Angel Reese, Brittney Griner, and Sabrina Ionescu headline the list of Unrivaled players who won’t be participating in the 1-on-1 tournament.

Unrivaled, a new pro league featuring fast-paced, pickup-style games, is helping WNBA players prepare for upcoming season.

FIBA 3×3 historically has led to players’ improving in isolation and pick-and-rolls. For instance, Jackie Young ’s 2021 Olympics experience helped transform her ballhandling, and Hailey Van Lith has become a dramatically better pick-and-roll player after the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The made-for-TV league tips off Friday with some of the biggest names in women’s basketball including Angel Reese and Breanna Stewart.

Sabrina Ionescu and Kayla McBride’s Unrivaled debuts Saturday were the first time they played a competitive basketball game since the WNBA Finals.

“Yeah, it got spicy between co-founders for a little bit,” says New York Liberty center Breanna Stewart, who along with her 2024 WNBA Finals rival, Minnesota’s Napheesa Collier, are starting Unrivaled, a three-on-three women’s pro basketball league that tips off Friday night in South Florida.

Players are finding the balance of using the games for conditioning while not overextending themselves before the WNBA season begins in May.