New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu understands being in a championship atmosphere. With Unrivaled, she’s been feeling that same atmosphere. Even after Ionescu hyped up Liberty fans with her Unrivaled announcement, it was for good reason. She knew there was something special brewing.
Fast forward to the start of the 3×3 league and that sentiment remains. She explained following the Phantom Basketball Club’s game on Friday about the trajectory of Unrivaled.
“To be able to do what we’ve done here in Year 1 and for it to be that successful, it’s kind of hard to top,” Ionescu said. “Everyone here bought in to make sure it goes right. The direction it’s headed in is ‘let’s get more people, let’s get more teams, let’s go to more cities. I’d love to go to Barclays Center.”
As of now, Unrivaled is hosted in Miami, Florida, and has an abundance of resources. Many of them include personal training staff, nutritionists, and a barrage of other benefits. Some of these have not been seen in the WNBA. As a result, many believe that Unrivaled is challenging the WNBA to step up their game for taking care of their players.
Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu sees big things for Unrivaled
In the first year, Unrivaled has taken the WNBA offseason by storm. When multiple players would play overseas in the offseason, something was brewing. Although Athletes Unlimited started a league in 2022, it doesn’t have the same magnitude as Unrivaled.
Many of the logistics are taken care of. Both Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart have taken great pride in making sure everything is set. After all, the league announced players slowly throughout the 2024 WNBA season. Meanwhile, Ionescu took a cold-blooded shot to win Game 3 of the WNBA Finals for the Liberty.
Coincidentally, it was against the Minnesota Lynx, which happens to be Collier’s team. Either way, the respect between the two players is there, and the talent is noticed. Although the rivalry between the two will be there, both see what Unrivaled is doing. Collier had the inception for quite a while but took her due diligence to make sure everything was worked out.
Ionescu gets to experience that firsthand as a player. While the roster and teams will likely grow, the traction for it will keep growing as well. As a result, Unrivaled might have to start booking games at WNBA and perhaps even NBA arenas for games. The Liberty Star suggested Barclays Center, so something could happen there.
Regardless of that, time will tell if Unrivaled keeps riding its wave of momentum.
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