LAS VEGAS, July 13, 2021 – AT&T WNBA All-Star 2021 will take place on Wednesday, July 14 at Michelob ULTRA Arena at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, airing live on ESPN at 7 p.m. ET. The 17th WNBA All-Star Game will showcase the league’s best squaring off as the WNBA All-Stars face USA Basketball Women’s National Team.
Below are facts and figures about WNBA All-Star 2021:
WNBA All-Star Game
Sue Bird #10 of the Seattle Storm (Photo by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images)
· 1 – No. 1 all-time leaders for points (Diana Taurasi – pictured above), assists (Sue Bird) and rebounds (Sylvia Fowles) will be playing in the WNBA All-Star Game.
· 2 – Las Vegas will host WNBA All-Star for the second time, having previously done so in 2019 when the game was last played.
· 3 – Three international players will be competing in this year’s event: Liz Cambage (Australia), Jonquel Jones (Bahamas) and Satou Sabally (Germany).
· 4 – The Las Vegas Aces have the most All-Star selections with four, followed by four teams with three players each (Chicago Sky, Connecticut Sun, Phoenix Mercury and Seattle Storm).
· 7 – Out of the 24 All-Stars, seven players have competed in the WNBA for more than a decade: Sue Bird (18th season), Diana Taurasi (17th), Sylvia Fowles (14th), Candace Parker (14th), DeWanna Bonner (12th), Tina Charles (11th) and Courtney Vandersloot (11th).
· 8 – This year will feature eight first-time All-Stars: Ariel Atkins, Kahleah Copper, Dearica Hamby, Brionna Jones, Betnijah Laney, Arike Ogunbowale, Satou Sabally and Courtney Williams.
· 12 – Sue Bird has been selected to a WNBA-record 12 All-Star teams.
· 17 – Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famers Lisa Leslie (8) and Tina Thompson (9), who will serve as co-head coaches for the WNBA All-Stars, combined for 17 All-Star selections during their playing careers.
· 1999 – The first WNBA All-Star Game was held in 1999 at New York’s Madison Square Garden, where All-Star MVP Lisa Leslie led the West past the East 79-61.
Sylvia Fowles #34 of the Minnesota Lynx (Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images)
USA Women’s National Basketball Team
· 5 – Bird and Taurasi will be competing in their fifth Olympics, tying WNBA legend Teresa Edwards for the most appearances on the USA Women’s National Team roster. The USA Women’s National Team will also be composed of players from five WNBA teams (three each from Phoenix and Seattle and two each from Las Vegas, Minnesota and Washington).
· 6 – Six WNBA players will be competing for the USA Women’s National Team in the Olympics for the first time: Ariel Atkins, Napheesa Collier, Chelsea Gray, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Jewell Loyd and A’ja Wilson.
· 7 – Ariel Atkins will be the only player on the USA Women’s National Team to wear the same uniform number – No. 7 – in the WNBA and the Olympics.
· 15 – WNBA All-Stars competing on the USA Women’s National Team have combined to collect 15 Olympic gold medals during their playing careers: Sue Bird (4), Tina Charles (2), Sylvia Fowles (3), Brittney Griner (1), Breanna Stewart (1) and Diana Taurasi (4).
1996 U.S. Olympic Women’s Basketball Team
· 1996 – The WNBA will honor the gold-medal-winning 1996 U.S. Olympic Women’s Basketball Team with a special presentation during the game highlighting the impact the team had on women’s sports and the role it played in launching the WNBA.
· 6 – The 1996 U.S. Olympic Women’s Basketball Team, which will be honored at this year’s event, features six players who were inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame: Teresa Edwards (2011), Sheryl Swoopes (2016), Katrina McClain (2012), Dawn Staley (2013), Rebecca Lobo (2017) and Lisa Leslie (2015).
WNBA All-Star on ESPN
· 7 – ESPN play-by-play announcer Ryan Ruocco and analyst Rebecca Loco will call their seventh WNBA All-Star Game together.
· 10 – ESPN sideline reporter Holly Rowe will be covering her 10th WNBA All-Star Game.
· 15 – ESPN will use 15 cameras, microphones on players, and from-the-bench, in-game interviews throughout its telecast.
· 17 – This year marks the 17th time that ESPN networks will present the WNBA All-Star Game.
MTN DEW® 3-Point Contest
· 2 – Chicago Sky guard Allie Quigley, a two-time winner of the WNBA MTN DEW 3-Point Contest, is seeking her third title at victories at the 2019 All-Star Game in Minneapolis and the 2018 All-Star Game in Seattle.
· 4 – Four players will vie for the title of the league’s best three-point shooter this year. Besides Quigley, Connecticut Sun forward Jonquel Jones, Seattle Storm guard Jewell Loyd, and New York Liberty guard Sami Whitcomb will compete in this year’s contest.
WNBA All-Star in the Community
· 25,000 – The WNBA FIT All-Star Grocery Pop-Up is providing 25,000 meals to 1,000 families in July. As part of WNBA FIT Month presented by Kaiser Permanente, the league is hosting five grocery pop-ups in partnership with Goodr, including an All-Star Event in Las Vegas on Tuesday, July 13. The Official Health Care Partner of the WNBA, Kaiser Permanente serves as the health care expert and strategic consultant for the WNBA on health and wellness initiatives. Goodr is a sustainable food waste management and distribution company whose mission is to feed more, waste less.
Courtesy of the WNBA via Pitch
