Unrivaled Power Rankings After Full 2027 Roster Release

The teams are set for Unrivaled season three. The star power is felt across all of the rosters. From history makers like Gabby Williams to rookies who set the WNBA on fire, like Olivia Miles, the new faces will be shaking up the status quo in the league.

Clubs were allowed to protect players based on the results of last season. While teams certainly utilized those protections, the roster differences have provided new questions to answer and created new strategies to deploy.

While we won't have any games to base it on until Unrivaled season three opens on January 8th, let's rank these rosters based on how they look on paper.

Roster: Kelsey Plum (Protected), Kayla McBride, Aaliyah Edwards, Natasha Cloud (Protected), Tiffany Hayes, Li Yueru

Kelsey Plum has been able to continuously grow her game. All aspects of that growth will be necessary for Phantom BC. The scoring has been the foundation of her greatness from the beginning. Now, her increased time as a point guard in the WNBA has helped her grow as a playmaker.

There is certainly offensive talent to pass to, too. Kayla McBride missed last Unrivaled season but was a standout in year one, being named to the All-Unrivaled First Team for the 2025 season. Aaliyah Edwards has also found Unrivaled to be a place where she is at her best as a pro. After multiple standout performances in the 1-on-1 Tournament, Edwards's next step is to help lead a team to success.

Edwards will be joined by Li Yueru as the players tasked with holding down the paint, which feels like it could be a weakness for Phantom BC over the course of the season.

Roster: Jackie Young (protected), Gabby Williams, Jess Shepard, Marine Johannes, Maddy Siegrist, Satou Sabally

Gabby Williams is coming off one of the greatest single-game WNBA Playoff performances we have seen with her Game 7 takeover. She rides that momentum straight into Unrivaled for Laces BC. Williams has the potential to be one of the best players in the league. Arguably the best defensive player in the world, she will be a nightmare to play against. Her offensive game has taken strides, making her a two-way problem.

Similarly, Jackie Young is also a certified issue for opponents on both sides of the ball. Young's playmaking leap, which began in Unrivaled and carried into the WNBA, positions her as the table-setter this team needs. Jess Shepard, Young's college teammate at Notre Dame, will also be able to help carry that playmaking responsibility.

The big key will be the defense outside of Williams and Young. The rest of this roster is incredibly offensive-focused and will have to find their defensive chemistry quickly to not be hunted by opposing offenses.

Roster: Olivia Miles, Sonia Citron (protected), Cameron Brink, Natisha Hiedeman, Rae Burrell, Naz Hillmon

The Spectacle has arrived in Unrivaled, as she will be repping Hive BC. Olivia Miles was must-see TV in her Rookie of the Year and All-WNBA First Team season. That projects to be the same in Unrivaled.

Miles' ability to force the defense to choose a coverage and then counter that choice defined an incredible season. She will have the chance to deploy this in Unrivaled. Pick-and-roll situations were a focal point for forcing those decisions, so the chemistry with Cameron Brink and Naz Hillmon will be vital to a successful offense.

Miles' Notre Dame teammate Sonia Citron struggled in her first Unrivaled season from beyond the arc, but this team will need her to find success, as will her overall scoring. Citron shot only 21.4% in Unrivaled but bounced back by shooting 34.2% for the Mystics this season. If that production follows Citron into her second Unrivaled season, the ceiling rises for Hive BC.

Roster: Paige Bueckers (protected), Kahleah Copper, Dominique Malonga (protected), Kaitlyn Chen, DiJonai Carrington, Monique Billings

There simply might not be a more automatic player in the world than Paige Bueckers right now. On all three levels, she is a threat to score as soon as the ball hits her hands. You put that in the Unrivaled setting, where 1-on-1 defense is even more accentuated. You have an incredible problem for opposing defenses.

Those 1-on-1 matchups and the capability to win them are what stand out here for Breeze BC. Kahleah Copper has made a career of using her quick twitch athleticism, wingspan, and incredible layup package to finish around defenders in remarkable ways. Kaitlyn Chen will be new to Unrivaled. This season, we saw her as one of the best finishers at the rim in the WNBA. On the defensive end, DiJonai Carrington specializes in locking opponents down.

The big question is for the bigs. What growth will Dominique Malonga show as a rim protector and defender of bigs in the paint? With her being the primary defender against the opposing team's best big, staying out of foul trouble will be a major factor in Breeze BC's success this season.

