WNBA All-Star roster breakdown: Snubs, MVP predictions, what to watch in Indianapolis

The 2025 WNBA All-Star Game reserves were announced Sunday, and the coaches' choices seemed to punctual much contention than erstwhile the starters -- chosen by fan, subordinate and media balloting -- were released a week ago.

The 22 players selected for the July 19 crippled astatine Gainbridge Fieldhouse successful Indianapolis correspond 12 of the WNBA's 13 teams -- the last-place Connecticut Sun person nary All-Star -- and see 3 rookies.

The big Indiana Fever volition person 3 representatives: Caitlin Clark, 1 of the squad captains; Aliyah Boston; and Kelsey Mitchell. The Seattle Storm besides person 3 All-Stars: Skylar Diggins, Nneka Ogwumike and Gabby Williams.

The league-leading Minnesota Lynx person 2 All-Stars: Napheesa Collier, the different squad captain, and Courtney Williams. Same for the defending WNBA champion New York Liberty, whose 2 All-Stars are Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu.

Who were the biggest snubs? Whom mightiness Clark and Collier prime successful their roster draught Tuesday (7 p.m. ET, ESPN)? Which subordinate volition beryllium MVP successful Indianapolis? ESPN's Alexa Philippou, Kendra Andrews, Kevin Pelton and Michael Voepel measurement successful connected the All-Stars.

Who were the biggest snubs?

Kevin Pelton: Kayla McBride. Clearly the No. 2 subordinate connected the Lynx past season, erstwhile she was an All-Star, McBride is putting up astir identical numbers successful 2025. In fact, she has changeable adjacent amended connected 3s (45%) and escaped throws (46-of-47, 98%). That makes it astonishing coaches favored backcourt-mate Courtney Williams, who has neither scored arsenic prolifically nor arsenic efficiently arsenic McBride. Per Across the Timeline, McBride joins Hall of Famer Seimone Augustus successful 2009 arsenic the 2nd subordinate successful league past not chosen arsenic an All-Star aft averaging astatine slightest 15 points with a existent shooting percent amended than 64%.

Alexa Philippou: Aside from McBride, ESPN's All-Star reserve predictions besides featured Brittney Sykes and Brionna Jones. Sykes is having a vocation twelvemonth successful scoring (17.9 PPG) and assists (4.6 APG), and portion immoderate detractors constituent to her inefficiency (36.8%) and however overmuch of her scoring comes from the escaped propulsion enactment (a league-high 8.7 attempts per game), her accumulation connected an different young squad is simply a large crushed the Washington Mystics person outperformed aboriginal expectations.

Jones is putting up amended scoring (14.0 PPG), rebounding (8.1 RPG) and assistance (2.2 APG) numbers successful her archetypal twelvemonth with the Atlanta Dream than her All-Star run past twelvemonth successful Connecticut, portion remaining 1 of the league's astir businesslike players (51%) and champion interior defenders. She is the lone subordinate with astatine slightest 7 double-doubles to not beryllium tabbed an All-Star.

Kendra Andrews: Natasha Cloud. When we made our predictions past week, I wrote that Sonia Citron was the astir hard subordinate to cut. But Cloud was a adjacent second. She began the play connected fire, and portion she had a spot of an inconsistent June, she is 3rd successful the league successful assists with 6.5 per crippled and besides 3rd successful assist-to-turnover ratio astatine 3.17. She's besides 1 of the league's premier defender defenders. Cloud has filled a facilitator spread for the Liberty, and portion she's inactive striking the equilibrium betwixt facilitator and scorer, she made a beardown lawsuit for an All-Star selection.

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Dearica Hamby rips it distant for casual bucket

Dearica Hamby gets the bargain and takes it seashore to seashore for a layup.

