Now that Week 3 of Unrivaled is officially completed, there’s so many storylines that need to be addressed. The league is starting to take shape, but at the expense of the Lunar Owls. The Lunar Owls led by Napheesa Collier, Skylar Diggins-Smith, and Allisha Gray have found a way to finish the first three weeks without a loss. They have beaten every team in the competition and I don’t think that’s by luck either. Napheesa Collier is demonstrating to everyone in the basketball universe that she’s all that and then some. She’s been incredible from any and everywhere on the floor, whether it be from behind the perimeter or in the lane, she’s been able to score at will. Collier is now averaging 29.3 points, 11.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.5 steals. Her impact on the game is magnificently effective and as long as she’s healthy no one is going to be able to stop her. The team as a whole has fed off Collier’s infectious energy. Courtney Williams and Shakria Austin have also stepped up off the bench as great role players to spell their incredible top 3 scorers. I love how they’ve not only been dominating, but how they can also come from behind and close out nail biters. In their first Week 3 matchup against the undefeated Laces, they had to overcome multiple deficits that were attributed to some sloppy play on both ends of the floor. The Lunar Owls had committed costly fouls and turnovers that had them trailing by 3 late in the game, but they stood strong and still got the victory. This team is special and they’re missing an elite young talent in Cameron Brink, which is quite scary because they still remain unblemished without her presence.
Vinyl Slipping Off Track
The Vinyl got off to an incredible start by finishing Week 1 undefeated, since then they’ve gone completely cold and off the rails of their initial winning track. They’re in a bit of a rough stretch as they’ve lost each of their last 4 games. Their latest showing against the best team in the league, the Lunar Owls, was quite disappointing. They were blown out by 17 points and each of their last 3 losses have been by double digits. This current streak of losses is extremely shocking because they possess one of if not the best backcourt duos in the entire league with Arike Ogunbowale and Rhyne Howard. These two should easily be getting over 20 a piece every outing, but it’s been Dearica Hamby leading the scoring charge of late with an average of 21.2 points per game. If the Vinyl want to get back in the win column they must get even more production out of their elite guards in the scoring department. Vinyl also needs to step up their play on the defensive end because in both of their defeats from this past week they gave up the most points out of any other team. The Lunar Owls dropped 85 on them while the Mist totaled 77. These losses of great stature were a direct result from their sloppy ball-handling on offense. Their frequent amount of live-ball turnovers led to easy transition opportunities and run outs for the Mist and Lunar Owls. For the Vinyl’s next matchup they must limit their turnovers so teams can’t beat them on the fastbreak.
Mist Are Gaining Steam
After starting their Unrivaled campaign in a 0-4 hole, the Mist are now trending in the right direction. Over the weekend they picked up their first 2 wins of the season in Week 3. Their first win came against the Vinyl on Saturday, where they finally pulled away from a close game in the late stages. The Vinyl got out to an early lead, but the Mist kept their wits about them and followed the energy and production of WNBA legend “Stewie.” Breanna Stewart finished the game with a team high 23 points, but that wasn’t the most telling stat of this matchup. Everyone in the mist finished with double-figures, which goes to show that this team can get valuable scoring contributions from not only their starters, but their bench as well. Their offensive output was so efficient as they shot an astounding 58% from the floor and only turned the ball over 4 times. This is a winning formula for any team in the Unrivaled, especially the Mist because if you allow teams to frequently play in transition due to bad shots and careless turnovers, you will get beat. Turnovers are what had haunted and decided this team’s first 4 losing performances, so it was great to see them mitigate those controllable mistakes. Their other win against Phantom was much more of a physical grind it out kind of game. I admire this tough win because even though the Mist pulled it out, they shot a worse percentage from the field than Phantom. This win manifested because they played together as a single unit, got key stops, and made crucial buckets in crunch time. Breanna Stewart showcased why she’s one of the greatest to ever lace them up as she was the one who rose to the occasion to score bucket after bucket to counter the Phantom in the latter moments of the game, which then led to her nailing the game-winning free-throw. There are four teams that will enter Week 4 at a record of 2-4 and this is the right time for them to start rattling off wins to catch up with the Lunar Owls and Laces.