Storm rookie Malonga to join Unrivaled for '26

Dominique Malonga, the No. 2 wide prime of the Seattle Storm successful the 2025 WNBA draft, is joining Unrivaled for the 2026 season, the 3-on-3 league announced Thursday.

The 6-foot-6 French halfway averaged 7.7 points connected 55% shooting from the tract and 4.6 rebounds successful 14.3 minutes per crippled for the Storm successful her rookie year. Malonga, the league's youngest subordinate past play astatine property 19, was selected for the WNBA All-Rookie Team.

Her signing to Unrivaled comes conscionable 10 days aft Fenerbahçe, a nonrecreational women's hoops nine based successful Istanbul, Turkey, announced that she "unilaterally terminated her nonrecreational subordinate declaration with our nine without immoderate conscionable cause."

"We pass the nationalist that we volition workout each our ineligible rights to question compensation for immoderate worldly and motivation damages incurred by our nine during this process," Fenerbahçe posted to X.

For Malonga to enactment successful overseas basketball, the WNBA had to motion connected to FIBA's "letter of clearance" system, which allows players to motion contracts successful aggregate leagues. The missive requires a sign-off from the players' squad and federation, and it establishes that the subordinate has fulfilled their duties to the afloat grade of their declaration and is eligible to play elsewhere. Most planetary leagues necessitate the "letter of clearance" earlier a subordinate tin participate their league.

In bid for Malonga to instrumentality to the WNBA successful 2026, a missive of clearance from the Turkish federation by mode of Fenerbahçe volition beryllium required. Sources told ESPN that Malonga did not request this level of clearance to enactment successful Unrivaled.

Unrivaled besides announced the signings of Aari McDonald and Rebecca Allen arsenic the last 2 players joining the league for its 2nd season. DiJonai Carrington had to driblet retired of the league arsenic she continues to retrieve from a "significant" near midfoot sprain.

Malonga, McDonald and Allen articulation 16 different caller players, including Kelsey Plum, Paige Bueckers, Veronica Burton, Saniya Rivers, Sonia Citron, Kiki Iriafen and Kelsey Mitchell. Unrivaled is acceptable to extremity disconnected Jan. 5.