Chicago last hosted the WNBA All-Star game in 2022 at Wintrust Arena, the 10,387-seat home of the then-defending league champion Chicago Sky.
The event is returning to the Windy City on Saturday at the United Center, a venue that houses the NBA’s Chicago Bulls and seats more than 20,000 for basketball.
Talk about putting the “W” in “growth.”
“I think that the difference between this experience and 2022 is that I don’t think there was WNBA Live,” said New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart, referring to the fan festival that was still in its infancy then. “… So it’s really cool to see the fan engagement part of it, just the overall growth of women’s sports. And now, we’re going to play it at United Center.”
As the league celebrates its pioneers during the WNBA’s 30th anniversary season — Hall of Famers Cynthia Cooper and Teresa Weatherspoon drafted the teams for this year’s midseason showcase — the sport certainly boasts plenty to celebrate in the now and beyond.
“I’m focused head-down on executing this highly, highly successful 30th season,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert recently told ESPN. “I love this league. We’re going to drive the business. … I’m really, really optimistic about where we’re going in the future.”
Players in the All-Star game will represent 12 of the 15 teams in the “W,” with the expansion Portland Fire, Connecticut Sun and Sky as outliers.
Home fans certainly should know the rosters, however, and not simply from the Sky hosting games down the road. All-Stars Kahleah Copper, Marina Mabrey, Angel Reese and Courtney Williams previously played for Chicago, while Weatherspoon coached the team in 2024.
Although one team will bear her nickname, Weatherspoon will not coach Team Spoon. Cheryl Reeve of the Minnesota Lynx matches up against Becky Hammon of the reigning league champion Las Vegas Aces, who’ll guide Team Coop.
The starting lineups, for Team Coop: Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers, Minnesota Lynx forward Natasha Howard, Indiana Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell, Golden State Valkyries forward Gabby Williams and Stewart.
And Team Spoon: Indiana Fever center Aliyah Boston, Indiana guard Caitlin Clark, Minnesota guard Olivia Miles, Dallas forward Jessica Shepard and Las Vegas center A’ja Wilson.
The No. 2 overall draft pick, Miles is the only rookie named to this year’s game and has had an eye-popping first season with averages of 19.3 points, 5.9 assists and 4.7 rebounds while shooting close to 50%. Asked what her favorite All-Star moment was so far, Miles said it was hard to choose just one.
“The ‘orange carpet’ (Thursday) was special,” Miles said. “We really feel your impact on the community, and it’s just special to see what I built as a basketball player and the people who have helped me get there and obviously Minnesota has helped me boost my brand times 10. I just can’t wait to continue that impact.”
Multiple players will wear microphones during the game broadcast on ABC.
A team captained by Wilson topped one led by Stewart 134-112 during the 2022 game in Chicago. The WNBA pivoted from the traditional East versus West format in 2018.
–Field Level Media
