WNBA All-Star Game


The Women's National Basketball Association All-Star Game, commonly referred to as the WNBA All-Star Game, is the annual all-star game hosted each July by the Women's National Basketball Association, showcasing the league's top players. It is the feature event of the WNBA All-Star Weekend, a three-day event which goes from Friday to Sunday in a selected WNBA city. The WNBA All-Star Game was first played at Madison Square Garden on July 14, 1999.

Structure

From 1999 to 2017, the WNBA All-Star Game featured star players from the Western Conference competing against star players from the Eastern Conference. Starters were selected by fan voting through internet ballots, while the remaining players were chosen by league personnel, including head coaches and media members. At the end of the game, the All-Star Game Most Valuable Player was named by a panel of media representatives.
In 2018, the WNBA introduced a new format for the All-Star Game, eliminating the traditional Eastern Conference vs. Western Conference structure in favor of a player draft. In this new format, two captains – determined by the highest number of fan votes – draft their teams from a pool of players voted as All-Stars, regardless of conference affiliation. Voting for All-Star starters includes inputs from fans, WNBA players, and sports media members, with a weighted system. Reserves are selected by the league's head coaches.
The All-Star Weekend also features a Three-Point Contest and a Skills Challenge. The Three-Point Contest consists of multiple round in which players compete to make the most three-point shots from various spots around the arc within a set time limit. The Skills Challenge is a obstacle course designed to test players' abilities in key aspects of the game, such as dribbling, passing, and shooting. The player who completes the course in the fastest time in the final round is declared the winner. Both competitions usually feature five players, selected based on their performance during the regular season.

History

The inaugural WNBA All Star Game was played in 1999 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, in front of a sold-out crowd. Whitney Houston performed the national anthem. The West Conference defeated the Eastern Conference 79–61 and Lisa Leslie was named the first-ever All-Star Game Most Valuable Player after recording 13 points and five rebounds for the West.
In 2004, The Game at Radio City was held in place of a traditional All-Star Game due to the WNBA players competing in the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. That year, the USA national team defeated a team of WNBA All-Stars 74–58. The game is officially considered to be an exhibition rather than an All-Star Game. The league also took a month-long break to accommodate players and coaches competing in the Olympic Games.
From 2008 through 2016, no All-Star Game was held during Summer Olympic years, continuing the tradition of taking a month-long mid-season break. In 2010, an exhibition game, Stars at the Sun, was played at Mohegan Sun Arena, where Team USA defeated a WNBA All-Star team 99–72.
Although the 2020 Summer Olympics were postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, no All-Star Game was played in that season. The 2021 season featured the first All-Star Game in an Olympic year since 2000, with a WNBA All-Star team facing the USA national team. The 2024 game followed the same format and was also considered an official All-Star Game.

All-Star Game results

Eastern Conference Western Conference

The Three-Point Contest, formerly referred to as the Three-Point Shootout, was held during the All-Star Game event from 2006 to 2010, and then again from 2017 to the present.
^Denotes players who are still active
*Elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame
Player Denotes the number of times the player has won
Team Denotes the number of times a player from this team has won
Location Denotes the number of times a location has hosted the competition

YearWinnerTeamFinal score / max% shots madeOther contestants
2006*Houston Comets17 / 3056.6%Katie Douglas, Katie Smith, Diana Taurasi
2007Washington Mystics25 / 3083.3%Diana Taurasi, Penny Taylor, Katie Douglas, Deanna Nolan
2009*San Antonio Silver Stars16 / 3053.3%Sue Bird, Katie Smith, Shameka Christon, Katie Douglas, Diana Taurasi
2010Indiana Fever23 / 3076.6%Lindsay Whalen, Swin Cash, Sue Bird, Monique Currie, Angel McCoughtry
2017Chicago Sky27 / 3479.4%Sugar Rodgers, Maya Moore, Jasmine Thomas, Sue Bird
2018 Chicago Sky 29 / 3485.3%Kayla McBride, Kristi Toliver, Jewell Loyd, Renee Montgomery, Kelsey Mitchell
2019Connecticut Sun23 / 3467.6%Kayla McBride, Allie Quigley, Kia Nurse, Erica Wheeler, Chelsea Gray
2021^ Chicago Sky 28 / 4070.0%Jonquel Jones, Sami Whitcomb, Jewell Loyd
2022^ Chicago Sky 30 / 4075.0%Ariel Atkins, Rhyne Howard, Arike Ogunbowale, Jewell Loyd, Kelsey Plum
2023^New York Liberty37 / 40192.5%DiJonai Carrington, Kelsey Mitchell, Arike Ogunbowale, Sami Whitcomb, Jackie Young
2024Atlanta Dream22 / 40155.0%Jonquel Jones, Kayla McBride, Stefanie Dolson, Marina Mabrey
2025 New York Liberty30 / 40175.0%Allisha Gray, Sonia Citron, Kelsey Plum, Lexie Hull

