Two days of Unrivaled 1 vs 1 tournament have caused quite a stir. Breanna Stewart would be knocked out by Aliyah Edwards, Lexie Hull walked out to her song on a bet, Napheesa Collier reigned absolute dominance, and we are set for some interesting clashes on Friday. If you looked close, you’d also see some asking NBA All-Star weekend to adapt the format. But looks like the tournament did not receive every other nod.

The first day of the 1v1 tournament went smoothly, but things took a wild turn on day two. The tournament is now facing rigging allegations from one of its own stakeholders!

On the second day, Atlanta Dream star Rhyne Howard was knocked out by Courtney Williams 11-9, despite Howard being the higher seed. The Minnesota Lynx guard had come in hot, leading 8-0 in the first few minutes. But Howard did not sit back either. She bounced back 9-8, leaving one ball for a decider. However, as fans waited with bated breath, the last point came down to a 3-point foul call on Howard. Williams would make the free throw to seal the deal, killing the excitement a little.

Fans weren’t exactly happy with the turnout as is when Howard stirred the pot more. The 2022 ROTY would go on to reshare posts that called Unrivaled ”rigged” in favor of players playing for Lunar Owls, which has the likes of Napheesa Collier.

Unsurprisingly, Howard’s accusations didn’t sit well with Napheesa Collier’s fans, who quickly jumped to her defense. They’ve flooded social media, firing back at the claims!

Fans defend Collier from cheating allegations

As the controversy continued to swirl, Collier’s fans flooded X with support, blasting the rigging claims. One fan shut down the allegations perfectly, saying,“Saying unrivaled is rigged just because Phee is dominating (who is MVP, Olympic Gold Medalist, DPOY, ROTY and obviously the best player in all of unrivaled based on stats and common sense) is kinda crazy. Disappointing narrative to spin.” 

Napheesa Collier’s incredible year speaks for itself. She managed to win Defensive Player of the Year, led her team to the WNBA finals, nearly took home the MVP, is the best player in the Unrivaled and her Lunar Owls team is still unbeaten in the league stage!

“Napheesa stepped her game up so much the girls think #Unrivaled is rigged smh lol,” another added. Phee had stepped into the league with one mindset: She had to show that she was the best player out there. And averaging 29.3 points and 11.5 rebounds, the Lynx star is speaking through the numbers. 

The debate over the allegations took another turn when one fan decided to step in and set the record straight. They took to X, saying, “They be saying Phee rigged #unrivaled and I just wanna say… if she was gonna do that… Why the f–k she on the only club with 5 players? Be serious 💀”

For those who are not aware, each team in Unrivaled is made up of a six-woman roster. The Lunar Owls are no exception, but they’ve been down one player this season. Cameron Brink, one of their stars, won’t be playing as she’s still recovering from an ACL injury. And so Collier is actually in a team with one less player!

But there were also a few fans backing Rhyne Howard, with one fan making a bold statement, saying, “That player/part owner could actually feel that the league is rigged based on the poor officiating. Last night may not be the first instance. The officiating wasn’t consistent from game to game. Who are you in unrivaled to tell her she is wrong? We literally know nothing.”

As we all know, Unrivaled has given every player participating in its first season an equal stake, making them all part-owners of the league. Fans believe that gives them a better look into the proceedings than the outsiders; meaning Howard’s remarks hold weight than a spectator’s would.

Lastly, one fan made a calm yet insightful observation. ” I don’t think the league is rigged but there are some questionable transfers in the 3v3 and the rules need to be improved in the 1v1. Unrivaled is not perfect. Yet.”

1 vs 1 tournament’s rules including a seven-second shot clock or the foul regulations where players are allowed unlimited fouls or a foul on a shot being worth the same as the attempt haven’t met with a yes from the fans. But as the user rightly pointed out, Unrivaled is still in its first year, and perfection shouldn’t be expected right out of the gate.