Phantom BC put together an outstanding season after missing the playoffs last year. The team finished with the best regular-season record and made it all the way to the finals. A championship wasn’t in the cards, though. The shorthanded Phantom fell to the Mist in a close 80-74 loss.
The Phantom had to play without Aliyah Boston, who quickly emerged as one of the most formidable two-way players in Unrivaled. If Boston had been healthy, the game could have looked very different. Phantom would have had another level of size, defense, and scoring.
The question “What if the team had been healthy?” will haunt Phantom players and fans for a while. For Boston, that is a very familiar question considering how her season with the Fever ended.
The Fever suffered a string of injuries
2025 promised to be the Fever’s best season yet with Aliyah Boston and Caitlin Clark on the roster. The core had gotten its first taste of playoff basketball the previous year, and the front office was able to bring in great players to surround Boston, Clark, and Kelsey Mitchell.
Injuries quickly changed the trajectory of the season. Clark only played 13 games and was eventually ruled out for the season. Then, replacement Aari McDonald and backup Sydney Colson suffered season-ending injuries in the same game. Shortly after, Sophie Cunningham went down as well.
Despite those injuries, the Fever rallied around Mitchell and Boston and enjoyed strong contributions from newcomer Odyssey Sims to upset the Atlanta Dream in the first round and push the Aces to five games in the second round. The Fever even forced overtime in Game 5 of the semifinals, but eventually ran out of gas with Mitchell sidelined and suffered a 107-98 loss.
Would the semifinals have ended differently if Clark and Cunningham had been healthy? That’s the question that haunted the Fever after Game 5.
Boston faces the same question now that she had to miss the Phantom’s playoff run.
Boston might have to miss more than just the Unrivaled playoffs
Boston had a busy WNBA offseason planned. After the Unrivaled season, she was set to play for Team USA in the World Cup Qualifying Tournament in Puerto Rico from March 11-17. The U.S. team will face Senegal, Puerto Rico, Italy, New Zealand, and Spain.
Team USA is coming to the tournament with a star-studded, young roster that features Paige Bueckers, Sonia Citron, Caitlin Clark, Kahleah Copper, Chelsea Gray, Dearica Hamby, Rhyne Howard, Kiki Iriafen, Kelsey Plum, Angel Reese, Jackie Young, and Breanna Stewart alongside Boston.
Considering that the tournament is just about a week away, Boston will probably have to miss that, too. Depending on how serious her injury is, it may even impact her early WNBA season.