Unrivaled, the new basketball league founded by WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier, made its well-awaited debut Friday night. The league features 36 of women's basketball's biggest stars across six teams in a full-court, three-on-three format.
Stewart, the New York Liberty forward coming off a WNBA championship, scored the first basket in league history as her Mist BC squad eventually fell to the Lunar Owls BC, 84–80. Collier was on the other side and led the Lunar Owls with 27 points in the win.
After the showdown between the league's two co-founders, the nightcap between Rose BC and Vinyl BC featured a multitude of stars like Angel Reese, Kahleah Copper, Chelsea Gray, Arike Ogunbowale, Aliyah Boston and Rhyne Howard. Howard led the game with 33 points as she helped Vinyl secure a 79-73 win.
Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant was quick to give Unrivaled a vote of confidence as he enjoyed the league's debut.
I love the concept of @Unrivaledwbb…it’s great see our pros hoopin on tv during the winter months…
— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) January 18, 2025
"I love the concept of Unrivaled," Durant posted on his X account. "It's great [to] see our pros hoopin' on TV during the winter months."
Unrivaled gives players another option to stay in the country during the WNBA's offseason, when a lot of players tend to spend their offseason playing overseas. Besides the full-court, three-on-three play, Unrivaled employs other specific rules unique from WNBA and NBA play.
Unrivaled plays toward a "winning score," which is determined by adding 11 points to the leading team's score after the third quarter. The league plays with an 18-second shot clock, shorter than both the WNBA and college, which creates a faster, more free-flowing pace. Lastly, the league speeds up games by allowing players to take fewer free throws. No matter how many points a trip to the foul line is worth, the player will shoot one free throw. For example, if a player is fouled on a three-point shot, they will shoot one free throw worth three points.
Durant rocks with it, giving Unrivaled an early signal of approval from the NBA star.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Kevin Durant Gives Unrivaled Glowing Review During League's Debut Night.
