The Big Lead

Unrivaled's roster reveal shows it still hopes Caitlin Clark will join

By Joe Lago

Sep 22, 2024; Uncasville, Connecticut, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) during the game against Indiana Fever during game one of the first round of the 2024 WNBA Playoffs at Mohegan Sun Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark Smith-Imagn Images
Sep 22, 2024; Uncasville, Connecticut, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) during the game against Indiana Fever during game one of the first round of the 2024 WNBA Playoffs at Mohegan Sun Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark Smith-Imagn Images / Mark Smith-Imagn Images
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Unrivaled, the new 3x3 basketball league co-founded by WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier, announced the rosters for its 2025 inaugural season on Wednesday.

The league will feature six teams with unconventional but cool names — Vinyl, Rose, Mist, Lunar Owls, Phantom and Laces — and the six-player rosters are filled with WNBA All-Stars.

RELATED: Caitlin Clark is playing more golf, this time on the PGA Tour

Thirty-four of the 36 roster spots are filled, but one "wild card" selection remains for two teams — Collier's Lunar Owls and a Phantom squad led by Team USA members Jackie Young and Brittney Griner.

Obviously, the big fish that has yet to be caught is Caitlin Clark. And while the WNBA Rookie of the Year appears to be more focused on playing golf than playing basketball in her offseason, she can still be a late entry to Unrivaled.

Unrivaled reportedly gave Clark the full-court press with a contract offer similar to Major League Soccer's groundbreaking deal to lure Lionel Messi to North America's top soccer league.

Unfortunately for the new hoops league, it needs Clark more than Clark needs Unrivaled. The Indiana Fever point guard seems to be enjoying her break from hoops after enduring a long basketball journey from college to the pros that began at the University of Iowa over a year ago.

Unrivaled will begin play — with or without Clark — on Friday, January 17. The league also announced its Week 1 schedule on Wednesday, with its first-ever game pitting Stewart's Mist against Collier's Lunar Owls on TNT.

If Clark does commit to Unrivaled, it seems like a no-brainer for her to join Collier and headline the league's debut game.

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