– Fan Voting Ends on Wednesday, June 21;

Captains and Remaining Starters to Be Revealed on Sunday, June 25 – 

– All-Star Captains to Draft Teams from Pool of Starters and Reserves on Saturday, July 8 on ESPN – 

– AT&T WNBA All-Star Game set for Saturday, July 15, and Will Air on ABC in Primetime for First Time –

NEW YORK, June 13, 2023 – Reigning two-time Kia WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces and 2018 Kia WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart of the New York Liberty lead the voting after the first round of fan returns for AT&T WNBA All-Star 2023.

The 2023 AT&T WNBA All-Star Game will be played in Las Vegas at the Michelob Ultra Arena, home of the defending WNBA Champion Las Vegas Aces, on Saturday, July 15 on ABC (5:30 p.m. PT/8:30 p.m. ET). The game broadcast will be preceded by a half hour edition of WNBA Countdown on ABC (5:00 p.m. PT/8:00 p.m. ET).

AT&T WNBA All-Star 2023 will feature the league’s biggest and brightest stars selected from across the entire WNBA without regard to conference affiliation. WNBA players and media will join fans in selecting the All-Star starters. Fans will account for 50 percent of the vote, while all current players and a media panel will account for 25 percent each. Players and media panelists will be able to complete one ballot, featuring four guards and six frontcourt players.

Wilson, the 2022 and 2020 Kia WNBA MVP, a four-time All-Star selection and captain of Team Wilson for AT&T WNBA All-Star 2022 and 2019, leads all players with 35,968 votes. Stewart, the 2018 Kia WNBA MVP, a two-time WNBA Finals MVP and four-time All-Star, is second with 32,926 votes. Wilson, who currently ranks eighth in the WNBA in scoring (20.1 ppg) and 10^thin rebounding (8.2 rpg) has helped the Aces to a WNBA-best 8-1 record. Stewart ranks second among scorers (24.9), fourth in rebounding (10.1 rpg) and has guided the Liberty to a 6-2 mark, the league’s third best record.

Wilson and Stewart are followed in the fan voting by eight-time All-Star, two-time Kia WNBA Defensive Player of the Year and the league’s current No. 3 scorer Brittney Griner of the Phoenix Mercury (28,387), 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick Aliyah Bostonof the Indiana Fever (23,594), and 2022 Kia WNBA Most Improved Player and 2022 All-Star Jackie Young of the Aces (23,217).

Rounding out the top 10 vote-getters are two-time All-WNBA selection, four-time All-Star and the league’s current leading scorer Jewell Loyd of the Seattle Storm (21,145), 2021 All-Star and the WNBA’s current No. 6 scorer and co-leader in rebounding Satou Sabally of the Dallas Wings (20,971), two-time Kia WNBA MVP, six-time All-Star and captain of Team Delle Donne for AT&T WNBA All-Star 2019 and 2018 Elena Delle Donne of the Washington Mystics (18,652), 2016 Kia WNBA MVP and seven-time All-Star selection, Nneka Ogwumike of the Los Angeles Sparks (16,804), and two-time All-WNBA pick and 2021 All-Star MVP Arike Ogunbowale of the Wings (16,423).

After all votes are tallied, players will be ranked by position (guard and frontcourt) within each of the three voting groups – fan votes, player votes and media votes. Each player’s score will be calculated by averaging their weighted rank from the fan votes, the player votes and the media votes. The four guards and six frontcourt players with the best score will be named as starters for AT&T WNBA All-Star 2023. Fan voting will serve as the tiebreaker for players in a position group with the same score.

The 10 All-Star starters, including the two captains, will be revealed on Sunday, June 25. After the announcement of the starters, the league’s head coaches will select the 12 reserves. The head 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. The reserves will be announced on Saturday, July 1.

The captains – the two All-Star starters who receive the most fan votes – will draft their respective rosters by selecting first from the remaining eight players in the pool of starters and then from the pool of 12 reserves. ESPN will broadcast the WNBA All-Star Team Selection Special on Saturday, July 8 (1 p.m. ET).

