasons in WNBA history and earned the top spot on our list. Wilson led the Aces to their third title in four years after sweeping nearly every major award in the calendar year. She earned her second WNBA scoring title, third Defensive Player of the Year award, an unprecedented fourth MVP and her second Finals MVP, becoming the first player in WNBA or NBA history to accomplish it all in a single season. Becky Hammon said it best: Wilson is "Everest. There is no one else around." Wilson isn't ready to be in the GOAT conversation just yet. "I still got a little bit more winning to do before you put me in that conversation. When you're compared to greats, when you're compared to legends, that means you're doing something right and I'm so grateful," she said after sweeping the Phoenix Mercury in the 2025 WNBA Finals.

(Joe Rondone, The Republic via USA TODAY NETWORK)

**2. Mikaela Shiffrin, Olympic alpine skier**Mikaela Shiffrin is in a league of her own. The two-time Olympic gold medalist owns the most World Cup wins of any alpine skier and is the only skier, male or female, to surpass the 100-victory milestone after reaching triple-digit World Cup victories in February. She's been on a tear ever since. Shiffrin has won five consecutive slalom races, including her win at the World Cup finals in Sun Valley, Idaho, in March and four wins to start the 2025-26 season. She's up to 105 World Cup wins, extending her own record, and is in great form ahead of the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, where she's a heavy favorite to medal.

(Christopher Creveling, Imagn Images)

**3. Paige Bueckers, Dallas Wings**Bueckers' prolific resume at UConn included everything but a national championship. That changed in April, when Bueckers led the Huskies to the program's 12th title. The win kicked off a whirlwind year for Bueckers. She was drafted No. 1 overall by the Dallas Wings and was a bright spot in the franchise's otherwise dismal 10-34 season. She was named the 2025 WNBA Rookie of the Year and earned an All-WNBA second-team nod, the only rookie selected to an All-WNBA Team. Bueckers told USA TODAY Sports she recently had the opportunity to catch her breath and process her achievements and what's ahead: "On my birthday (on Oc. 20), I reflected on the year 23 itself and how much of a journey it was. I stayed the most present and it ended up being one of the most fun, joyful, just peaceful years of my life. Just embracing everything that kind of came my way."

(Jerome Miron, Jerome Miron-Imagn Images)

**4. Aryna Sabalenka, tennis**Sabalenka spent the entire year at the top of the WTA rankings. Although the year got off to a rough start with back-to-back losses to Madison Keys and Coco Gauff in the Australian Open final and French Open final, respectively, Sabalenka rebounded to win the U.S. Open and clinch the fourth major title of her career. She finished the year with the most finals appearances (nine), most titles (four), most match wins (63) and set a single-season prize money record by taking home $15,008,519. She was named the WTA Player of the Year for the second consecutive year, the seventh player in WTA history to repeat and third in the past 25 years.

(Robert Deutsch, Imagn Images)

**5. Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx**Collier joined Elena Delle Donne in the exclusive 50-40-90 club, finishing the regular season with a 53.1% field goal percentage, 40.3% 3-point percentage and 90.6% free throw percentage. She led the Minnesota Lynx to the league-best 34-10 record, but Collier's accolades stretched far beyond the court. She's a vocal leader in the players' push for higher compensation in ongoing CBA negotiations with the WNBA and used her exit interview to publicly criticize league commissioner Cathy Engelbert. Collier also co-founded Unrivaled, a 3-on-3 basketball league that's drawn praise for prioritizing player amenities and paying competitive salaries. Unrivaled has provided an alternate avenue to earn money outside of the WNBA, which will be paramount as players are prepared to strike if CBA negotiations with the league remain at a standstill.

(Christian Petersen, Getty Images)

**6. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, track**All Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone does is win. The four-time Olympic gold medalist won two gold medals at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo in September. McLaughlin-Levrone won gold in the 400m flat with a time of 47.78 seconds, which broke the 42-year-old North American record with the second-fastest time by a woman in the distance. With the win, McLaughlin-Levrone became the first athlete to win world titles in both the 400m flat and 400m hurdles, an event for which she owns the world record (50.37 seconds). The 26-year-old has been so dominant she hasn't lost in a 400m or 400m hurdles race in two years. "I knew there were a lot of people doubting me with making the switch from 400m hurdles to the flat 400m, but ultimately, I had faith in my training," McLaughlin-Levrone said after winning World Athletics WomenÕs World Athlete of the Year. "For me, 2025 was a year of stepping outside of the comfort zone and pushing the bounds of what was mentally and physically possible. I want to continue pushing boundaries in 2026."

