– All-Star Teams will be led by Co-Captains A’ja Wilson (Las Vegas Aces) and Breanna Stewart (Seattle) who led Fan-Voting Segment and will be Paired with Additional Co-Captains and Retiring Legends

Bird and Sylvia Fowles (Minnesota Lynx) –

– New York Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu, Las Vegas’ Kelsey Plum, Jackie Young to Make All-Star Debuts –

– Co-Captains to Draft All-Star Rosters from Pool of Starters and Reserves

on ESPN on Saturday, July 2 at 3 p.m. ET –

 NEW YORK, June 22, 2022 – Seattle Storm guard Sue Bird, a four-time WNBA champion and the league’s career assists leader, has extended her record number of All-Star selections to 13, the league announced today when the starters for AT&T WNBA All-Star 2022 were revealed on ESPN’s NBA Today.

Bird, along with a trio of former Kia WNBA Most Valuable Players – Minnesota Lynx center Sylvia Fowles, Las Vegas Aces’ forward A’ja Wilson, and Seattle forward Breanna Stewart – highlight the list of 10 players, including four guards and six frontcourt players from across the WNBA, who were selected by fans, current WNBA players and media to start in AT&T WNBA All-Star 2022.

The 2022 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game will be played at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, home of the defending WNBA Champion Chicago Sky, on Sunday, July 10 (ABC, noon CT/1 p.m. ET), and will be the centerpiece of a weekend full of WNBA activities.

Wilson and Stewart, by virtue of being the two All-Star starters who finished with the most fan votes, will serve as official team co-captains. They will joined as co-captains by Fowles and Bird, who both have announced their retirement upon conclusion of the 2022 season after legendary careers spanning almost two decades. Bird will be paired with Wilson; Fowles will be paired with Stewart.

“For icons like Sylvia and Sue to be voted into the AT&T WNBA All-Star Game as starters in their 19^th and 15^th seasons, respectively, is extraordinary,” said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. “And when you see the starting lineups dotted with first-time All-Stars like Sabrina Ionescu, Kelsey Plum, and Jackie Young, it just seems right that Sylvia and Sue – who have said this will be their final season – join A’ja and Breanna as co-captains for an All-Star event that will in some ways symbolize the passing of the torch to a new generation of WNBA stars.”

In addition, Engelbert named Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner, who was selected to seven prior AT&T WNBA All-Star Games, an honorary All-Star and starter.

“During each season of Brittney’s career in which there has been an All-Star Game, she has been selected as an All-Star,” said Engelbert. “It is not difficult to imagine that if BG were here with us this season, she would once again be selected and would, no doubt, show off her incredible talents. So, it is only fitting that she be named as an honorary starter today and we continue to work on her safe return to the U.S.”

Joining Wilson, Stewart, and Fowles as AT&T All-Star Game starters in the frontcourt are 2021 WNBA MVP Connecticut Sun forward Jonquel Jones, Los Angeles Sparks’ forward Nneka Ogwumike, and Chicago Sky forward-center Candace Parker. The starting guards, in addition to Bird, are the New York Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu and Las Vegas Aces’ teammates Kelsey Plum and Jackie Young.

Voting will now begin for the 12 reserves for AT&T WNBA All-Star 2022, which will be selected by the league’s head coaches, and will be announced on Tuesday, June 28.  Coaches will vote for three guards, five frontcourt players and four players at either position regardless of conference.  They may not vote for their own players. If a player is unable to play in AT&T WNBA All-Star 2022 for any reason, a replacement player will be named to the roster by Commissioner Engelbert.

The co-captains will select their respective All-Star rosters during ESPN’s broadcast of the WNBA All-Star Team Selection Special on Saturday, July 2 (3 p.m. ET), choosing first from the remaining pool of eight starters and then from the pool of 12 reserves.

