Kelsey Plum Explains Surprise Decision to Back Out of Unrivaled
The basketball community is now less than two months away from the opening tip-off of Unrivaled, which is the new 3x3 women's basketball league that starts in January, features many of the WNBA's best hoopers, and takes place in Miami, Florida.
While superstars such as Caitlin Clark, A'ja Wilson, and Sabrina Ionescu aren't taking part in Unrivaled this offseason, the league still boasts many of the world's best female basketball players on its roster.
And it's crucial for Unrivaled to have these top players since they're who attract attention and interest, and interest is what drives future revenue.
However, Unrivaled will now be doing without one more superstar who had initially committed to playing in Miami.
Las Vegas Aces star guard Kelsey Plum posted on her Instagram story on Wednesday, "I've decided to not take part in the inaugural season of Unrivaled in order to take some more time for myself this offseason. I appreciate the league understanding and being so accommodating. I wish the league and all of the players nothing but the best and I'm excited to watch!"
KP ☹️ pic.twitter.com/Remll3koKN
— Ansley🏀 (@aces_szn) November 28, 2024
Plum was slated to play for the Laces Basketball Club, alongside Minnesota Lynx standouts Courtney Williams and Kayla McBride, her Aces teammate Kate Martin, elite two-way Connecticut Sun star Alyssa Thomas, and Washington Mystics center Stephanie Dolson. The Laces are coached by Andrew Wade.
Regardless of what went into Plum's decision, it's nice to hear that Unrivaled had no problem with her stepping away at this point. It will be interesting to see if the league elects to bring another on board in Plum's place.
Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.