NEW YORK – The WNBA today revealed the list of 22 players selected by fans, WNBA players and head coaches, and media for Verizon WNBA All-Star 2018.  Washington Mystics forward/guard Elena Delle Donne and Los Angeles Sparks forward/center Candace Parker will serve as team captains and draft the rosters for the 15^th WNBA All-Star Game, which will take place on Saturday, July 28 at Target Center in Minneapolis.  ABC will televise the game between Team Delle Donne and Team Parker live at 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT.

Four-time WNBA champion Maya Moore of the Minnesota Lynx and Delle Donne earned spots as team captains after receiving the highest vote totals regardless of conference.  Moore today informed the WNBA that she is unable to perform her captaincy duties at this time.  She has been excused from those responsibilities but will remain a part of the All-Star Game.  Parker has been selected by WNBA President Lisa Borders to replace Moore as a team captain due to finishing third in the fan voting behind Moore and Delle Donne.

Seattle Storm guard Sue Bird and Phoenix Mercury guard Diana Taurasi headline the All-Star player pool.  Bird was named an All-Star for the 11^th time, breaking a tie with Tamika Catchings for the most selections in WNBA history.  Taurasi, the 2009 WNBA MVP, earned her ninth All-Star selection, tied for the third most with Tina Thompson.  She is one of seven WNBA MVPs to be chosen for Verizon WNBA All-Star 2018, joining Moore (2014), Delle Donne (2015), Parker (2008, 2013), New York Liberty center Tina Charles (2012), Lynx center Sylvia Fowles (2017) and Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike (2016).

The All-Stars were announced tonight on ESPN’s SportsCenter.  Under the new All-Star Game format that replaces the traditional matchup between conferences, Delle Donne and Parker will select their respective teams from the pool of remaining All-Stars to form two 11-player rosters.  Delle Donne will make the first pick and Parker will have the second pick.  The two captains will then alternate picks until all players have been selected.

The rosters for Team Delle Donne and Team Parker will be revealed on Thursday, July 19 at the start of ESPN2’s telecast of a game between Washington and the Dallas Wings (8 p.m. ET tip-off).  On Friday, July 27, the All-Star team captains and head coaches will meet to determine the starting lineups.  The starters will be revealed that night on ESPN2 (7 p.m. ET) during a live telecast of the WNBA All-Star Welcome Reception in Minnesota.  Seattle head coach Dan Hughes will lead Team Delle Donne, while Phoenix head coach Sandy Brondello will guide Team Parker.

For the first time, All-Stars were selected without regard for conference affiliation.  Fans accounted for 40 percent of the vote, while current players, current head coaches and a media panel accounted for 20 percent each.  Players were not allowed to vote for their teammates.  Head coaches could not vote for players on their own team.

Moore was the leading vote-getter among fans (47,620) in WNBA All-Star Voting 2018 presented by Verizon.  She was followed by Delle Donne (42,171), Parker (38,575), Bird (37,098) and Taurasi (35,687).  Fans cast 44 percent more votes than they did last year (873,437 vs. 604,680).

After all votes were tallied, players were ranked by position (guard and frontcourt) within each voting group – fan votes, player votes, coach votes and media votes.  Each player’s score was calculated by averaging her weighted rank applied to the respective voting groups.  The nine guards and 13 frontcourt players with the best scores were named to compete in Verizon WNBA All-Star 2018.

2018 WNBA ALL-STARS BY POSITION

Guards

• Seimone Augustus, Lynx (8^th All-Star selection): This is the sixth consecutive All-Star nod for Augustus, who has earned all eight of her selections as a member of the Lynx.
• Sue Bird, Storm (11^th All-Star selection): Bird, the WNBA’s career assists leader and Seattle’s career points leader, has played the second-most games (497) in league history and is poised to surpass DeLisha Milton-Jones (499) as the all-time leader in that category.
• Skylar Diggins-Smith, Wings (4^th All-Star selection): Selected to the All-Star Game every year except her rookie season, Diggins-Smith will appear in Verizon WNBA All-Star 2018 alongside Delle Donne and Mercury center Brittney Griner, fellow members of the famed “Three to See” WNBA Draft class of 2013.
• Chelsea Gray, Sparks (2^nd All-Star selection): Gray, who helped lead the Sparks to the last two WNBA Finals, is an All-Star for the second year in a row.
• Jewell Loyd, Storm (1^st All-Star selection): The 2015 WNBA Rookie of the Year is one of two first-time All-Star selections this year, joining Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson.
• Kayla McBride, Aces (2^nd All-Star selection): McBride returns to the All-Star Game after a previous appearance in 2015, her second WNBA season.
• Allie Quigley, Sky (2^nd All-Star selection): An All-Star for the second year in a row, the two-time WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year (2014 and 2015) won the Three-Point Contest at halftime of last year’s All-Star Game in Seattle.
• Diana Taurasi, Mercury (9^th All-Star selection): Taurasi has been a starter in each of her eight previous All-Star Games.
• Kristi Toliver, Mystics (2^nd All-Star selection): An All-Star for the first time as a member of the Mystics, Toliver represented the Sparks in the 2013 All-Star Game.

