Unrivaled started with a bang, and the Los Angeles Sparks’ energy has taken over Miami. Kelsey Plum, Cameron Brink, Rickea Jackson, and Dearica Hamby look like they’re having a blast, and getting a nice warm-up for next W season.

Just one day after Kelsey Plum tied the league’s single-game scoring record, held by co-founder Napheesa Collier and Rose BC guard Chelsea Gray, her teammate Dearica Hamby decided to join the fun and basically said, “I’ll take that,” by setting a brand new record.

Hamby scored an Unrivaled season-best 40 points on 16-of-23 shooting in merely 17 minutes, adding 10 rebounds and 2 assists to lead Vinyl BC to its first win of the season over Hive BC, who are still searching for their first victory of the tournament.

Praising the team synergy that made her big performance possible, Hamby said:

“We always talk about how we have a really special group, where everybody can score the ball at a high level. Tonight, the pick-and-roll was just there… I finish well at the basket.”

Before Hamby dropped 40, the single-game record belonged to Kelsey Plum, Napheesa Collier, and Chelsea Gray, who each had 38. Plum was also close to recording the first triple-double of the tournament in that same game against the Lunar Owls, finishing with 8 rebounds and 11 assists, just two boards shy of history.

Dearica Hamby has been getting better each game. She scored only 8 points in the opener against Laces BC and then had 19 on 8-of-15 shooting against Rose BC. It was still a slow start by her standards, but she made up for it in a big way against Hive BC. And you can expect more of that in the games ahead.

Hamby wasn’t the only one producing against Hive BC, though. Rhyne Howard scored 18 points, and Rae Burrell added 14 to help out, giving coach Teresa Weatherspoon her first win of the season.

“She actually creates those things that are happening on the floor, because she’s the ultimate teammate,” Weatherspoon said of Hamby. “She sets those screens for a guard to get open… she has great vision.”

Clearly, even at 32, Hamby is still leveling up, proving all stereotypes wrong. She’s coming off a career-high, where she put up 18.4 points per game for the Los Angeles Sparks while shooting 57.2% from the floor, which is again a personal high.

All that success is translating without a hiccup in Unrivaled, where she currently sits as the league’s second-highest rebounder after the league wrapped up its first week.

“She’s added a lot to her game,” Weatherspoon added. “She’s incredibly confident. So of course she’s going to have a night like this, and many nights to come.”

With so much LA Sparks representation in the league, it’s hard not to get excited about next season if you’re a Sparks fan. But will the core stay together?

What does the future look like for Dearica Hamby and co?

With the Tempo and Fire entering the league and free agency right behind them, the Sparks’ roster could look very different next season. Rickea Jackson and Cameron Brink are locked in on rookie deals, but many of their teammates could either hit free agency or get scooped up in the expansion draft.

Plum and Hamby are both headed for free agency, and that’s a big deal. They were the Sparks’ top scorers this past season, putting up a combined 37.9 points per game and almost dragging the Sparks into the playoffs. Fans in LA will be hoping both return.

If both re-sign, the goal for 2026 is to make the playoffs. Missing the postseason again with a core of Brink, Plum, Hamby, and Jackson would put the Sparks in a tough spot, and management might decide it’s time to break up the core. But before any of that happens, Unrivaled could make things even more complicated for LA.

With the way Sparks players are performing right now, it becomes even harder for the front office to keep everyone. It’s not just Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby. Rae Burrell has put up 29 points and 13 rebounds in three games, and she could easily be one of the players a new team targets.