Unrivaled’s second season begins on January 5th, and Breanna Stewart will look to put on a show.
Solving a growing problem
The league co-founder is back following the end of the New York Liberty’s season. Stewart sprained her MCL in the playoffs, but powered through it. Since then, she took a rare break from basketball and spent time traveling with her family around the world
Now that she’s back, Stewart is looking to solve a big problem in her game. Since joining the Liberty in 2023, her three point percentage has decreased each season. In 2025, she shot a career worst 24.1 percent from three point range. Throughout the WNBA season, defenses dared her to make deep jumpers and she was unable to make them pay.
At Unrivaled Media Day, Stewie discussed her shooting and how her rest this off-season will help her game
“[The break] gave me time to be off from the court and really work on my body,” Stewart said. “And I think just really getting the fluidity and the flow back [helped]. I was on the court with Zach [O’Brien, former Liberty assistant head coach and current Mist BC head coach] earlier, and I just feel back to myself, which I’m happy about and knowing that everything is working together in tangent to just give me the rhythm that I need.
So I’m going to be confident going into into Unrivaled and really just getting back to myself. That’s my main idea. But having confidence in my shot is huge.”
Stewart mentioned that she didn’t undergo any surgeries this off-season. Following Unrivaled year one, she underwent knee surgery and rushed to make it back for the WNBA season. This time, she has the opportunity to play without injury and can properly heal up once the league ends its season in March.
3×3 is certainly different from 5×5, but the court’s dimensions are the same and Unrivaled plays full court basketball.
A combination of health and being on the receiving end of more open shots should get Stewart’s shooting back in line with what we’re used to. If Stewart is back to her pre-2023 days from deep, the Liberty under new head coach Chris DeMarco will become even more formidable.
Stewart and Unrivaled’s big year two bet
Following a successful debut season, Unrivaled decided to shake things up. The league added two new teams, created a player development pool to 60, and will have more investment from their TV partner, TNT Sports. As women’s sports continues to be a mainstream attraction, Unrivaled hopes to stand out in the crowded sports landscape.
“I’m just really proud of and excited that the fact that not only are [Napheesa Collier, Unrivaled co-founder] and I and everybody behind the scenes at Unrivaled seeing this vision, but also the players You talked about them having multi year deals and wanting to be here,” Stewart said. “When you have that, the desire is even greater to make sure everything is top notch and the best of the best.”
Unrivaled is taking place during the current WNBA CBA negotiations. Things have been contentious as players fight for various improvements across the business. Unrivaled allows players to be under the same roof while also showing what happens when you fully invest in women’s sports. For Stewart and Unrivaled leadership, this year is a great opportunity to expand the league’s reach and make it a mainstay going forward. So far, so good.