See below for the leaders in the early returns of fan voting for AT&T WNBA All-Star 2023:

A’ja Wilson, Frontcourt (LVA) 35,968
Breanna Stewart, Frontcourt (NYL) 32,926
Brittney Griner, Frontcourt (PHO) 28,387
Aliyah Boston, Frontcourt (IND) 23,594
Jackie Young, Guard (LVA) 23,217
Jewell Loyd, Guard (SEA) 21,145
Satou Sabally, Frontcourt (DAL) 20,971
Elena Delle Donne, Frontcourt (WAS) 18,652
Nneka Ogwumike, Frontcourt (LAS) 16,804
Arike Ogunbowale, Guard (DAL) 16,423
Kelsey Plum, Guard (LVA) 16,319
Chelsea Gray, Guard (LVA) 16,028
Candace Parker, Frontcourt (LVA) 15,006
Sabrina Ionescu, Guard (NYL) 13,185
Kahleah Copper, Guard (CHI) 12,861
Diana Taurasi, Guard (PHO) 12,777
Alyssa Thomas, Frontcourt (CON) 10,128
DeWanna Bonner, Frontcourt (CON) 9,564
Allisha Gray, Guard (ATL) 8,838
Shakira Austin, Frontcourt (WAS) 8,427
Courtney Vandersloot, Guard (NYL) 8,304
Rhyne Howard, Guard (ATL) 7,890
Napheesa Collier, Frontcourt (MIN) 7,788
Kelsey Mitchell, Guard (IND) 6,415
NaLyssa Smith, Frontcourt (IND) 5,951
Marina Mabrey, Guard (CHI) 5,509
Jonquel Jones, Frontcourt (NYL) 4,947
Alysha Clark, Frontcourt (LVA) 4,946
Brionna Jones, Frontcourt (CON) 4,619
Zia Cooke, Guard (LAS) 4,584

Throughout the voting period, fans may submit one full ballot each day via WNBA.com and the WNBA App, as well as vote for up to 10 unique players per day on Instagram. All WNBA players currently on team rosters will be available for selection. Three “2-for-1 Days” will allow fans to have their votes count twice on June 11, June 16 and June 21 through Instagram, WNBA.com and the WNBA App voting platforms. Each “2-for-1 Day” will be designated from midnight ET – 11:59 p.m. ET. Fan voting for AT&T WNBA All-Star 2023 will conclude on Wednesday, June 21 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

How to vote:

• Desktop and mobile web: To vote online from a desktop or mobile device, fans should visit the official WNBA All-Star 2023 ballot page at vote.wnba.com. Fans may vote for a minimum of one player and maximum of 10, through submitting one full ballot per day (defined as once every 24 hours) including the selection of up to four guards and six frontcourt players regardless of conference.
• WNBA App: To vote through the WNBA App using iOS or Android devices, fans can simply open the WNBA App and view the WNBA All-Star Voting story on the Homepage. It will include short-form content that drives awareness of key dates and information and will also include a link that drives directly to the ASW voting page. A seamless experience that allows fans to vote all while staying within our App. Additionally, fans can visit the WNBA All-Star Voting ballot page via the “More” menu in the bottom menu bar navigation of the App. Fans may vote for a minimum of one player and maximum of 10, through submitting one full ballot per day (defined as once every 24 hours) including the selection of up to four guards and six frontcourt players regardless of conference. The WNBA App can be downloaded for free from the Apple App Store or Google Play.
• Instagram: Fans may comment under an official voting post coming from the WNBA Instagram account or the 12 team’s accounts with a hashtag of a WNBA player’s first and last name (#FirstNameLastName) or Instagram handle. Comments must include the WNBA All-Star hashtag – #WNBAAllStar – in order to be valid. Each individual comment may include only one player’s name or handle. Fans may submit a maximum of 10 unique player valid votes per Instagram profile per day (defined as once every 24 hours). Each of the up to 10 votes per day must be for a different WNBA player.

The head coaches for the AT&T WNBA All-Star 2023 will be the head coaches of the two teams with the best records following games on Friday, June 30, regardless of conference.  The head coach with the best record as of that date will coach the team whose captain earned the most fan votes.

The AT&T WNBA All-Star Game will be the centerpiece of two full days packed with WNBA activities including the WNBA STARRY® 3-Point Contest and Kia WNBA Skills Challenge, which will air on ESPN on Friday, July 14 at 1 p.m. PT / 4 p.m. ET.

The WNBA also will host its “WNBA Live” fan festival, now in its second year. An exciting, interactive event open to the public, “WNBA Live” will provide fans an opportunity to experience the intersection of the WNBA, entertainment and culture leading up to the AT&T WNBA All-Star Game.

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