Charlie Cummings breaks down his prediction and pick for Saturday’s Unrivaled matchup between the Lunar Owls and the Phantom.
The spookiest matchup in Unrivaled kicks off our Saturday slate as the Lunar Owls take on the Phantom. Unfortunately, it’s a matchup marred by injury, but these teams have the talent to persist. Both sides are eager to prove they won’t be defined by their losses.
The Phantom are 5.5-point favorites at home against the Lunar Owls on the DraftKings Sportsbook. An Owls upset is priced at +200, with the total set at 135.5 points. Let’s get into my prediction and pick for this game.
Lunar Owls vs. Phantom prediction
The Lunar Owls nearly had the perfect season in the Unrivaled debut. Led by superstar (and league founder) Napheesa Collier, they rolled to a 13-1 record only to get bounced in the semifinals. The revenge tour is off to a rough start with Collier, who will miss the entire season after having ankle surgery. Now the rest of the players have to pick up the pieces.
Skylar Diggins is an important component of the roster, but her availability is in doubt. When asked by WNBA journalist Nekias Duncan about her injury status, she said, “I feel great”. As a follow-up, he asked if she’d be playing on Saturday, and she repeated “I feel great” in a very tongue-in-cheek fashion. It’s anyone’s guess if her team will have their WNBA All-Star point guard for this one.
If Diggins can’t go, you’ll see a whole lot of Marina Mabrey. Her usage was ridiculous in the first game, putting up a whopping 26 shots while dishing out nine assists. Rebecca Allen and Rachel Banham will be counted on to space the floor while Aaliyah Edwards works inside. It’s not the prettiest formula without Phee and Sky, but it is a formula.
The Phantom will have to figure out how to get it done without Satou Sabally. She’s an exceptional two-way player when locked in and a mismatch nightmare on offense. Luckily, they are well-positioned to make up for her loss; Aliyah Boston can hold down the paint at a high level on both ends, Kiki Iriafen can provide defense and rebounding while being a post presence, and they can redistribute the offensive load to their newest player: Kelsey Plum.
Plum will provide endless scoring from the backcourt, while Tip Hayes takes away some of the pressure as the second option. They can also lean on Natasha Cloud as a Swiss army knife scorer, playmaker, and defender. If there’s one flaw in this Phantom team, it’s a lack of high-level passing, but their balance of scoring and defense should play well in a 3v3 format.
Lunar Owls vs. Phantom Pick
Even if Skylar Diggins suits up, which feels unlikely, the talent gap on these teams is hard to ignore. The Phantom are not a sophisticated team, but they can brute-force their way past a Lunar Owls team that is deficient on both ends of the ball. The sheer size and skill of their frontcourt combined with the offensive whirlwind of Kelsey Plum will carry the Phantom to victory.