AT&T WNBA All-Star 2022 Starter Pool

• Sue Bird, Storm (13^th All-Star selection): Bird, who announced that she will retire following the 2022 WNBA season, has been selected to more AT&T WNBA All-Star Games than any player in league history. Only Tamika Catchings and Diana Taurasi, each of whom was selected 10 times, have earned double-digit selections. Bird is the league’s career leader in assists (3,122) and games played (561).
• Sylvia Fowles, Lynx (8^th All-Star selection): The WNBA’s career leader in total rebounds (3,835), defensive rebounds (2,743), and field goal percentage (.598), Fowles has announced that 2022 will be her final season. The 2017 Kia WNBA MVP and two-time Finals MVP is averaging 16.5 points per game and a league-leading 10.3 rebounds per game.
• Sabrina Ionescu, Liberty (1^st All-Star selection): Ionescu, the No. 1 overall selection in the 2020 WNBA Draft presented by State Farm makes her All-Star debut. She leads the Liberty in scoring and assists with career-best figures of 16.7 ppg and 6.1 apg. On June 12, Ionescu became the youngest player in WNBA history to record multiple triple-doubles in a career.
• Jonquel Jones, Sun (4^th All-Star selection): The reigning Kia WNBA MVP and winner of the 2018 Kia WNBA Sixth Player of the Year and 2017 Kia WNBA Most Improved Player award, Jones will play in the All-Star Game for the fourth time. Jones is pacing the Sun with 15.1 points per game and ranks third in the league with 9.4 rebounds per game.
• Nneka Ogwumike, Sparks (7^th All-Star selection): Ogwumike, the 2016 Kia WNBA MVP and champion, also is a three-time winner of the WNBA’s Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award. Ogwumike leads the Sparks in scoring (18.1 points per game) and rebounding (7.7 rebounds per game).
• Candace Parker, Sky (7^th All-Star selection): A two-time Kia WNBA MVP and two-time WNBA champion, Parker is the only player in WNBA history to win MVP and Rookie of the Year honors in the same season (2008). The MVP of the 2013 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game, who is averaging 12.7 points per game and 8.1 rebounds, will play in front of her hometown Chicago crowd.
• Kelsey Plum, Aces (1^st All-Star selection): Plum, the No. 1 overall selection in the 2017 WNBA Draft presented by State Farm and the Kia WNBA Sixth Player of the Year in 2021, makes her All-Star debut. Her career-high and team-leading 20.3 points per game have helped the Aces generate the league’s No. 1-scoring offense (91.5).
• Breanna Stewart, Storm (4^th All-Star selection): The 2018 Kia WNBA MVP, a two-time WNBA Finals MVP and a three-time league champion, Stewart is leading the WNBA in scoring with a career-high tying 21.8 points per game and contributing 7.6 rebounds per game.
• A‘ja Wilson, Aces (4^th All-Star selection): The 2020 Kia WNBA MVP and 2018 Kia WNBA Rookie of the Year is playing in her fourth consecutive AT&T WNBA All-Star Game. She previously served as an All-Star captain when Team Wilson defeated Team Delle Donne in the 2019 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game. Wilson is averaging 18.4 points per game and ranks second in the league at 9.6 rebounds per game.
• Jackie Young, Aces (1^st All-Star selection): The first overall pick in the 2019 WNBA Draft presented by State Farm, Young is one of eight No. 1 overall picks selected as starters, along with Bird (2002), Parker (2008), Ogwumike (2012), Stewart (2016), Plum (2017), Wilson (2018), and Ionescu (2020). Young is averaging a career-best 18.2 points per game. Young is averaging a career-best 18.2 points per game and contributing 4.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game.

AT&T WNBA All-Star 2022 Voting Results

Fans accounted for 50 percent of the vote to determine the starters for AT&T WNBA All-Star 2022, while current WNBA players and a media panel accounted for 25 percent each.  Wilson finished with a WNBA-high  fan votes, followed by Stewart.  For more results from fan voting, click here.

After all votes were tallied, players were ranked by position (guard and frontcourt) within each of the three voting groups – fan votes, player votes and media votes.  Each player’s score was calculated by averaging her weighted rank from the fan votes, the player votes, and the media votes.  The four guards and six frontcourt players across the WNBA with the best scores are named All-Star Game starters.

Fan voting served as the tiebreaker for players in a position group with the same score.

Below are the overall scores – based on results from all three voting groups – for the top 10 finishers at each position.  Each player’s score is weighted based on 50 percent for fan vote, 25 percent for player vote and 25 percent for media vote.

GUARDS

FRONTCOURT

*–Voted to start
^–Tiebreaker for starting spot is highest fan vote

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About the WNBA

The WNBA, which tipped off its 26^th season on May 6, 2022, is a bold, progressive basketball league that stands for the power of women.  Featuring 12 teams, the W is a unique sports property that combines competition and entertainment with a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and social responsibility.  Through its world-class athletes, the in-game fan experience, TV and digital broadcasts, digital and social content and community outreach programs, the league celebrates and elevates the game of basketball and the culture around it.

In 2020, the WNBA and the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) signed a groundbreaking eight-year CBA that charts a new course for women’s basketball – and women’s sports overall – with a focus on increased player compensation, improvements to the player experience, expanded career development opportunities and resources specifically tailored to the female professional athlete.  Key elements of the agreement are supported through the league’s partnership platform, WNBA Changemakers, with AT&T, the WNBA’s Marquee Partner and inaugural Changemaker, as well as fellow inaugural Changemakers Deloitte and NIKE, Inc, and subsequent additions Google and U.S. Bank.  During the 2020 season, the WNBA and WNBPA launched the WNBA Justice Movement forming the Social Justice Council with the mission of being a driving force of necessary change and continuing conversations about race and voting rights, among other important societal issues.