Ranking Unrivaled's 3-on-3 rosters ahead of inaugural season - ESPN

Many of the WNBA's biggest stars will battle over the next two months in Unrivaled's inaugural season of 3-on-3 basketball. But before the likes of former MVP Breanna Stewart, fellow 2024 All-WNBA first-team picks Napheesa Collier and Alyssa Thomas, as well as Brittney Griner and Sabrina Ionescu help tip off the new league Friday, let's break down the rosters of the six teams vying to bring home the first championship on March 17.

Since we've never seen games played using Unrivaled's rules, which include an 18-second shot clock and a target score, among other notable changes from the WNBA, it's impossible to say exactly how things will play out. Still, we can look at the talent on each roster using my projections for how these players will perform in the WNBA during the upcoming 2025 campaign.

I've used those projections, based on production over the past three WNBA seasons, to rank all six teams in offensive and defensive rating as well as how often we could expect them to win based on those ratings. Let's take a look, starting with one team that ranks well ahead of the rest.

.604 expected win percentage

Roster: Shakira Austin, Napheesa Collier, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Allisha Gray, Courtney Williams, Cameron Brink (IR)

Collier, who co-founded the league with Stewart, is on a roster stacked at the defensive end. Although the Lunar Owls project below average on offense, their estimated defensive rating is more than four points per 100 possessions better than any other team.

Obviously, that starts with Collier, the WNBA's Defensive Player of the Year in 2024. Thanks to high rates of blocks, steals and defensive rebounds, Austin has the second-best defensive projection for any player in the Unrivaled pool behind Collier.