Indiana Fever guard latest WNBA player to commit to Unrivaled

Unrivaled has announced player number 35, and it's Indiana Fever guard Katie Lou Samuelson.

Samuelson, 5 years WNBA The veteran has averaged 5.9 points and 3.5 rebounds per game since being drafted fourth overall by the Chicago Sky in 2019. She was a standout player at the University of Connecticut, averaging 16.7 points over four seasons and shooting 41.5 percent from three seasons.

The 3-on-3 women's professional basketball league, which has been announcing the names of participating WNBA players for months, is officially scheduled to tip off in Miami on Jan. 17, with games scheduled for Friday, Saturday and Monday. Nine games will be played. A few weeks. Several of Samuelson's Fever teammates will be in the league, including Lexi Hull and Aliyah Boston. In college, Samuelson was also a teammate of league co-founders Brianna Stewart and Napheesa Collier.

Samuelsson missed the 2023 season due to pregnancy and had a difficult 2024 season. He averaged 9.7 points in 29.5 minutes per night with the Sparks in 2022, but averaged just 4.3 points in 18.2 minutes per night with Indiana. Still, at her best, she's an elite forward who can stretch the floor and do a little bit of everything.

Why is it invincible?

Unrivaled has the potential to transform women's basketball in many ways. As an example, the league's total payroll is $8 million, so the average player salary is $222,222. (In contrast, the average salary in the WNBA is less than $148,000, even though the season is more than twice as long).

In addition, the league focuses on player development, with players such as Nora Henry, Adam Harrington, DJ Sackman, Andrew Wade, Teresa Weatherspoon, phil handy — Boasts a strong background in player development.

“I've been involved in women's basketball for a long time,” Handy said. “But once me and my team had the opportunity to really dive into Unrivaled and really pull back the layers of what they were trying to accomplish, we were really fascinated by the whole concept.”

Initially, the league was only scheduled to have 30 players, but after exceeding initial financial projections, Unrivaled added more spots. They are Alyssa Thomas (Connecticut Sun), Steph Dolson (Washington Mystics), Jordan Canada (Atlanta Dream), Cameron Brink (Los Angeles Sparks), Ray Burrell (Los Angeles Sparks), and Sent to ___.

“I think this shows the level of excitement and how much women's sports has grown, that we're able to expand in year one and have such great partnerships.” Nafeesa Collier told SB Nation.

One final spot will be revealed between now and tip-off.

Complete list of confirmed unrivaled players:

Every WNBA team has at least one player participating in Unrivaled.

1. Aaliyah Edwards (Mystic)

2. Alyssa Thomas (Sun)

3. Aliyah Boston (Fever)

4. Alisha Gray (Dream)

5. Angel Reese (Sky)

6. Arike Ogunbowale (Wings)

7. Azura Stevens (spark)

8. Brianna Stewart (Liberty)

9. Britney Sykes (mystic)

10. Brittney Greiner (Mercury)

11. Cameron Brink (Sparks)

12. Chelsea Gray (Ace)

13. Courtney Vandersloot (Liberty)

14. Courtney Williams (Lynx)

15. Dearika Hamby (Sparks)

16. Dijonai Carrington (Sun)

17. Jackie Young (Ace)

18. Jewel Lloyd (Storm)

19. Jordan Canada (Dream)

20. Carlea Copper (Mercury)

21. Kate Martin (Valkyrie)

22. Katie Lou Samuelson (Fever)

23. Kayla McBride (Lynx)

24. Lexi Hull (Fever)

25. Marina Mabry (Sun)

26. Nafisa Collier (Lynx)

27. Natasha Cloud (Mercury)

28. Ray Burrell (Sparks)

29. Ryne Howard (dream)

30. Recare Jackson (Sparks)

31. Sato Sabally (Wings)

32. Skyler Diggins-Smith (Storm)

33. shakira austin (mystic)

34. Stephanie Dolson (Mystics)

35. Tiffany Hayes (Ace)