Tamika Whitmore Named All-Star Reserve

July 8, 2006
NEW YORK – Indiana Fever forward Tamika Whitmore has been named one of twelve players added to the 2006 WNBA All-Star teams as voted by Eastern and Western Conference head coaches, the League announced today. Whitmore will join Tamika Catchings in representing the Fever as an Eastern Conference All-Star in this year's All-Star Game set for Wednesday, July 12, at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Whitmore’s addition marks only the second time in franchise history that Indiana will send two players to an All-Star Game (Catchings and Natalie Williams/2003). Whitmore, making her first All-Star appearance, is enjoying her best season in the WNBA, currently averaging career highs in points (16.3), rebounds (4.8), assists (1.7) and steals (1.42) thus far in her first season with the Fever.


Tamika Whitmore is currently Indiana's leading scorer at 16.3 ppg.
The game will showcase the league’s stars ranging from savvy veterans like the Los Angeles Sparks’ Lisa Leslie, Detroit’s Katie Smith and Phoenix’s Diana Taurasi to the All-Star debuts of three rookies, Minnesota’s Seimone Augustus, Phoenix’s Cappie Pondexter and San Antonio’s Sophia Young.

Following are the player additions for the Eastern and Western Conferences for the 2006 WNBA All-Star Game Presented by Vonage:

Eastern Conference Additions
Alana Beard (Washington Mystics) Guard/Forward
Katie Douglas (Connecticut Sun) Guard/Forward
Cheryl Ford (Detroit Shock) Center
Deanna Nolan (Detroit Shock) Guard/Forward
Katie Smith (Detroit Shock) Guard
Tamika Whitmore (Indiana Fever) Forward

Western Conference Additions
Seimone Augustus (Minnesota Lynx) Forward
Lisa Leslie (Los Angeles Sparks) Center
Cappie Pondexter (Phoenix Mercury) Guard
Diana Taurasi (Phoenix Mercury) Guard
Tina Thompson (Houston Comets) Forward
Sophia Young (San Antonio Silver Stars) Forward

About the Eastern Conference Additions

  • Washington’s Alana Beard is making her second All-Star appearance and ranks sixth in the WNBA this season with 18.7 points per game. Beard was averaging over 20 points per game until spraining her right ankle in the first quarter on July 1 vs. Los Angeles.
  • In her sixth WNBA season, Connecticut’s Katie Douglas earns her first All-Star appearance and is enjoying her finest season with 15.9 points per game, 1.9 steals per game while shooting .480 from the field and .467 from three-point range.
  • Detroit’s Cheryl Ford, making her third All-Star appearance, leads the league with 11.8 rebounds per game while teammates Deanna Nolan and Katie Smith have also been selected. Nolan, averaging 13.3 points per game and 3.7 assists per game, also earns her third All-Star appearance. Smith will make her sixth overall All-Star appearance, but first for the Eastern Conference. Acquired in a midseason trade with the Minnesota Lynx in 2005, Smith is posting 11.9 points per game this year.
  • Tamika Whitmore, in her eighth WNBA season, will make her first All-Star appearance as the leading scorer of the Indiana Fever with 16.3 points per game.

    About the Western Conference Additions

  • Three rookies will make their WNBA All-Star debuts, marking the first time in league history that three players directly out of college and in their first year of professional basketball have been named as All-Stars. Minnesota’s Seimone Augustus, the top pick in this year’s draft, is tied for first in the league with 22.7 points per game. Phoenix’s Cappie Pondexter also posts 22.7 points per game and recently recorded a rookie record by scoring 35 points vs. Detroit. San Antonio’s Sophia Young is posting 11.4 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game in 2006.
  • Phoenix’s Diana Taurasi ranks third in the league in scoring at 22.2 points per game and will make her second All-Star appearance.
  • Houston’s Tina Thompson earns her sixth All-Star appearance and posts 17.1 points per game.
  • Los Angeles’ Lisa Leslie, a three-time All-Star MVP, has been named an All-Star every year the game has been played along with Nykesha Sales. Leslie is averaging 20.6 points per game and 9.5 rebounds per game for the top team in the Western Conference.

    *statistics based on games played through Friday, July 7

    By virtue of their teams’ respective conference championships in 2005, Connecticut’s Mike Thibault will coach the East All-Stars and Sacramento’s John Whisenant will guide the West All-Stars.

    The 2006 WNBA All-Star Game Presented by Vonage will be hosted by the New York Liberty on Wednesday, July 12 at Madison Square Garden and will be televised nationally on ESPN at 7:20 p.m. EDT. ESPN’s pregame show, WNBA Shootaround, begins at 7:00 p.m. EDT.

    In addition, the game will be seen in a record 198 countries around the globe with commentary in 33 languages via 57 telecasters. This year’s record global television distribution breaks last year’s reach of 193 countries through 52 telecasters in 31 languages. The following telecasters will televise the game for the first time: Bahamas (NBA TV–Cable Bahamas, China (Nusports.cn), Iceland (NBA TV– Digital Island, Italy (Sportitalia), Mexico (TVC and NBA TV–PCTV, Middle East (NBA TV–Orbit), Serbia (Sport Klub), and Venezuela (NBA TV–Intercable).

    WNBA rosters for the 2006 season feature 29 international players from 18 countries and territories on team rosters this season. Among the international players named WNBA All-Star 2006 starters, are the Seattle Storm's Lauren Jackson (Australia) and the Connecticut Sun’s Margo Dydek (Poland).

    With tickets starting at $10, fans can enjoy the unique experience of seeing the WNBA’s superstars together in one place at Madison Square Garden, the World’s Most Famous Arena. Tickets can be purchased via Ticketmaster.com, at Ticketmaster Retail Locations, or by calling Ticketmaster at 1-877-WNBA-TIX. Tickets are also available for purchase at Madison Square Garden’s Box Office, through WNBA.com and at the NBA Store in New York.