How does Unrivaled Basketball's 1-on-1 tournament work? Format, key dates and more

Modified Jan 02, 2025 19:22 GMT

WNBA: MAY 30 Los Angeles Sparks at Chicago Sky - Source: Getty

With young stars like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese joining the scene and bringing more attention to the game, 2024 was a huge year for the WNBA. The league already featured superstars like A'ja Wilson and Sabrina Ionescu, and it figures to grow exponentially over the next years.

With that in mind, WNBA stars Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier launched Unrivaled. This new 3-on-3 tournament will allow players to showcase their skills, stay competitive, and make some money in the offseason.

As such, they won't have to play overseas to round up their salaries, just like most players have had to do in the past.

Unrivaled is set to debut on Jan. 17, and it will feature a 1-on-1 tournament. Here are all the details about this revolutionary idea.

How does Unrivaled's 1-on-1 tournament work? Format explained

The Unrivaled tournament will be played in Miami over ten weeks, including playoffs. Almost all games will be played on Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays.

Week 5 will feature a pause to allow them to have the first-ever 1-on-1 tournament on single-elimination matchups. That tournament will run for three days, culminating on Feb. 14 before the league resumes play.

All games will be played to six points. That means there will be no 2s or 3-pointers, as all baskets will be worth one point. There will be no offensive rebounds and each possession will have a seven-second shot clock.

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Players making the Final Four will get $25,000, and the runner-up will get $50,000. The winner will get $200,000, and their unrivaled teammates will get an additional $10,000.

Unrivaled: Key Dates

Jan 17: Start of the season
Feb 10 & 13: 1-on-1 Tournament
Feb 14: 1-on-1 tournament final
Feb 18: Regular season resumes
Mar 10: End of regular season
Mar 16: Semifinals
March 17: Finals

How does Unrivaled work?

The inaugural edition will feature six teams, with five players on each. Moreover, the players will fully own each team, as they will all get equity in the league.

Games will be played on a shorter full-court and feature four seven-minute quarters. The games will be played in a custom-made facility in Medley, Florida.

Notably, players are set to make around $250,000 for the full season, which is the current equivalent to the WNBA's league-wide maximum salary.