MANILA, Philippines – With greater awareness, eyeballs and interest in the Women’s National Basketball Association, this year’s All-Star Game that will be played on July 21 at 8:30 a.m. (Manila time) at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona, will be of even greater interest.
The annual showcase game will be televised live on Tap Sports on Sky Cable and Cignal as well as on Blast Sports.
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For one, the exhibition match will feature the WNBA All-Stars, who will face the US women’s national team that will be competing in the 2024 Paris Olympics that begins on July 26.
And second, this will be the first WNBA All-Star Game to feature two of the brightest stars in the women’s game today in Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. Clark, of course, has almost single-handedly generated a lot of interest, awareness and participation in the game. That has infused the WNBA with much-needed attention and support.
Clark plays for the Indiana Fever (11-14), while Reese suits up for the Chicago Sky (9-14). Both will be teammates on the WNBA All-Star squad that will go up against the national team.
The US national team has won nine Olympics gold medals including the last seven. Half of the current lineup competed in the Tokyo Olympics — Napheesa Collier, Chelsea Gray, A’ja Wilson, Breanna Stewart, Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner.
Cheryl Reeve, coach and president of basketball operations for the Minnesota Lynx, will be the head tactician for the US in Paris. Reeve led the Lynx to four WNBA titles in 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2017. She is a recipient of three WNBA Coach of the Year Awards in 2011, 2016, and 2020.
The US women’s team is in Group C of the preliminary round along with Germany, Japan and Belgium.
Belgium is ranked sixth, Japan is at ninth while Germany is 19th in the FIBA Women’s Rankings. The US is the top-ranked squad in the entire world.
US women's national team:
• Napheesa Collier, Minnesota
• Kahleah Copper, Phoenix
• Chelsea Gray, Las Vegas
• Brittney Griner, Phoenix
• Sabrina Ionescu, New York
• Jewell Loyd, Seattle
• Kelsey Plum, Las Vegas
• Breanna Stewart, New York
• Diana Taurasi, Phoenix
• Alyssa Thomas, Connecticut
• A'ja Wilson, Las Vegas
• Jackie Young, Las Vegas
Team WNBA:
• DeWanna Bonner, Connecticut
• Aliyah Boston, Indiana
• Caitlin Clark, Indiana
• Allisha Gray, Atlanta
• Dearica Hamby, Los Angeles
• Brionna Jones, Connecticut
• Jonquel Jones, New York
• Kayla McBride, Minnesota
• Kelsey Mitchell, Indiana
• Arike Ogunbowale, Dallas
• Nneka Ogwumike, Seattle
• Angel Reese, Chicago