Dream Unrivaled 1-on-1 Tournament Matchups We Want to See
Unrivaled shattered some glass ceilings last winter when the league announced a midseason one-on-one tournament. With a $200,000 prize for the winner, this unprecedented event was one of the most fun aspects of Unrivaled's first season.
Basketball players aren't usually so willing to participate in public one-on-one contests. It's a vulnerable spot to put yourself in and carries the potential to be embarrassed, frankly. In a sport where one-on-one matchups can make or break a game, even the slightest mismatch can cost you the contest.
So, it's exciting to see Unrivaled running it back for the second iteration of the event. Plus, with last year's winner, Napheesa Collier, out recovering from surgery, the tournament is wide open for a new Queen of the Court to make herself known.
Let's go over some of the dream matchups we'd love to see before Unrivaled officially announces the pairings.
Aaliyah Edwards vs. Breanna Stewart
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The rematch from last year that everyone wants! Was Aaliyah Edwards' dominance over Breanna Stewart beginner's luck, or would she beat the WNBA MVP, All-Star and champ for the second year in a row?
Stewie is one of the best talents in women's basketball that has ever seen. She can score from anywhere on the court, and is an excellent defender. She has won on every level—four NCAA titles, three WNBA championships, World and Olympic gold medals, European titles…is the last thing to conquer the league she helped create?
Edwards, on the other hand, is just starting her career. She has a ton of promise as a WNBA prospect and will likely be a big part of Canada's international success in the coming years. She absolutely crushed it during Unrivaled's first one-on-one tournament in 2025. Not only did she beat Stewart, she also went on to beat every other opponent until she reached the final. It was only against Napheesa Collier that Edwards met her match.
Of course, Collier is out all season recovering from double ankle surgery, so does this mean the path is open for Edwards to win it all?
Paige Bueckers vs. Kelsey Plum
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A match of the menaces? Both Paige Bueckers and Kelsey Plum have a reputation of being expressive on the court, can shoot the ball and are known as dawgs. Not only do they square up well from a positional standpoint, it also feels like this one-on-one match would just be pure fun.
Plum has thrived since being traded to the L.A. Sparks last February, posting the best season of her WNBA career in 2025. Now at Unrivaled, and especially in a one-on-one battle with a fellow guard, Plum's explosive shooting could help her out.
Bueckers is an all-around threat, but the fact that she's a guard could make a matchup with a bigger opponent tough for the most recent WNBA No. 1 pick. She can shoot, drive and defend well, but one of Bueckers' greatest assets is her facilitation and passing ability. With no one to pass the ball to, one of her most prominent skills is taken out of the game.
What would be most fun about this whole thing would be the trash talk that will surely ensue from pitting these two against each other.
Natisha Hiedeman vs. Courtney Williams
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Stud-on-stud crime! Natasha Hiedeman and Courtney Williams, known to their Twitch streaming fans as the "StudBudz," are an easy matchup just for the vibes. The besties do everything together, so why not have them go head-to-head in the one-on-one tournament?
You also know that both of them would be in it for the cash. During their famed WNBA All-Star Weekend livestream last season, Williams was distraught when she lost the 25K prize in the Three-Point Contest. That same drive would push her in this competition, even against her best friend.
Also, with these two playing on the same team in Minnesota the past few seasons, they haven't had to go against each other much. We've seen their Unrivaled squads play each other a few times this season, and it's always met with fun fan response. It would be en to see them in a one-on-one matchup.
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Marina Mabrey vs. Kahleah Copper
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We saw these two go head-to-head when Unrivaled traveled to Philadelphia last week, and it was incredibly fun. Why not run it back?
Kahleah Copper is a long-armed, dynamic forward with speed and agility. She has the grit to go get a bucket when she needs to. She doesn't need to rely on anything but her foundational basketball talent and pure athleticism to be great.
Marina Mabrey, on the other hand, is an ice-cold shooter who can rack up points quickly, which could serve her well in a one-on-one setting. The speed with which she gets her shot up could mean it's over before her opponent even has the chance to settle into the game.
Plus, this is another case of two very passionate and expressive players going head-to-head. The non-basketball moments in the game might be just as entertaining as the actual hoops. Add in the fact that Copper is in a relationship with Mabrey's sister, and we have stakes.
Alyssa Thomas vs. Kiki Iriafen
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Just like last year's Edwards vs Stewart showdown, we need a good veteran versus rookie story here for the one-on-one tournament. Pitting Alyssa Thomas, triple-double queen, scoring magician and storied veteran, against a thriving, talented rookie like Kiki Iriafen would be fun.
Iriafen's impressive footwork makes her a dynamic scorer in the paint, and her 6'3" size lends well to defence. If she can blend those two well and can stop Thomas from getting her shots up, she has a chance to win against a player with over a decade more experience than she has.
Yet, Thomas always finds a way. It would be fun to see the tricks AT can pull from her bag to get past a young rookie who thrives on her athleticism and pure talent.
Allisha Gray vs. Rhyne Howard
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Not sure why the idea of pitting teammates against each other is just so fun, but it is! Both Allisha Gray and Rhyne Howard thrived in 2025 on the new and improved Atlanta Dream and are translating that success to Unrivaled. To see them go up against each other in a one-on-one setting would result in a battle.
They share a lot of the same skills—shooting and scoring being the most prominent. They are both guards with size on their side. They are lengthy enough to be able to fight for rebounds. Both have a ton of experience in the three-on-three setting…it's quite the even pairing.
Even in their 2025 WNBA season, Howard scored 17.5 points per game, while Gray was just 0.9 points above that at 18.4 points per game. Gray has slightly better shooting percentages over the years, but in a quick one-on-one setting, speed may be the name of the game.
Aliyah Boston vs. Dom Malonga
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Two of the most dynamic, electric, promising bigs in the game going up against each other? Fun! The one-on-one game does lean in favor of the bigger players, just because of purely physical reasons. They can block the shots of younger players, take up more space defensively and shoot above the smaller opponents.
So, these matchups between two tall players are exciting. There isn't that mismatch aspect, and with Boston and Malonga, it would be a battle of talent, speed, athleticism and footwork.
Malonga comes from France, where she was taught to operate not just as a post-player, but as a dynamic scorer, passer, defender and facilitator. She can also dunk, something she had pulled out at Unrivaled already.
Boston, on the other hand, is more of that traditional post player, but she has really worked on perfecting her game in recent years. She is quick, accurate and has incredible footwork. Give her the ball and watch her go to work.
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