Zach O’Brien Accidentally Built the Chillest Superteam in Unrivaled, and Now MIST BC Might Break Basketball

Some coaches ease into their first head-coaching job, other head coaches assemble a roster that would make most front offices jealous.

Zach O’Brien took the second route.

O’Brien walked into Miami, grabbed a clipboard, and immediately inherited a roster that looks like it was drafted by God on a lunch break.

Breanna Stewie. Allisha Gray. Arike Ogunbowale. Veronica Burton. Alanna Smith. Li freakin’ Yueru.

Asking for a 6th person lineup in three on three, one couldn’t ask for more because this isn’t a basketball team, nah this is a Marvel lineup.

All-WNBA first teamer, two players that live on the All-WNBA team, the reigning DPOY, one of the best point guards in the league who found her stride this year in Golden State and Li, who will be nominated for Most Improved in the meantime.

And the funniest part of it all is that O’Brien talks about it like he was picking up groceries from Publix.

 

“We knew we had Stewie, which gives you an easy foundation….Allisha Gray is right there with her — that’s another incredible building block.”

An EASY foundation?

Brother, that’s not a foundation, that’s a legit Grand Theft Auto cheat code.

But before we get to the roster, you need to understand the Zach O’Brien’s prigin Story, which sounds like the prequel to a great coach in the making.

Seven years learning from one of the best coaches in WNBA history under Sandy Brondello.

Seven years being taught by one of the most emotionally consistent humans in basketball history.

Zach brings her name up the same way Drake brings up Toronto, lovingly and often.

 

“It’s tough for me to have a WNBA conversation without referencing Sandy. She gave me my first opportunity.”

He says this every time. Someone could ask him, “Zach, what’s your favorite sandwich?” and he’d still sneak Sandy in there somehow.

And honestly? It’s respect.

Because that consistency Sandy has… Zach has it too — just with more caffeine, slightly more chaos, and a coaching philosophy straight out of a 2025 NBA analytics lab:

“I’m a modern coach — I like pace and space. I want to shoot threes and attack the rim.”

This Mist BC Unrivaled roster though that he boasts, is literally built for that.

This team could run 5-out in a hurricane.

But the real secret sauce comes from Zach’s two-question drafting philosophy. O’ Brien just keeps it real because there is no care about PR, draft rankings, or algorithms. This man drafted like he was picking teammates for the world’s best women’s pickup game, and that roster reflect that he’s going to desperately win.

“With this roster, I looked for two things: how much would I want to play with you, and how much do I hate coaching against you?”

That’s honestly the realist scouting approach I’ve ever heard.

If coaches used this in the WNBA, half the league would be unrecognizable and the other half would be people who terrify everyone on defense.

Which brings us to DiJonai Carrington. Although Carrington isn’t playing this year in Unrivaled, her presence will be more than missed and her impact will be more than felt.

Zach LOVES DiJonai in a way that makes perfect sense if you’ve ever seen her play basketball for more than two possessions, let alone 12 seconds.

“Everyone on our team is a 10/10 in both categories. DiJonai fits that perfectly — she’s such a dog.”

You know how every team wants “toughness” and then accidentally drafts vibes and vibes only?

The MIST did the opposite.

This roster has “I will fight you in a parking lot over a loose ball” energy.

And if that wasn’t enough drama for you, Zach has one more emotional core…his mother.

When he brought her up, I had to slow down my typing because suddenly we were in a Pixar movie, and a good one at that.

 

“I grew up with a single mother… the choices she made for us, the sacrifices — that’s what inspires me. She’s still my best friend.”

Is it me or is someone cutting onions?

It explains so much.

Zach coaches like someone who understands gratitude, work ethic, and never wasting a gift, and has the attitude of someone that is humble and hungry.

Which brings us full circle to Mist BC,  the greatest “gift” anybody could get in a first coaching job.

A stacked roster.

A modern system.

An Elam Ending he’s never used before.

And a league delivering at exactly the right moment.

“There’s so much gray area in the WNBA right now with all the coaching movement. Unrivaled couldn’t have come at a better time.”

So here’s my prediction: Zach O’Brien is about to go from “rookie coach” to “accidental dynasty builder” in one season.

If Mist doesn’t finish as the most dangerous team in the league, it’ll be because Zach passed out trying to run 27 pace-and-space drills before breakfast.