Rae Burrell is another promising young guard/forward who will have her chance to impact the Unrivaled League. The Las Vegas, Nevada native first burst onto the scene when she attended Liberty High School, where she was recognized as one of the top recruits in the country. Her strong performance on the court secured her a spot at the University of Tennessee, a school renowned for its women’s basketball program.
During her collegiate career with the Lady Vols from 2018 to 2022, Burrell steadily developed into a key player. She emerged as a scoring threat instead of an athlete during her junior year, averaging 16.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. Despite battling injuries during her senior season, she still managed to average 12.3 points and 3.9 rebounds, showcasing her resiliency and determination, eventually leading to her earning All-SEC honors in 2021. Burrell would declare for the 2022 WNBA Draft, in which she would be selected in the first round with the ninth overall pick by the Los Angeles Sparks.
While injuries limited her playing time early in her professional career, she demonstrated flashes of her potential whenever she was on the floor. As of 2024, Burrell is working to establish herself as a consistent contributor in the league. Her career averages include 4.8 points and 1.6 rebounds per game, which shows even with receiving limited minutes, you can tell there’s plenty of room for her game to evolve and grow as she gains experience, and the Unrivaled League will provide that opportunity. Burrell excels in creating her own shot, whether it be driving to the basket or pulling up from mid-range, and her incredible length as a defensive wing makes her an extremely valuable asset on both sides of the floor. She also possesses tremendous agility, which makes her an even more effective defender on the perimeter because she can switch and guard multiple positions. Burrell will command more of the tougher scoring and ball-handling matchups that are present within the Unrivaled League, and I know she’ll be welcoming that challenge. I really want her to assert herself more on the offensive end because she’s more than capable of scoring at a high level. Since this competition is in a 3v3 format, she will have more chances to display her scoring prowess that can translate into the WNBA. I know she demonstrates an ability to stretch the floor with her shot off the dribble and we need to see her expand upon that with this new opportunity that the Unrivaled has given her.
