Veronica Burton is one of many new faces competing in Unrivaled this season. She is a member of Mist BC, playing alongside Breanna Stewart, Allisha Gray, Arike Ogunbowale, Alanna Smith, and Li Yueru. Burton earned a starting spot alongside Stewart and Gray and played an excellent first game against a Hive team with two WNBA All-Star guards in Kelsey Mitchell and Sonia Citron.
Burton finished her Unrivaled debut with 14 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks while taking on the task of guarding Kelsey Mitchell, one of the most difficult players to defend. She was Mist’s second-leading scorer behind Allisha Gray and the team’s leading playmaker. Despite being one of the shorter players on the team, Burton also finished with the second-most rebounds behind Gray.
Burton’s Unrivaled debut made a few things abundantly clear: Her WNBA breakout in 2025 was no fluke, she can thrive while playing with and against some of the best players in the game, and she could be even better in her next WNBA season. Playing in Unrivaled could even set Burton up for an All-Star and All-WNBA campaign. It is the perfect opportunity to solidify her newfound standing as one of the best two-way guards in the game. The Unrivaled season is still long, but Burton looks ready to take it by storm.
Veronica Burton broke out with the Valkyries
Burton came into the WNBA as a first-round pick after a great college career at Northwestern. She never quite took off with the Wings, though, averaging slightly over two points, fewer than two rebounds, and about two assists per game in both of her first two seasons. In 2024, the Wings eventually waived Burton. She was signed by the Sun, played important minutes as a defensive-minded backup, and emerged as a capable playoff contributor.
Nevertheless, the Sun didn’t protect Burton in the expansion draft for the Golden State Valkyries. She was selected by the then-newest WNBA team and quickly became the focal point of everything the team did in its inaugural season. Burton was the team’s most consistent player, leading playmaker, best perimeter defender, and often its leading scorer when Kayla Thornton went down.
The Valkyries offered Burton a bigger role than she ever had in her WNBA career, and she responded well. She averaged career-highs all across the board with 11.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, 6 assists, and 1.1 steals. Despite having the ball in her hands a lot more, Burton took good care of it. In August, she recorded 14 assists and zero turnovers in a game against Phoenix.
Burton was the main reason the Valkyries could make their historic first playoff run, and undoubtedly earned herself a lucrative long-term contract with the team.