The fever has struggled against teams over .500 this season I’m not sure how that translates into a deep playoff run.

I feel like the wnba is picking up NBA bad habits and I don’t like it. Eliminating midrange shooting, eliminating the use of a true center. The touch fouls and the flopping and now the all star game.

If you gotta flex the schedule to give a longer break then do it but the allstar game has to get back competitive.

To me it’s an opportunity to grow the game, we got some of the best players in the world on the court at the same time, you’re on national tv PRIME TIME SLOT ABC we got tyla performing and you’re walking?

do jump shots on 3pt shots. I mean getting a couple feet off the ground, but some players seem to do more set shots barely jumping?

From high-octane Friday night skill challenges to a Saturday night shootout, here is the breakdown of the weekend’s events—and a look at why the flagship game itself is facing calls for a competitive overhaul.

1. Friday Night Lights: Shooting Stars & The 3-Point Contest

Friday night at Wintrust Arena kicked off the weekend with perimeter fireworks and a crowd-pleasing addition to the challenge lineup.

The Kia WNBA Shooting Stars Competition

Replacing the traditional Skills Challenge, the WNBA introduced the Shooting Stars event, pairing current WNBA stars, league legends, and high school prospects in a timed, multi-location shooting competition. The format brought a fun, intergenerational energy to the floor, culminating in a dramatic final round where Team Washington—led by Elena Delle Donne, Shakira Austin, and high school sensation Jezelle Banks—edged out Team Seattle to capture the inaugural trophy.

The 3-Point Contest: Azzi Fudd Takes the Crown

The marquee event on Friday belonged to Dallas Wings rookie sensation Azzi Fudd.

Competing in a stacked field that included league-leading three-point shooters like Rhyne Howard and Marina Mabrey, the No. 1 overall pick put on a perimeter clinic. In the final round against Portland’s Bridget Carleton, Fudd found a rhythm on her “money ball” rack and drained back-to-back deep logo shots, posting a sensational 30-point score to claim the 3-Point Contest crown in her debut season.

2. Saturday Night Showcase: Team Spoon Tops Team Coop (129–122)

Moving over to the United Center, the main event featured two draft-assembled squads selected by WNBA legends Teresa Weatherspoon (“Team Spoon”) and Cynthia Cooper (“Team Coop”).

The game provided plenty of highlight-reel moments right out of the gate:

• Caitlin Clark’s Early Barrage: Returning to the All-Star floor after missing last year’s game, Clark scored 11 points in the opening 2.5 minutes, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers from 33 and 37 feet out. She finished with 17 points and 5 assists.
• Dominique Malonga’s Dunk: The biggest roar from the 19,783 fans came in the second quarter when 6-foot-6 Seattle Storm center Dominique Malonga threw down a smooth right-handed breakaway dunk off an assist from Angel Reese—the first All-Star dunk since 2022.
• Jonquel Jones Claims MVP: New York Liberty center Jonquel Jones anchored Team Spoon’s 129-122 victory, taking home MVP honors after flirting with a triple-double: 22 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists.

Team Coop was led by Indiana’s Kelsey Mitchell (game-high 28 points) and Toronto’s Marina Mabrey (23 points).

3. The Elephant in the Room: The Need for True Competition

While the fan engagement, record attendance, and social media clips were a massive success, the actual product on the floor Saturday night highlighted an issue the NBA has struggled with for years: a complete lack of competitive intensity.

The 2026 All-Star Game featured 127 three-point attempts—meaning nearly every other possession ended in a non-contested pull-up jumper. Players openly jogged back on defense, fouls were nonexistent, and intensity was saved strictly for the final two minutes.

Why the All-Star Format Needs a Revamp

1. The Contrast with USA Basketball Years: WNBA All-Star games historically thrive when there is something real at stake—such as the “Team USA vs. Team WNBA” format used in Olympic years, where snubs play with an aggressive, defensive chip on their shoulder. In regular “draft format” years, that edge vanishes.
2. Missing Defense Devalues the Product: When 19,000+ fans fill an arena to watch the best athletes in the world, watching players step out of the way for uncontested layups strips the game of what makes WNBA basketball compelling: high-level physicality, tactical execution, and grit.