Michael Voepel: Los Angeles guardant Dearica Hamby is different subordinate who was hard to chopped erstwhile we were projecting the reserves. Her stats -- averages of 17.0 points, 7.6 rebounds and 3.8 assists and 53.7% shooting -- validate her All-Star potential. She has been an All-Star 3 times previously. The Sparks' 6-13 grounds apt wounded her chances, though it's cringe-inducing to ideate wherever Los Angeles would beryllium without her.

Who are you happiest to spot marque the All-Star team?

Pelton: It's casual to instrumentality for granted that Skylar Diggins would beryllium a reserve fixed however good she has played this season, but we're a twelvemonth removed from Diggins not adjacent being considered the Storm's snub aft averaging 13.1 points connected 39% shooting earlier the 2024 All-Star Game. Now connected what she semi-seriously calls her "third body" aft giving commencement twice, Diggins has consistently played astatine an All-Star level since past summer's Olympic break, and it's large to spot her backmost successful the crippled for the archetypal clip since 2022.

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Skylar Diggins-Smith wins it for Storm with precocious bucket

Skylar Diggins-Smith puts the Storm up for bully with a fewer seconds remaining vs. the Dream.

Voepel: Kayla Thornton. This is her 10th play successful the WNBA and archetypal All-Star appearance. Players specified arsenic Thornton are inactive rarities successful the WNBA. She's not from a assemblage powerfulness conference; she played for her hometown school, UTEP. She appeared successful conscionable 1 NCAA tourney game, successful her sophomore play successful 2012. She wasn't drafted erstwhile she graduated successful 2014, past was signed earlier the 2015 play by Washington, wherever she played 10 games. She didn't play successful the WNBA successful 2016. Then she recovered a location and was a instrumentality favourite for six seasons successful Dallas, followed by the past 2 successful New York. She won a WNBA rubric with the Liberty past play and was taken by Golden State successful the enlargement draft.

Now, astatine property 32, she is seizing the accidental to person a vocation twelvemonth portion establishing the Valkyries franchise. She volition ever beryllium known arsenic Golden State's archetypal WNBA All-Star, and for idiosyncratic who had to instrumentality a longer and harder roadworthy to get here, that's truly cool.

Andrews: Thornton stands retired to me, too. She is the astir seasoned first-time All-Star this year. Perhaps that's wherefore she has had this benignant of breakout season. Thornton is averaging a career-high 14.9 points per crippled portion besides getting a career-best 7.1 rebounds and 1.6 steals. On a squad that prides itself successful not having a superstar, Thornton has emerged arsenic the Valkyries champion subordinate and is simply a monolithic crushed they person outperformed their preseason expectations. Widely considered a apical relation subordinate crossed the league earlier this season, having played a important portion successful the Liberty's rubric tally past year, she is present a centerpiece successful Golden State and has taken her crippled to a caller level.

Philippou: Gabby Williams. Newer fans saw however impactful Williams tin beryllium connected some ends of the level during the 2024 Paris Olympics, erstwhile she helped pb France to a adjacent upset of the USA Basketball dynasty. Now successful her archetypal afloat WNBA play since 2022, the erstwhile UConn prima is flourishing, averaging a vocation precocious successful scoring (13.4 PPG), assists (4.7) and 3-point shooting (35.2%) and starring the league successful steals (2.6). Williams has agelong thrived successful the planetary hoops country -- showcasing however she didn't need the WNBA to person a robust, palmy pro vocation -- but there's nary question the WNBA is much amusive with her successful it, and her archetypal All-Star bid is good deserved.

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Gabby Williams with the past handbasket of the period

Gabby Williams with the past handbasket of the period, 07/06/2025

Which subordinate combinations bash you astir privation to spot successful Indianapolis?

Pelton: We past saw Paige Bueckers and Clark play unneurotic for the 2019 U19 FIBA World Cup, erstwhile they helped pb a USA squad that besides featured 2 different All-Stars (Aliyah Boston and Rhyne Howard) to the golden medal earlier mounting ft connected assemblage campuses. Bueckers and Clark volition ever beryllium linked arsenic prima constituent guards from the aforesaid recruiting class, and their styles should beryllium complementary if Clark drafts Bueckers arsenic captain.

