No Offseason: The Athletic Women’s Basketball Show

Episode: "Unrivaled Rosters, Project B’s Big Bucks + College Hoops Hot Takes"

Release Date: November 7, 2025

Hosts: Zena Keita, Sabreena Merchant, Ben Pickman

Episode Overview

This episode of No Offseason dives into three major themes shaking up women’s basketball:

1. The newly unveiled 2026 Unrivaled league rosters and the league’s expansion.
2. The emergence of the new “Project B” offseason league and the big questions swirling around its funding.
3. An in-depth “This or That” roundtable dissecting the most intriguing storylines and hot takes as the college basketball season kicks off.
   The show closes with key takeaways from recent WNBA coaching hires, focusing on Sandy Brondello (Toronto Tempo), Sonja Raman (Seattle Storm), and Jose Fernandez (Dallas Wings).

Unrivaled League: 2026 Rosters Unveiled and Big Takeaways (01:54–11:07)

Key Points & Insights

• Expansion and Roster Shakeup

  • Unrivaled grows from 6 to 8 teams; roster pool expands to 54 players plus 6 developmental spots.
  • Major roster changes: Each playoff team kept 2 players, non-playoff teams kept 1, and new franchises drafted from scratch.
  • Fans can’t expect last year’s teams (like the Lunar Owls or Rose) to remain intact, signaling, as Sabreena Merchant described, “a wholesale changeover” (02:28).

• Notable Team Moves

  • Breeze quickly crowned preseason “fan favorite” with a stacked lineup of Paige Bueckers, Cameron Brink, Dominique Malonga, and a lone veteran in Aari McDonald. Young talent, huge potential, but still unproven in Unrivaled’s unique format (03:36).
  • Lunar Owls protected co-founder Napheesa Collier, but notably left out Alicia Gray, despite her top-5 WNBA MVP finish (04:22–05:10).
  • Other teams, such as Vinyl and Rose, leaned into continuity, returning major pieces from last season’s title runs (05:50).

• Multi-Year Contracts and Team Identity

  • Nearly 30 players are now on multi-year deals, laying the groundwork for greater year-over-year continuity and potentially stronger club loyalty from fans (06:19).
  • Ben Pickman poses a big question: Will fandom develop for teams or stay centered on specific players? “Is this a league where a fan will start to really invest in a particular team... or will they care much more just about how does [their favorite player] play?” (07:14).

• Fan Interaction and Fandom Fluidity

  • Unrivaled’s website lets fans “create your dream club,” highlighting the players-first flavor of the league (08:08).
  • Zena Keita: “All up and down my timeline, people are like, dang, I was a Vinyl fan, but maybe I might be a Breeze fan now... There might be a little transitionary fandom between these players as they go back and forth between teams.” (08:22).

• Developmental Pool for Emerging Talent

  • This year, Unrivaled tackles last season’s injury woes by collecting six young players into a developmental pool, ready for call-ups and full integration into league life (09:20).
    • Names include: Leticia Mehair, Ziah James, Haley Van Lith, Mikayla Timpson, Haley Jones, Emily Engstler.
    • Sabreena: “It’s an awesome experience for those players to get to be a part of Unrivaled... I’m sure they’ll be used plenty because this is a style of basketball that’s pretty demanding.” (10:13–11:07).

Project B: The Big Money, Big Questions New League (11:07–19:42)

Key Points & Insights

• Introduction to Project B

  • Project B, slated for a November 2026 launch, is positioning itself as another high-end off-season league (12:19).
  • Major splash: Seattle Storm’s Nneka Ogwumike, current WNBPA President, becomes the first public star to sign (12:46).
  • League format: 6 teams of 11 players; plays 5-on-5 in seven, two-week tournaments rotating around the globe (Asia, Europe, Americas) (12:46–14:19).

• Ownership, Equity, and CBA Implications

  • Project B offers equity stakes to players; echoes Unrivaled’s initial compensation structure.
  • Sabreena Merchant highlights the tension: Each league is vying for attention, money, and legitimacy at a time when collective bargaining and player power are peaking (14:19).

• Controversy over Funding: Saudi Investment Ties

  • Funding sources emerge as a critical, controversial topic.
  • Ben Pickman: “What is the Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund involvement here? That is a big question here.” (15:00)
  • Notable investors: Candace Parker, Novak Djokovic, Sloane Stephens, Steve Young, and ties to ex-Facebook and Skype execs.
  • SelA, a partner in Project B (likely involved in global streaming), is owned by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund (16:47).
    • Key Quote: Sabreena: “The distinction is kind of, I don’t know, negligible in my personal opinion.” (16:47)
  • The WNBPA reposted Nneka’s announcement with full support—raising eyebrows given Saudi Arabia’s human rights track record.

• Broader Context: Ethics of Off-Season Leagues

  • Ben draws a parallel to “who pays for women’s basketball” historically, referencing Russian club owners like Sabtai Kalmanovic, noting the enduring tension between supporting athletes’ livelihoods and the sometimes murky origins of the funding (18:16).

• Memorable Moment

  • Zena points listeners to the Diana Taurasi documentary for further context on how players haven’t always known where their paychecks came from overseas, underscoring the “dicey” but persistent issue (19:42).