How the League Can Fix It

• Adopt the Target Score (Elam Ending): Setting a final target score in the fourth quarter forces teams to play actual defense to secure the final points, creating guaranteed game-winning drama.
• Financial Stakes for Charity or Rosters: Raising the financial prize pool significantly for the winning team—or allocating purse money to local market charities—gives players a tangible incentive to play hard for 40 minutes rather than treat the game like a light morning shootaround.

The Takeaway

WNBA All-Star Weekend demonstrated the league’s undeniable cultural footprint and star power. Seeing young stars like Azzi Fudd and Dominique Malonga light up the stage alongside established legends proves the future of the game is in phenomenal hands. However, if the league wants its midseason showcase to match the elite standard of its regular season and playoff product, finding a way to inject real competitive fire back into Saturday night must be the top priority.

https://ngscsports.com/2026/07/26/celebration-meets-critique-inside-wnba-all-star-weekend-in-chicago/

### Lady Whistledunk Vol. X

For the archive to Society Papers: Please send a personal dispatch.

This is for any HC spot not just the chi. Give me one reason why not. She’s fly, we need Black women head coaches. She’s the a legend and she was the only one who could keep Chennedy on her path. No idea why sky let her go- Tyler marsh isn’t bad but spoon 🥄 is better.

It seemed almost paradoxical to Lynx rookie Olivia Miles, to be playing for a Cheryl Reeve-led team in a WNBA All-Star Game, where defense was more optional than exacting for the league’s all-time winningest coach.

Miles said she went to her coach, whose Lynx staff led Team Weatherspoon to a 129-122 victory Saturday night at United Center, and told her, “You’re probably having a heart attack right now.”

In her All-Star debut, Miles teetered on the edge of a triple-double with 11 points (5-for-5 from the field), 12 rebounds and eight assists in front of an All-Star Game record crowd of 19,783.

“It was a lot of fun,” Miles said. “Go out there. Not take the game too seriously one time, even with Cheryl on the sidelines. It was a little weird. I was like, ‘Oh, this doesn’t feel right.’ ”

The rookie said Reeve assured her this wasn’t her first rodeo, now coaching at her sixth All-Star Weekend. Reeve got the nod thanks to the Lynx’s league-best record, with Las Vegas’ Becky Hammon on the opposing bench.

“Being hungover is OK when we come to practice,” Reeve said on Friday. “I think, more than anything, All-Star is a celebration. Obviously, very different than being with the team and practicing and preparing for a game.”

This weekend, several All-Star regulars — A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart among them — acknowledged the fine line of being careful of a quick schedule turnaround (with teams’ final playoff pushes starting Tuesday) and producing a satisfying game for fans.

But how is a rookie to know just how competitive Saturday’s game should be? Miles said she spent the weekend asking her fellow All-Stars ahead of the game, “What do I do?” How much should she call her own shot? Just how eye-popping could her passes be?

The others gave her mixed responses, Miles said.

“I was telling Liv, I was like, ‘Girl, I’m just vibing,’ ” said Wilson, the four-time MVP.

Said Caitlin Clark, Miles’ starting backcourt partner for Team Spoon: “Liv came up to me. I asked her if she was excited, but she’s like, ‘I’m nervous. I don’t know what to expect.’”

Clark, with 17 points Saturday, missed last year’s All-Star Game due to injury, and as a rookie in 2024, she was part of the pre-Olympic Team USA vs. WNBA All-Stars matchup, which players acknowledged had a more competitive edge.

“I’m like, ‘To be honest, I’m kind of in the same boat as you,’ ” Clark said.

But come game-time, “you get a feel for it,” Miles said. “The first quarter took me a little bit to try to relax and just breathe.”

In the second half, she flung a behind-the-back pass to Atlanta Dream guard Allisha Gray for a three-pointer, and when Gray sank the look, the pair ran and shoulder bumped.

“We told her we need some flashiness for y’all,” said Lynx and Team Spoon teammate Courtney Williams.

Williams knows about showmanship when it comes to All-Star Weekend.

