Kayla McBride has had a fantastic Unrivaled season. She’s the league’s second-leading scorer (averaging 24.7 points per game) and has played a major role in the Laces’ success thus far.
Unrivaled star is heading overseas to continue jam-packed WNBA offseason
Kayla McBride returns to Fenerbahce after spending most of the winter with Unrivaled.
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Noa Dalzell is a senior writer covering the WNBA and all of women’s basketball for Breakaway, SB Nation’s women’s sports vertical, as well as the Celtics for CelticsBlog.
And, while Unrivaled still has a few weeks to go — the professional 3-on-3 basketball league wraps up on March 17 — most participating players will rest and recover between then and the beginning of the WNBA season in May.
But, once things wrap up, McBride is returning to the Turkish professional club Fenerbahce, with whom she’s spent her WNBA offseasons since 2020. The club announced the move on Friday morning, and it’s one that greatly elevates their chances of three-peating heading into the playoffs. Last season, the veteran guard won the Final Four MVP as Fenerbahce secured its second consecutive title.
This year, she’ll hope to have the same level of success, but in a much more limited stint in Turkey.
McBride has had a long year — her Minnesota Lynx team made it to the WNBA Finals, and she was a critical part of the roster that lost to the Liberty in five games in October. She subsequently had a few months off between the end of the WNBA playoffs and the beginning of the Unrivaled season in January. But, she’s been playing heavy minutes this past month while leading the Laces Club to a 4-2 record.
McBride opted not to extend her offseason into March and April and instead return to Turkey for a playoff run. The club shared on social media that she will rejoin Fenerbahce in March, and The Next Hoops’ Jackie Powell reported that that will happen after the conclusion of the Unrivaled season.
On Fenerbahce, she will join several other current (and former) WNBA players, including Gabby Williams, Tina Charles, Emma Meesseman, Nyara Sabally, and Sevgi Uzun. Meesseman has been the team’s leading scorer so far this season, averaging 16.9 points and 6.1 rebounds. per game.
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McBride’s decision greatly elevates Fenerbahce’s chances to three-peat. At her best, she’s one of the most prolific scorers in the game.
The move also reflects the flexible nature of Unrivaled. Players like NaLyssa Smith and Natisha Hiedeman played overseas for several months before joining Unrivaled, while players like McBride will play in Unrivaled while still getting the chance to spend most of her offseason in the U.S. playing alongside and against her WNBA teammates.
