WNBA All-Star Game
Women's National Basketball Association All-Star Game | |
---|---|
Frequency | Annual |
Inaugurated | 1999 |
Previous event | 2022 (Chicago) |
Next event | 2023 (TBD) |
Participants | Eastern Conference and Western Conference All-Stars |
Organized by | Women's National Basketball Association |
The Women's National Basketball Association All-Star Game, commonly referred to as the WNBA All-Star Game, is an annual exhibition basketball game played in the United States between the best players of the Western and Eastern Conference of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Since 2004, the game is not held in years when the Summer Olympics take place.
Contents
Structure
Each conference is represented by a team of 12 players who are currently having the best seasons performance-wise around the league. The starters are determined by fans voting through internet ballots. The rest of the players are selected by league personnel including head coaches as well as media personalities. At the end of the game, an all-star game Most Valuable Player (MVP) is named, as decided by a panel of media members.
History
In 2004, the game was not played in its usual format 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 at Radio City Music Hall.[1][2] This 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 who would be participating in the summer games.
The tradition of not playing the WNBA All-Star Game during an Olympic year has continued in 2008, 2012, and 2016 (along with the tradition of taking a month-long break during the regular season). The 2020 Summer Olympics were postponed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For the same reason, the beginning of the 2020 WNBA season has been delayed. The league later announced a revised 22-game schedule, but no all-star game was played.
No official All-Star Game was held in 2010. Instead, there was an exhibition game matching the USA national team against a WNBA All-Star team, with Team USA winning 99–72 at Mohegan Sun Arena.[3]
The Western Conference leads the overall series 10–4.
All-Star Game results
Year | Result | Host arena | Host city | Game MVP |
---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | West 79, East 61[4][5] | Madison Square Garden | New York, New York | Lisa Leslie, Los Angeles Sparks |
2000 | West 73, East 61[6][7] | America West Arena | Phoenix, Arizona | Tina Thompson, Houston Comets |
2001 | West 80, East 72[8] | TD Waterhouse Centre | Orlando, Florida | Lisa Leslie (2), Los Angeles Sparks (2) |
2002 | West 81, East 76[9] | MCI Center | Washington, D.C. | Lisa Leslie (3), Los Angeles Sparks (3) |
2003 | West 84, East 75[10] | Madison Square Garden (2) | New York, New York (2) | Nikki Teasley, Los Angeles Sparks (4) |
2004 | The Game at Radio City | |||
2005 | West 122, East 99[11] | Mohegan Sun Arena | Uncasville, Connecticut | Sheryl Swoopes, Houston Comets (2) |
2006 | East 98, West 82[12] | Madison Square Garden (3) | New York, New York (3) | Katie Douglas, Connecticut Sun |
2007 | East 103, West 99[13] | Verizon Center | Washington, D.C. (2) | Cheryl Ford, Detroit Shock |
2008 | No game due to the 2008 Summer Olympics | |||
2009 | West 130, East 118[14] | Mohegan Sun Arena (2) | Uncasville, Connecticut (2) | Swin Cash, Seattle Storm |
2010 | Stars at the Sun | |||
2011 | East 118, West 113[15] | AT&T Center | San Antonio, Texas | Swin Cash (2), Seattle Storm (2) |
2012 | No game due to the 2012 Summer Olympics | |||
2013 | West 102, East 98 | Mohegan Sun Arena (3) | Uncasville, Connecticut (3) | Candace Parker, Los Angeles Sparks (5) |
2014 | East 125, West 124 (OT) | US Airways Center (2) | Phoenix, Arizona (2) | Shoni Schimmel, Atlanta Dream |
2015 | West 117, East 112 | Mohegan Sun Arena (4) | Uncasville, Connecticut (4) | Maya Moore, Minnesota Lynx |
2016 | No game due to the 2016 Summer Olympics | |||
2017 | West 130, East 121 | KeyArena | Seattle, Washington | Maya Moore (2), Minnesota Lynx (2) |
2018 | Team Parker 119, Team Delle Donne 112 | Target Center | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Maya Moore (3), Minnesota Lynx (3) |
2019 | Team Wilson 129, Team Delle Donne 126 | Mandalay Bay Events Center | Las Vegas, Nevada | Erica Wheeler, Indiana Fever |
2020 | No game due to the 2020 Summer Olympics, which was later postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic | |||
2021 | Team WNBA 93, Team USA 85 | Michelob Ultra Arena (2) | Las Vegas, Nevada (2) | Arike Ogunbowale, Dallas Wings (2) |
2022 | Team Wilson 134, Team Stewart 112 | Wintrust Arena | Chicago, Illinois | Kelsey Plum, Las Vegas Aces |
- Four WNBA cities were never selected to host the All-Star Game: Atlanta, Dallas, Indianapolis, and Los Angeles.
Three-Point Contest
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.
Skills Challenge
The Skills Challenge was held during the All-Star Game event during 2006–2007, 2010, 2019, and 2022. In 2006, 2007, and 2010, the Challenge was a timed event, but in 2019 onward it changed to a three-round, obstacle-course competition that tests dribbling, passing, agility and three-point shooting skills. The event will showcase a head-to-head, bracket-style tournament format.[16]
See also
Notes
Wikimedia Commons has media related to WNBA All-Star Game. |
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