Guest Post: WNBA All-Star Recap

Is Angel Reese on the court?

Jul 25, 2024

The Yearning Rating: ✰✰✰✰✰

Today’s guest writer is a certified hot jock and another Yearning darling: Nia Gibson! Yes, we’re branching into sports media! Tell us what you think in the comments.

An underdog story for both the ages and the screen.

Written by Nia Gibson

Before this summer, the last time I even THOUGHT about touching a basketball was 2009. I decided to quit my burgeoning baller career in lieu of another, still incredibly gay, sport: my high school’s JV field hockey team. When I made that pivotal decision to ditch hoops for sticks, I figured I’d waved goodbye to any WNBA pipe dreams. (Also, my mother’s dreams of me becoming the next Lisa Leslie).

I think it’s pretty clear that the WNBA as a league is gay as hell. Many of the league’s players are openly queer with some even DATING EACH OTHER—including soon to be wed Connecticut Sun teammates DeWana Bonner and Alyssa Thomas! And for a little narrative foil in this slice of gay jock heaven, there are also many great, yet tragically straight players, like A’ja Wilson and Caitlin Clark (controversial yet important). Aside from the players, I would highly recommend everyone try to attend at least one WNBA game in their life. No matter the team, it will be a great atmosphere…and a certified Lesbian convention. (Single Lesbians, get your Hinge game ready upon entering the stadium 😉)

Since my induction into the WNBA cult fandom (trust me—it’s terminal), my love for the game of basketball has exceeded the love I had for the sport during my childhood. I’m even writing this while currently on the train back from buying brand new basketball shoes! Here’s hoping that I can hit the court and soon make flawless 3’s, just like Sabrina Ionescu.

And this is all thanks to the wonderful athletes and community of the WNBA! Founded in 1996, 50 years after the founding of the NBA in 1946, the WNBA has had a historically small, yet staunchly dedicated following since its debut. The league has faced many struggles over the years—from a lack of viewership, investment, abysmal salaries for their talented players, and of course overwhelming misogyny that all female athletes unfortunately encounter. Nonetheless, the players have dedicated SO MUCH to this league, thereby paving the way for the remarkable rise in attention that the WNBA is currently experiencing. We are truly witnessing a women’s basketball renaissance and it brings tears to my eyes. Consider hopping on the WNBA express and become stat-obsessed, just like me! I know it can be daunting to get invested in a new sports league. But with the much anticipated, action packed 2024 All-Star game this past weekend, now is the perfect time to get up to speed on the top players and their respective teams:

ALL-STAR 2024: Let’s Get Into It!!

Last Saturday, the WNBA All-Star’s game took place in Phoenix, Arizona. While this game has been a yearly occurrence since the first All-Star game in 1999, this year’s game shattered records in terms of both viewership and stadium attendance. 3.44 million viewers tuned in to watch the game broadcasted on ABC, breaking the previous record of 1.441 million viewers from the 2003 WNBA All-Star game. The Footprint Center (what a name lol), where the game was held, sold out with over 16,000 fans attending the game.

The cameras took their time passing over the hotshot courtside fans: queer-icon Aubrey Plaza, wearing a BACKWARDS HAT, next to lesbian athlete power couple Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird. In a demonstration of her commitment to both the game and being a true diva, Aubrey was sporting an orthopedic boot, crutches, and a vodka soda while the commentator explained that her freshly torn ACL was the result of a rowdy game of Knockout played days prior. I’m sure watching Seattle Storm’s Jewel Lloyd inspired her to think playing Knockout was a good idea, just like me! Let’s pray my ACL stays intact though 🙈

The hype around this year’s game can only truly be attributed to the hard work and talent of the amazing players in the league. This weekend’s showdown of the veteran, heavy hitters of the Olympic “Team USA” versus the rising rookie stars of “Team All-Star WNBA” was one for the ages. Much of the drama surrounding this game stems from the discourse around the league’s recent rise to mainstream popularity. With many talking heads indicating flashy newcomers such as Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark as being the sole reason why the WNBA is taking off, there are older vets whose records alone resist that idea. For example, Diana Taurasi—who is 42 and joined the WNBA when she was 20—has been playing in the league almost as long as some of these rookies have been alive.) These long standing professional ballers want to cement their status as basketball legends (see: A’ja Wilson being the GOAT) and show the world that, even before all of these new eyes came to the league, high-quality, exciting basketball was always being played in the WNBA. Women weren’t “worse” at basketball; the world wasn’t ready to take seriously the notion that women could kick ass!

