Veronica Burton, WNBA Most Improved Player, Signs with Unrivaled

Unrivaled Bolsters Roster with WNBA Stars

The Unrivaled team announced the addition of the WNBA’s Most Improved Player, Veronica Burton, and standout rookie Sonia Citron, along with four other returning players for the 2026 season. Since its launch in January, Unrivaled has established itself as a development hub for players in the early stages of their careers, seeking to boost their growth in basketball.

It’s a great opportunity. Many of the best players in the league compete in Unrivaled, so any opportunity to compete against the best is where I want to be. I’m excited to be a part of this and grateful for the opportunity.

Veronica Burton

Citron, who finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting, averaged 14.9 points per game, with a 47.0% field goal percentage, 44.5% from three-pointers, and 87.2% from the free-throw line. She was named a WNBA All-Star for the first time in July. Burton, in her fourth year in the WNBA and first with the expansion team Golden State Valkyries, reached a new level in her game. The point guard averaged career highs of 11.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, 6.0 assists, and 1.1 steals in 44 games, becoming the first player in WNBA history to increase her averages by at least five points, two rebounds, and two assists per game from one season to the next (with a minimum of 30 games played in each season). Burton was part of the U.S. U23 Women’s 3×3 Basketball World Cup team in 2022, but the structure of Unrivaled and its drastic differences, such as playing on a smaller court, intrigued her.

The super-fast pace challenges people to be aggressive on both sides of the court, and you really can’t hide there. You have to be involved and committed.

Veronica Burton

During the WNBA season, Burton consulted with her Golden State teammates, Kate Martin and Tiffany Hayes, who played in the first season of Unrivaled, about their experience, which increased her interest in joining the league. Burton and Citron join Paige Bueckers, Saniya Rivers, and Erica Wheeler as new Unrivaled players. Breanna Stewart, one of the co-founders of Unrivaled, Azura Stevens, Lexie Hull, and Jackie Young were also announced as returning players.