Report: Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever and Angel Reese announced a shocking position in WNBA All-Star
Rookies Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever and Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky have been selected for their first WNBA All-Star team, as announced by the league on Tuesday.
This marks the first time since 2014 that two rookies have made the WNBA All-Star team in the same season.
Reese, who was also named WNBA Rookie of the Month for June, was emotional upon hearing the news of her All-Star selection.
“I’m just so happy,” she tearfully told reporters. “All the work I put in, coming into this league, so many people doubted me – didn’t think my game would translate and I wouldn’t be the player that I was in college … I trusted the process and I believed.”
In Tuesday’s game against the Atlanta Dream, Reese recorded her 11th consecutive double-double, setting a single-season league record, with a franchise-record 19 rebounds in the Sky’s 85-77 victory. She is now one double-double away from Candace Parker’s all-time record for consecutive double-doubles, which spans two seasons.
Clark, who was named Rookie of the Month in May, has consistently attracted large crowds in the WNBA. On Tuesday, 20,366 fans watched her Fever lose 88-69 to the Las Vegas Aces, the fifth-largest crowd in league history and the largest since 1999.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been her teammate before, even at USA Basketball or anything like that,” Clark said about teaming up with former college rival Reese. “I know people are going to be really excited about it, but I hope it doesn’t take away from everybody else.
“This is a huge accomplishment for everybody on Team USA and everybody on Team WNBA. They all deserve the same praise.”
Joining the two rookies on the 12-woman Team WNBA roster are two-time All-Star Aliyah Boston (Fever), four-time All-Star Arike Ogunbowale (Dallas Wings), and nine-time All-Star Nneka Ogwumike (Seattle Storm).
Team WNBA will face the USA Basketball Women’s National Team at the Footprint Center in Phoenix in a sold-out game on July 20.
Six-time All-Star A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces headlines the Team USA squad for the 20th All-Star game. Joining Wilson are six-time All-Star Breanna Stewart (New York Liberty), 11-time All-Star Diana Taurasi (Phoenix Mercury), and 10-time All-Star Brittney Griner (Mercury).
This will be the second time the All-Star game will feature the USA Basketball vs. Team WNBA format.
In 2021, Team WNBA defeated Team USA 93-85 in Las Vegas before the Tokyo Olympics.
The All-Stars were chosen by fans (50% of the vote), current WNBA players (25%), and a national panel of broadcasters and sportswriters (25%).