The 2025 Unrivaled League season is set to debut in just a few days, promising an exciting adventure for all Basketball fans. On January 17, the Mist, Lunar Owls, Rose and Vinyl basketball clubs will face off in the first-ever games of this innovative league, featuring a format that could differ significantly from traditional 5-on-5 and 3-on-3 basketball.
According to Luke Cooper, President of Basketball Operations for Unrivaled, this new league is inspired by the way basketball was played during childhood, promoting a more fun and dynamic approach. “This game is rooted in the way you would play basketball as a kid on a blacktop court,” Cooper expressed.
As fans prepare for the inaugural season, here are the key rule changes to watch out for:
-- The width of an Unrivaled court measures 49.2 feet by 72 feet, a significant departure from the WNBA’s regulation dimensions of 94 feet by 50 feet.
- The 10-minute quarters will be replaced by three quarters of seven minutes each, culminating with an innovative fourth quarter called the “winning quarter.” In this format, the team in the lead after three quarters will be awarded 11 additional points, and play will continue until one team reaches this adjusted score. For example, if Mist BC leads 40-35 against Lunar Owls after three quarters, the first team to reach 51 points wins the match.
- Interestingly, no overtime will be played in Unrivaled matches.
- The shot timer will also undergo a transformation, going from the usual 24 seconds to a dynamic 18 seconds, promising a faster paced game.
- During the final 30 seconds of each quarter, the game clock will stop with each field goal scored, adding a layer of strategy at the end of the period.
Fouls will continue to be an integral part of the game. Unrivaled will implement a unique free throw system; when a player commits a foul, he only shoots one free throw, counting two points for fouls on two-point attempts and three points for fouls on three-point attempts. And-1 situations will only earn one point.
The league maintains a standard limit of six fouls per game. However, one notable provision is that if reduced to three active players and a player receives a sixth foul, that player will be able to remain in the game but will accrue technical fouls for any additional fouls committed thereafter. Each technical foul will earn a throw and a point for the opposing team.
