Napheesa Collier Leaves the Door Open for Caitlin Clark to Play in Unrivaled

Collier said there will always be a spot for Clark in Unrivaled.
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark at Carnesecca Arena.
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark at Carnesecca Arena. / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart's Unrivaled league is off to an exciting start in its first season.

The three-on-three women's basketball league features WNBA stars, new rules to create a faster, free-flowing pace and even a one-on-one tournament that recently kicked off.

Before the league started, Unrivaled posted clues on who would be the next player added to their 36-person field. As star after star entered the fold, fans wondered whether they'd see Caitlin Clark's name appear for Unrivaled's inaugural season.

While Clark isn't competing in Unrivaled during this WNBA offseason, Collier hopes to see Clark join the party eventually.

"For Caitlin, I feel like it's just been such a whirlwind," Collier said in an appearance on FanDuel TV's Run It Back show. "Coming from college and all that came with that to being in her first WNBA season, it's just a lot to handle. And there's no break, especially for the rookies. They play for like 18 months straight or something crazy like that just going from both seasons. So I know she really needed that little mental break from basketball for a little bit.

"But all [Unrivaled] can do is show her what we have and I think what we have here is really special. And of course we're always going to have a spot for her and hopefully we can make it work in the future."

While Clark will watch Unrivaled's first season from the sidelines, there's an open door for her to hit the court in years to come.


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Blake Silverman
BLAKE SILVERMAN

Blake Silverman is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys and A10Talk. He graduated from Michigan State University before receiving a master's in sports journalism from St. Bonaventure University. Outside of work, he's probably binging the latest Netflix documentary, at a yoga studio or enjoying everything Detroit sports. A lifelong Michigander, he lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, young son and their personal petting zoo of two cats and a dog.