This or That: College Hoops Hot Takes & Debate (22:29–45:35)

A dynamic, roundtable segment exploring key preseason questions through a series of “this or that” dilemmas.

1. Who Can Break South Carolina’s SEC Dominance? (23:11–29:58)

Options: Oklahoma or LSU (with Texas as a wild card)

• Ben: Favors Oklahoma over LSU, but Texas is the real threat. “Frankly, I like Texas over both of these other options as the team to beat South Carolina.” (25:06)
• Zena: Picks LSU due to elite defense, returning talent (Johnson, Williams, Full Wiley), and experience: “They make, they go on runs and completely just weather teams down.” (25:06)
• Sabrina: Agrees on LSU but highlights their versatility and defensive edge; notes SEC coaches actually picked Texas to win the league in preseason polling (28:46).
• Coaches’ Poll Surprise: Texas was ranked above South Carolina by peers, underlining a shifting balance (28:46).
• Consensus: SEC remains a shark tank; LSU and Texas are best positioned to challenge, though South Carolina remains the big dog.

2. Which Team Has the Better Young Core: North Carolina or Michigan? (31:00–35:39)

• Sabrina: Goes off-script, spotlighting Nebraska’s “Britt Prince” and their explosive young group after a dominant season opener (32:49).
• Zena: Picks UNC, especially with Finnish point guard Alina Arnasalo adding excitement (32:49).
• Ben: Champions Michigan for its “motion-heavy offense” and trio of Holloway, Olson, Swords; praises versatility though notes their defensive weaknesses (33:31).
• Fun Moment: All three hosts choose different directions, showcasing the wide-open field for young talent.

3. Mid-Majors Primed to Make a Splash: Richmond or South Dakota State? (37:29–43:56)

• Ben: Picks Richmond, anchored by Maggie Doogan (“the best player who is not a Power 5 conference player”), elite offense, and challenging non-conference schedule (38:43).
• Zena: Torn between Richmond and George Mason; notes Ivy League’s heavy roster turnover could dim their shine this year (39:50).
• Sabrina: Counters with South Dakota State, touting Brooklyn Meyer, their “offensive machine” status, and recent big-game prowess. “This is a team that has historically punched above their weight” (41:54).
• Consensus: Both programs have loaded rosters and an aggressive out-of-conference slate, making early results crucial for NCAA seeding.

WNBA Coaching Moves: First Press Conference Impressions (47:13–52:48)

Toronto Tempo: Sandy Brondello

• Sandy’s Relocation: Expressed strong excitement about joining Toronto, driven largely by her relationship with GM Monica Wright Rogers.
• Sabrina: “It felt like a lot of shade to her experience in New York, to be frank. But she seems very happy...” (47:53)
• Ben: Notes the family connection, as Brondello’s husband, Olaf Lang, will join the staff, and references Sandy’s nod to the “Commonwealth of Nations.” (48:47)

Seattle Storm: Sonja Raman

• Sonja’s Intro: Focused on “alignment” and “evolution” (though the word “evolvement” sparked laughter and debate on air).
• Off-Court Integration: Immediately engaged with local sports scene, echoing a common new-coach PR ritual (49:41).

Dallas Wings: Jose Fernandez

• Statement of Intent: Fernandez was direct: “Change is coming and we are going to win.” (50:43)
• Aware of the franchise’s reputation for instability, but projects confidence as a seasoned (former mid-major) head coach.
• Sabrina: “The fact that he said that he wanted to win is in direct contrast to what Chris Coclanis said at this time last year... There was no mention of winning when Chris was brought on. So it is different.” (52:27)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Unrivaled’s Roster Overhaul:

  “If you were hoping to just see a redux of the Lunar Owls or Rose, you might be a little disappointed, because there is a wholesale changeover.”
  — Sabreena Merchant (02:28)

• On Fandom in Unrivaled:

  “Will [fans] start to care how the Laces do against the Lunar Owls…or will they care much more just about how does Marina Mabrey play, or how does Jordan Canada play?”
  — Ben Pickman (07:14)

• On Project B’s Investment Controversy:

  “The distinction is kind of negligible in my opinion.”
  — Sabreena Merchant, on selA/PIF ties (16:47)

• On New Coaching Hires:

  “Change is coming and we are going to win.”
  — Jose Fernandez, Dallas Wings head coach (50:43)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:54–11:07] Unrivaled League expansion & rosters, developmental pool discussion
• [11:07–19:42] The rise of Project B; Nneka Ogwumike’s signing; Saudi investment debate
• [22:29–45:35] “This or That”: SEC upsets, best young cores, and mid-major standouts
• [47:13–52:48] WNBA coaching hires: Brondello, Raman, Fernandez—tone and early expectations

Tone & Style

Lively, knowledgeable, and conversation-driven, with hosts challenging each other’s takes while anchoring analysis in reporting and inside industry perspective. Listeners get an even blend of hard news, insightful breakdowns, and candid moments (“We officially are all on different pages for this one. I like this this or that one.” — Zena, 35:39).

Who Should Listen

• WNBA/NCAA fans tracking the growth and business of women’s hoops
• Those looking for team-by-team breakdowns, not just star-spotting
• Anyone curious about off-court financial and ethical dynamics in the women’s game

Missed this episode? The discussion will catch you up on the latest in women’s basketball—on the court, in the boardroom, and behind the scenes.