Unrivaled open to WNBA partnership as season 2 begins

• Unrivaled president Alex Bazzell says the 3-on-3 league is open to partnering with the WNBA as it starts its second season.
• Founders Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart previously offered the WNBA a small equity stake; that proposal was declined over league rules.
• Unrivaled pays players and aims to be a domestic, paid offseason option and development hub rather than a rival league.

Unrivaled keeps door open for WNBA partnership

As Unrivaled tips off its second season, league president Alex Bazzell said Monday the organization remains open to working with the WNBA. “We’re not in constant dialogue about that … but as I’ve made very clear, we are open to growing the ecosystem, whichever way that looks like,” Bazzell said.

Background: an earlier offer and rules concerns

Sources told ESPN last fall that Unrivaled co-founders — Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier and New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart — initially offered the WNBA a small equity share to show alignment. League officials ultimately declined the offer, citing possible violations of WNBA rules, sources said.

How Unrivaled positions itself

Bazzell has repeatedly described Unrivaled as complementary to the WNBA, not a competitor. The 3-on-3 league’s stated goal is to offer WNBA players a paid, domestic offseason option and to act as a development hub for the sport.

“You have to look at the entire space offered as an opportunity,” Bazzell said. “Where women’s basketball is today, and what we have built is so unique, one doesn’t need to exist without the other for either to be successful.”

Unrivaled schedule and player pay

The league highlighted its different business model by paying players. In its inaugural season, Unrivaled offered an average salary of $222,222 and equity stakes to players — a package that has come up as a point of contrast in WNBA collective bargaining discussions.

Unrivaled schedule planning aims to fit the WNBA offseason cycle, positioning the league as an added opportunity rather than a conflict. Bazzell compared the league’s role to predraft combines, offseason pro-am play and NBA summer league formats: formal or informal avenues that expand a sport’s ecosystem.

CBA negotiations and comparisons

As WNBA and WNBPA bargaining has intensified, observers have compared proposals to what Unrivaled offers. Reports indicate the WNBPA’s recent proposal — roughly 30% of gross revenue and an estimated $10.5 million salary cap in some analyses — prompted league projections of significant losses under that framework.

Still, Bazzell pushed back against the idea that the two models must conflict. He said innovation and collaboration can coexist and that the women’s basketball landscape can support multiple formats.

What to watch

Watch for any official talks between the leagues, updates to Unrivaled’s season calendar, and how the WNBA’s CBA negotiations may shift public focus. For now, Unrivaled starts season two with an open-door stance and a schedule meant to complement — not replace — the WNBA.

Image Referance: https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/47515155/unrivaled-president-open-partnering-wnba-future