Philippou: It's the archetypal clip since 2011 that determination are 3 oregon much rookie All-Stars successful the aforesaid year. It astir apt won't happen, but having Bueckers, Iriafen and Citron extremity up connected the aforesaid squad would beryllium amusive for vibes.

Voepel: It would beryllium amusive to spot Clark passing to some erstwhile South Carolina superstar station players successful the All-Star Game: Fever teammate Boston and the Las Vegas Aces' A'ja Wilson.

The 2025 WNBA All-Star reserves are acceptable 💪 pic.twitter.com/uLW92a4CXc

Other than their WNBA teammates, which players mightiness beryllium the apical choices for the captains?

Voepel: We tin presume Clark mightiness effort to usage her archetypal 2 picks for Indiana's Boston and Mitchell, portion Collier uses her archetypal prime for chap Lynx subordinate Courtney Williams. If that's the case, Clark's adjacent 2 mightiness beryllium Wilson and Ionescu, portion Collier's mightiness beryllium Stewart and past Bueckers.

Wilson arsenic a three-time MVP should beryllium an casual prime for Clark if Collier doesn't get her first. And Ionescu is simply a subordinate Clark watched intimately portion the Liberty defender was successful assemblage astatine Oregon and Clark was successful precocious school. As for Collier, Stewart and Bueckers are, of course, the different erstwhile UConn players among the All-Stars, on with Gabby Williams.

Predict the All-Star Game MVP

Pelton: Boston. The All-Star Game successful Indianapolis figured to beryllium a showcase for Clark, but with her injury-marred archetypal half, Boston has stepped up arsenic the Fever's champion player. Could moving successful modulation with All-Star guards let Boston to punctual a nationalist assemblage that she was an NCAA champion and No. 1 pick?

Philippou: I'm pursuing Pelton's bid of thought of the hometown stars showing up big. But guards person dominated All-Star Game MVP successful caller years, and truthful I deliberation it'll beryllium 1 of Boston's Fever teammates, Clark oregon Mitchell, who volition instrumentality location the trophy. Surely Indiana hopes Clark volition beryllium adjacent to afloat wellness by the clip All-Star Weekend rolls around, and we cognize she has a penchant for gathering the moment. It's besides plausible that Mitchell volition spell off, which would beryllium a bully reward for her aft sticking things retired with the Fever done the pugnacious years earlier Boston and Clark got to town.

Voepel: Like Alexa, I thin toward a guard, arsenic the presumption has won the grant the past 5 years, with helping Maya Moore winning it 3 times successful a enactment earlier that. If it's not 1 of the Fever guards, past perchance Atlanta's Allisha Gray, who is having a career-best season, including shooting 41.5% from beyond the arc.

How volition the captains mesh with their coaches?

Voepel: Liberty and Team Collier manager Sandy Brondello and Collier can get fired up, but that's not what we archetypal deliberation astir with their personalities. They're much laid back, calm, chill and easygoing portion inactive being aggravated competitors. Whereas Lynx and Team Clark manager Cheryl Reeve and Clark are much fiery and deterioration their competitory emotions much transparently. So adjacent though Reeve is Collier's WNBA coach, these All-Star pairings are benignant of fun.

We don't request to relitigate the full statement from past twelvemonth arsenic to whether Clark should person been connected the Olympic squad and however overmuch Team USA manager Reeve -- who wasn't portion of picking that squad -- mightiness person communicated to the enactment committee that she wanted acquisition and nary rookies going to Paris. Suffice to say, that was 1 of the galore narratives of 2024. That said, the Lynx were the WNBA squad closest to Clark increasing up successful West Des Moines, Iowa; she has talked astir however Reeve's title squads successful Minnesota inspired her. Clark and Reeve volition get on conscionable fine, due to the fact that they are some professionals with a batch successful communal successful however passionate astir hoops some are.