Frontcourt

• DeWanna Bonner, Mercury (2^nd All-Star selection): Bonner, who sat out the 2017 season while pregnant with twins, was also an All-Star in 2015.
• Liz Cambage, Wings (2^nd All-Star selection): After a four-year absence from the WNBA, the Australian native is an All-Star for the first time since 2011.  Today, she scored a WNBA-record 53 points to go with 10 rebounds and five blocked shots in Dallas’ 104-87 home victory over New York.
• Tina Charles, Liberty (6^th All-Star selection): Charles has been voted to each All-Star Game played during her career, and she was a starter in 2011, 2015 and 2017.
• Elena Delle Donne, Mystics (5^th All-Star selection): Delle Donne has been selected to each All-Star Game played in her career, including three as a member of the Chicago Sky and the last two as a member of the Mystics.  She recently became the fastest WNBA player to 3,000 points (148 games).
• Brittney Griner, Mercury (5^th All-Star selection): The WNBA’s second-leading scorer (20.7 ppg) and top shot-blocker (2.91 bpg) has been named to each All-Star Game played in her career.
• Sylvia Fowles, Lynx (5^th All-Star selection): The reigning regular-season and Finals MVP was voted to her second straight All-Star Game as a member of the Lynx.  She previously represented the Sky three times.
• Angel McCoughtry, Dream (5^th All-Star selection): Atlanta’s career leader in games, points, field goals, assists and steals has started the All-Star Game four times.
• Maya Moore, Lynx, (6^th All-Star selection): The MVP of the last two WNBA All-Star Games (2015, 2017), Moore is the All-Star Game record-holder for career scoring average (20.2 ppg) and points in a game (30 in 2015).
• Chiney Ogwumike, Sun (2^nd All-Star selection): An All-Star as a rookie in 2014, Ogwumike returns to the All-Star Game after missing two of the previous three seasons due to injury.
• Nneka Ogwumike, Sparks (5^th All-Star selection): Selected to every All-Star Game played during her career, Nneka and her sister Chiney are the only siblings to play in the WNBA All-Star Game.
• Candace Parker, Sparks (5^th All-Star selection): Parker is one of three players in WNBA history to earn regular-season MVP, Finals MVP and All-Star Game MVP honors, joining Moore and Lisa Leslie.
• Breanna Stewart, Storm (2^nd All-Star selection): The fastest player in WNBA history to reach 1,000 points and 500 rebounds (55 games), Stewart is an All-Star for the second consecutive year.
• A’ja Wilson, Aces (1^st All-Star selection): The only current rookie selected to the All-Star Game, Wilson is one of 13 No. 1 overall draft picks set to compete in Minneapolis.  The others are Augustus, Bird, Charles, Griner, Loyd, McCoughtry, Moore, Chiney Ogwumike, Nneka Ogwumike, Parker, Stewart and Taurasi.

Below are the 22 players who were selected to Verizon WNBA All-Star 2018.

For ticket information about Verizon WNBA All-Star 2018, fans may visit lynx.wnba.com/allstar/.

The 2018 WNBA regular season continues through Aug. 19 and the playoffs begin on Aug. 21.  For more information on the WNBA and game tickets, fans may visit wnba.com.

About the WNBA

The WNBA – which features 12 teams and is the most successful women’s professional team sports league in the world – is a unique global sports property combining competition, sportsmanship, and entertainment value with its status as an icon for social change, achievement, and diversity.  The league, which counts Verizon as its leaguewide marquee partner, tipped off its 22^nd season on May 18, 2018.

Through WNBA Cares, the WNBA is deeply committed to creating programs that improve the quality of life for all people, with a special emphasis on programs that promote a healthy lifestyle and positive body image, increase breast and women’s health awareness, support youth and family development, and focus on education.  For more information about the WNBA, visit www.WNBA.com.