Three Point Contest champions by franchise
No.FranchiseLast win
4Chicago Sky2022
2New York Liberty2025
1Atlanta Dream2024
1Connecticut Sun2019
1Indiana Fever2010
1San Antonio Silver Stars2009
1Washington Mystics2007
1Houston Comets2006

Skills Challenge

The WNBA introduced the Dribble, Dish & Swish Challenge starting during the 2003 WNBA All-Star Game. It became renamed to the Skills Challenge was held during the All-Star Game event during 2006–2007, 2010, 2019, and 2022-2024.
The most recent Skills Challenge rules were "a classic obstacle course format that will challenge players' abilities in each key facet of the game: dribbling, passing and shooting. In the first round, each player will maneuver around the course as fast as possible, and the players with the two fastest times will advance to the final round. There, they'll repeat the course, and the player with the fastest time in the final round will receive the trophy."
^Denotes players who are still active
*Elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame
Player Denotes the number of times the player has won
Team Denotes the number of times a player from this team has won
Location Denotes the number of times a location has hosted the competition

YearWinnerTeamFinal Time/CompetitorOther contestants
2003*Charlotte Sting
2005*Seattle StormBecky HammonTamika Catchings, Diana Taurasi, Deanna Nolan, Taj McWilliams-Franklin, DeMya Walker, Marie Ferdinand
2006*Minnesota Lynx28.5Sue Bird, Cappie Pondexter, Deanna Nolan
2007*San Antonio Silver Stars27.1Seimone Augustus, Betty Lennox, Nikki Teasley
2009Phoenix Mercury34.8Jia Perkins, Tamika Catchings, Sancho Lyttle, Swin Cash, Nicole Powell, Nicky Anosike, Alana Beard, Asjha Jones, Sylvia Fowles
2009San Antonio Silver Stars 34.8Jia Perkins, Tamika Catchings, Sancho Lyttle, Swin Cash, Nicole Powell, Nicky Anosike, Alana Beard, Asjha Jones, Sylvia Fowles
2009Minnesota Lynx 34.8Jia Perkins, Tamika Catchings, Sancho Lyttle, Swin Cash, Nicole Powell, Nicky Anosike, Alana Beard, Asjha Jones, Sylvia Fowles
2010Connecticut Sun25.0Cappie Pondexter, Lindsay Whalen, Iziane Castro Marques, Lindsey Harding, Angel McCoughtry
2019 ^Chicago SkyJonquel JonesCourtney Vandersloot, Sami Whitcomb, Napheesa Collier, Odyssey Sims, Elizabeth Williams, Brittney Griner
2022^New York LibertyNaLyssa SmithCourtney Vandersloot, Jonquel Jones, Jackie Young, Kelsey Plum, Azura Stevens, Rhyne Howard
2023^Las Vegas Aces
Allisha Gray, Cheyenne Parker, Arike Ogunbowale, Satou Sabally
2023^Las Vegas Aces
Allisha Gray, Cheyenne Parker, Arike Ogunbowale, Satou Sabally
2024^Atlanta DreamSophie CunninghamBrittney Griner, Kelsey Mitchell, Marina Mabrey
2025^New York Liberty Erica WheelerAllisha Gray, Skylar Diggins, Courtney Williams