Now the world has caught up, and people are finally watching as we approach the global sporting stage known as the Olympics. By being selected as members of the USA Women’s Basketball team, these players have essentially been deemed by the WNBA gods (i.e., their general mangers, let’s be real) as the best women’s basketball players in the world. So, you tell me: what outcome would you expect from a game between Paris Olympians and the ones who didn’t make the cut? I’m guessing you feel like they ought to defend that title and put these rookies in their place…

The “Team All Star WNBA” had a different chip on their shoulder going into the game. Many of these All-Star players were covertly pissed off about being snubbed for the Olympic roster and, as a result, are desperately seeking to prove their worth and validate their status in the league. Maybe we’re watching just because we love the sport. But sprinkling in some petty beef only makes it a better game!

Rookies such as Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark have shattered records in rebounds, assists, and points per game, which boosts game attendance and creates audience pressure to continue to perform at this rate of exceptionally high performance. And other, more seasoned players like Allisha Gray and Nneka Ogwumike have been known in the WNBA for being fantastic but are not recognized by the media frenzy currently dominating the WNBA.

So what happened?

At my viewing party, all bets (including myself) were on the highly experienced and decorated Olympic team. Only one person (out of 6 total) bet on “Team All-Star WNBA”, and I would argue they did that solely to be a contrarian! We bet on the point differential of each team, with those pro-Olympic team betting that they would win with anywhere from a score of 88-75 or 101-94 against the “WNBA All-Stars”. The lone “All-Star” bet predicted the non-Olympians winning by a score of 98 to 88.

We also predicted who would be the MVP of the All-Star Game. This is a title given to the player who shined the brightest during this clash of WNBA final bosses. Most of us put our money on A’ja Wilson, who’s been having a killer season as one of the leading scorers and rebounders for the Las Vegas Aces. Some bet on Breanna Stewart, one of the reigning champs and 2023 season MVP from the New York Liberty. I personally voted for Sabrina Ionescu, of NY Liberty fame, who clearly you can tell I am a big fangirl of!

Whatever our expectations were leading into the game, we all ended up gagged and eating our words. It was as if the ladies of the underdog “Team All-Star WNBA” heard our doubts and said “hold my beer—”.

“Team All-Star WNBA” dominated the Olympic Women’s National Team, winning by a whopping score of 117-109. You could tell the energized rookies of “Team All-Star WNBA” had something big to prove on that court. The first half of the game started out as expected—the Olympic team lead in scoring and the All-Star Team fought hard to trail closely behind in points to the vets. However, after being invigorated by a halftime performance by the one and only Pitbull, the All-Stars found their rhythm in the third quarter and kicked gameplay into high gear. For the rest of the game, the Olympians simply couldn’t keep up with the speed and synchronicity of their opponents.

While prominent players like Stewart, Reese, Clark, and Wilson made positive contributions to the game, one of the biggest shockers was the show stopping All-Star Game MVP: Arike Ogunbowale. That girl was HOOPING! Arike plays for the Dallas Wings, who are currently 12/12 (i.e. the lowest ranked team) in the WNBA league standings. The All-Star weekend consists of various contests and exhibition games for players across the league—from 3 point contests, the 3x3 game, and the big 5x5 All-Star game. This weekend allows us to shine a light on really great players who might otherwise be overlooked due to their team’s lack of popularity. People only started obsessing over the Indiana Fever, historically one of the league’s WORST teams, when Caitlin Clark became a breakout star. Now fellow players like Aliyah Boston, Kelsey Mitchell, and the messy, yet loveable Nalyssa Smith have eyes on them like never before. Hopefully, Arike’s jaw dropping performance this weekend, where she scored a record of 34 points (8 of those points being back-to-back 3 pointers) will cause a media firestorm that catapults her to the celebrity status she deserves.

Ultimately, there were no real losers when it came to this weekend’s game. The USA Women’s Olympic Team will no doubt dominate the other countries and most likely win gold in Paris. This game was just a fun matchup to stir interest, promote competition, and also celebrate the hard work of the players who put so much into this league. Much like the All-Star team was the longshot to win the big game, the WNBA has become the latest dark horse of modern sports discourse and pop culture. This is because women's basketball has long been considered “unserious”, especially in comparison to the flashy world of Lebron and Butler. A growing interest and investment in the WNBA has brought this fun, energized culture into the spotlight. And in the grand scheme of things, the WNBA is the ultimate underdog—fighting against the overwhelming gender inequality in professional sports. This win was an exciting, unexpected upset, and it gave all of these great players and their coaches a long-overdue moment in the sun.

If you want to watch the 2024 All Star Game or keep up to date with future WNBA games, I would recommend downloading the WNBA League pass to support our girls!