(JEWEL SAMAD, AFP via Getty Images)

**7. Catarina Macario, USWNT**Catarina Macario has been on fire. Macario led the U.S. women's national soccer team with eight goals this season, including a brace in Team USA's 3-0 win over Italy in late November. Macario is the first U.S. player to score in three straight games since Mallory Swanson scored six in a row from November 2022 to February 2023. Macario now has 16 total goals and five assists in 29 national team appearances. Macario's brilliance extended past the USWNT. The Chelsea FC midfielder is up to two assists in nine league matches so far and scored two goals in Chelsea's 6-0 UEFA WomenÕs Champions League win over St. Polten last month.

(Kylie Graham, Imagn Images)

**8. Hilary Knight, hockey**Hilary Knight is synonymous with Team USA hockey. She led the Americans to the top of the podium at the 2025 Women's World Championships to claim her 10th gold medal, the most of any hockey player. She also holds world championship records for the most goals, assists and points. Knight led Team USA to the first sweep of Canada in the 2025 Rivalry Series with five goals and two assists across four games. Knight also had a PWHL-leading 29 points (15 goals, 14 assists) in 30 games for the Boston Fleet. She's set to appear in her fifth Olympics next year, which will mark the most for a U.S. hockey player, male or female.

(Leila Devlin, Getty Images)

**9. NiJaree Canady, softball**Texas Tech may have lost to Texas in the 2025 Women's College World Series, but pitcher NiJaree Canaday emerged as the face of college softball. The reigning national player of the year transferred from Stanford to Texas Tech and earned a seven-figure payday from the school's collective, marking the largest NIL deal for a college softball player. It was well deserved. Canady finished the season with a 1.11 ERA (second-best in the nation) and a team-high 11 home runs. She led Texas Tech to a school-record 54 wins, a Big 12 regular-season and tournament title and the program's first WCWS appearances. Even Texas Tech alum Patrick Mahomes came to see what all the hype was about and attended Game 2 of the WCWs.

(NATHAN J. FISH, THE OKLAHOMAN via USA TODAY NETWORK)

**10. Kyndal Stowers, Texas A&M volleyball**Just last year, Kyndal Stowers was medically retired after suffering four concussions in a matter of months. She didn't know if she would ever play volleyball again. By December 2025, Stowers was named the most outstanding player in the 2025 NCAA women's volleyball tournament after leading Texas A&M to their first national championship in program history with a sweep of SEC rival Kentucky. Stowers finished with 10 kills on .304 hitting, plus six digs, two service aces and one block. The Aggies shocked the world by defeating No. 1 overall seed Nebraska in five-sets, before sweeping No. 1 Pitt and No. 1 Kentucky in the Final Four.

(Jay Biggerstaff, Imagn Images)

How WNBA CBA negotiations could impact Unrivaled

Unrivaled begins its second season during a tumultuous time in the landscape of women's professional basketball.

The WNBA is locked into tense negotiations with its players over a new collective bargaining agreement. The vice presidents of the WNBA Player's Association, Stewart and Collier, also happen to be the founders of Unrivaled — which has consistently insisted it is not in competition with the WNBA. Still, Unrivaled offers better compensation than the WNBA with six-figure salaries and equity in the league for its players. Those are two things WNBA players are now trying to negotiate for in the CBA.

During a press conference Monday morning, Bazzell was asked about the WNBA potentially seeking exclusivity for its players during these CBA negotiations — essentially forbidding them from playing in other leagues — and how that could impact Unrivaled.

"We don't believe that future is near," Bazzell said. "These are all business decisions — playing in the WNBA, playing overseas, playing with us. We continue to really be adamant that we're providing the best spot for all the best players, and as long as we do that, inevitably, it's going to solve some of the problems that really aren't in our control, right?"

Bazzell added: "We're not in constant dialog of (partnering with the WNBA). You know, I don't want to speak too much of what's going on behind the scenes, but as I've made very clear, we're open to growing the ecosystem."

Development team aims to ease roster management

One new feature for Unrivaled this season is a six player development pool that teams can sign from as injuries occur. The players will remain on site in Miami through the duration of the season and will be available through a waiver system if a team drops below five players due to injuries or absences.

The players making up the development pool this season include Hailey Van Lith , Aziaha James , Haley Jones , Emily Engstler , Laeticia Amihere and Makayla Timpson . They'll practice and scrimmage and could play for multiple teams throughout the season.

"I'm proud of the decision that we made to build that pool, because I think it takes pressure off the league," Bazzell said. "It takes pressure off the players, you know, if they feel like they're injured, not having to put themselves in a spot that may risk further injury, but knowing that there's other great players ready on standby, if that were to happen."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Amid WNBA CBA talks, Unrivaled has big goals for second season

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