Roster: Allisha Gray, Rhyne Howard (protected), Dearica Hamby, Jordin Canada, Flau'jae Johnson, Aneesah Morrow

There is a whole lot of familiarity on this roster. Allisha Gray, Rhyne Howard and Jordin Canada just completed a run to the WNBA Finals, where the Dream came up just short against the Valkyries in Game 7. Defense was the foundation of that run. They have a coach in Teresa Weatherspoon who is going to be asking for that same dominance when they share the court in Unrivaled.

This is a super unique team, as you don't have a true center on this roster, but you have a ton of length and athleticism. Flau'jae Johnson will be making her Unrivaled debut. Having her behind Gray and Howard on the wings makes it a nonstop, disruptive defense for opponents to try to figure out.

Dearica Hamby and Aneesah Morrow will be big factors, as they will be forced to guard players who are naturally taller, but if they are able to win the boards, they are going to power this team in a lot of ways. Defense to easy offense will be the name of the game for Vinyl BC. It has the chance to power them far up the standings.

Roster: Courtney Williams, Marina Mabrey (protected), Napheesa Collier (protected), Skylar Diggins (protected), Sydney Taylor, Temi Fágbénlé

If you are looking for the team that would lead the power rankings based solely on energy levels and competitive spirit, look no further than Lunar Owls BC. If there is a loose ball, you can bet a player in a Lunar Owls jersey will be on the ground first.

Marina Mabrey was simply incredible last season for this team. Everyone remembers where they were watching the 47-point masterclass she put on in Philadelphia. The momentum she built in Unrivaled continued in the WNBA. Now, it loops back around to where she projects to be an offensive force yet again. This is a balanced roster, as you can generally place Williams and Diggins into a ball-handling, cutting role. Mabrey and Sydney Taylor as your shooters, with Napheesa Collier and Temi Fágbénlé as your forwards.

The ceiling of this team will be decided by Napheesa Collier. When healthy over the last couple of seasons she has simply been one of the best basketball players in the world. After missing last season, she will be looking to come back ready to prove the Lunar Owls BC belong back at the top of the standings. She has the right team to back her on that mission.

Roster: Chelsea Gray (protected), Brittney Sykes, Shakira Austin (protected), Aziaha James, Lexie Hull, Kayla Thornton

Rose BC simply has a lot of players that you have to respect in the Unrivaled field. Chelsea Gray was the Unrivaled MVP last season, as it wasn't much of a competition. She was second in the league with 24.2 points per game while also averaging 6.1 assists and 5.6 rebounds. Gray can decide the pulse of a game, which is a special asset to have on your team, especially in the closing seconds.

A big part of Gray's success was her pick-and-roll connection with teammate Shakira Austin, who also remains on this Rose BC roster. Austin herself is coming off an All-Defensive First Team honor in the WNBA. It was easily her most impressive offensive season, with a leap to 17 points and 9.5 rebounds per game.

Brittney Sykes is an incredible replacement for Kahleah Copper on this roster, as she will be able to fill a very similar role on the wing. The stats are eerily similar across the board between the two from last Unrivaled season. Depth will be the question mark here, but James, Hull, and Thornton will be cast in familiar supporting roles to their play in the WNBA, which should increase their comfort.

Roster: Veronica Burton (protected), Bridget Carleton, Breanna Stewart (protected), Arike Ogunbowale (protected), Kiki Rice, Izzy Harrison]

The Mist are the reigning champions of Unrivaled and will start the season at the top of the power rankings. Unrivaled is unique in the way rosters are built, so this isn't an exact copy of last year's squad. However, keeping Breanna Stewart, Veronica Burton and Arike Ogunbowale is a heck of a place to start.

Unsurprisingly, Stewart was one of the best players in the league last season, averaging a near double-double with 21.4 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Her chemistry with Ogunbowale was constantly growing over the course of the season. Ogunbowale, in her own right, had a crescendoing two-way impact as the season went on. Finally, the momentum of Veronica Burton carrying over from an Unrivaled championship into winning a WNBA championship has her poised to take another step with her game.

Losing Allisha Gray is a major loss for Mist BC, but they are adding some incredible depth. Bridget Carleton just had a career year for the Portland Fire, with her per-game scoring reaching double figures for the first time in her WNBA career. Izzy Harrison was also able to find scoring success for Toronto. Her Tempo teammate Kiki Rice could be a breakout player in Unrivaled after an incredibly solid rookie campaign on both sides of the ball.