The Fever are well-represented in Miami this offseason. Kelsey Mitchell, Aliyah Boston, Aari McDonald, and Lexie Hull are all playing in Unrivaled. Mitchell and McDonald are newcomers to the league, but the former’s speed and ability to beat players in a one-on-one setting immediately promised big performances. So far, Mitchell and the Hive haven’t found much success yet. That could change when the 1v1 tournament rolls around.
Fever fans—and most players in the W—know that Mitchell is one of the most unguardable players in the league because few players can keep up with her speed. That is precisely why Lynx guard Courtney Williams begged Unrivaled to have her and Mitchell in separate pods for the 1v1 tournament.
“Her in that 1v1,” Williams said about Mitchell in a studbudz stream from two months ago. “Please, don’t be in my bracket. Don’t put her in my bracket. I’m not trying to have to guard her fast a--.”
If the people in charge of creating the pods for the 1-on-1 tournament saw Williams’s request, they didn’t care. Mitchell and Williams are both in Pod A along with some other great guards, and Mitchell has a good chance of winning at least a few matchups.
Unrivaled’s 1-on-1 tournament is stacked with talent
32 players are participating in this year’s 1-on-1 tournament. They were split up into four pods. Pod A features Williams, Mitchell, Natisha Hiedeman, Jordin Canada, Kelsey Plum, Rachel Banham, Skylar Diggins, and Veronica Burton. Only Diggins, Canada, and Williams competed in last year’s tournament. The former beat Dearica Hamby in the first round, but was knocked out by Arike Ogunbowale in the next matchup. Williams made it all the way to the quarterfinals and eventually lost to Napheesa Collier. Canada was eliminated in the first round.
Pod B features a selection of bigger guards with Ogunbowale, Brittney Sykes, Chelsea Gray, Jackie Young, Kate Martin, Natasha Cloud, Paige Bueckers, and Tiffany Hayes. Ogunbowale was the only guard to make it to the semifinals last year, but Bueckers should also be a strong contender for the 1v1 crown.
Pod C is filled with wings. Allisha Gray, Kahleah Copper, Marina Mabrey, Rae Burrell, Rhyne Howard, Rickea Jackson, Saniya Rivers, and Sonia Citron all offer a ton of size, shotmaking, and defense. Gray and Burrell made it to the quarterfinals last year, and Howard was eliminated in the second round.
Pod D may be the most interesting one. Versatile bigs dominated in last year’s tournament. Between Aaliyah Edwards, Aliyah Boston, Alyssa Thomas, Breanna Stewart, Dearica Hamby, Dominique Malonga, Li Yueru, and Shakira Austin, this group features several potential contenders. Edwards, for example, went to the finals last year.