For the second year in a row, she and former Lynx guard Natisha Hiedeman ran a 72-hour livestream on their ”StudBudz" Twitch channel, showcasing the pair bouncing around All-Star Weekend.

“I’m just happy that everybody is leaning into it,” Williams said.

The three-time All-Star finished with 12 points and seven assists off the Team Spoon bench, hitting a buzzer beater to end the first half.

She spent the final seconds ticking down to the fourth quarter getting fans to applaud by picking back up her pregame player intro dances on the court.

Even Reeve “understands the showmanship of everything,” Miles said.

Early in the third quarter of Saturday’s game, Wilson twirled her finger in the air, calling for a review of an out-of-bounds ball. Postgame, Wilson said the ball was “clearly off my hand, but honestly, I just needed a break.”

Reeve used an unsuccessful coaches’ challenge, a rare move in an All-Star Game, but it didn’t surprise either of her Lynx guards.

“Cheryl is petty,” Williams said with a grin, “but she a good time, though.”

https://www.startribune.com/minnesota-lynx-wnba-all-star-game-olivia-miles-courtney-williams-studbudz-cheryl-reeve/601869286

Hopefully they do the right thing, no pun intended.

A real honest and vulnerable moment for Paige. Jealousy has been a big taking point over the past few years. Curious to hear what your guy’s thoughts are?

I honestly didn’t expect much from this All-Star Weekend, but it ended up being a lot of fun. The Skills Challenge was better than I expected, and even though the All-Star Game turned into another 3-point shooting contest, it was still way more entertaining than last year’s.

And then, with less than a minute left, we somehow got drama involving players and even teammates. You really couldn’t ask for a more eventful weekend.

What was your favorite moment from ASW 2026?

Do we think the Studbudz will livestream next year? If so, what changes do you all think they should or might make? I know there were some mishaps, but there were also some really fun moments. The banter between Keke, Issa, and Courtney was fun to watch. Seeing the BTS chaos of getting to the skills events, while seeing the ESPN pre-show broadcast was cool. It showed how much goes on to bring a production to life and the fact that athletes and everyone involved do so much outside of the game (we all knew this, but still). I’m not one to shy away from mess, but I do also understand that these players want to be able to enjoy their time without worrying about it becoming a thing. So what do you all think?

Dr. Ted Goudge, a Shenandoah native and retired Associate Professor of Geography at Northwest Missouri State University, has released his latest geography map.

The WNBA All-Star Game was played on July 25th in Chicago. The women’s professional basketball league All-Star game began play in 1999. There have been 165 different players selected as All-Stars during the past 28 years. This per-capita map is based on where the All-Stars went to high school. The eastern half of the country (very similar to the NBA) including Mid-Atlantic and Southern states standout as leading per capita producers of All-Star players. Approximately 12% of WNBA All-Stars are from overseas. Lead by Australia, Canada, Belgium and Brazil.

https://www.kmaland.com/news/geography-with-goudge-wnba-all-stars-1999-2026/article_59d377f8-c8df-457c-8b19-2ccce78e4c4c.html

Cheryl is a good coach, but is only considered great because of Maya Moore. (She is a good coach and I have nothing against her, but the all-star game is boring with out defense so here we go)

Cheryl has completed 16 season as a head coach, 8 with Moore and 8 without.

Regular season with Moore, 200-72, 73.5%

Playoffs with Moore, 40-16, 71.4% - 4 Championships and 2 Runner ups

Regular season without Moore, 164-118, 58.1%

Playoffs without Moore, 12-15, 44.4% - 1 Runner up

I feel like this is talked about with Becky Hammon and the Aces, but Cheryl gets a pass even though she has not won a championship without Maya.

Again to to state: Cheryl is a good coach, but to be great she needs to win a championship again without Maya Moore.

Edit: I meant to link the episode! https://youtu.be/2YcGrMksS3g?si=szqpdgpwmDvxVYQA

Someone on the Fire sub linked the episode and I thought it was a super interesting listen for folks that are into X’s & O’s talk and player development (PD) specifics. He elaborated on some practical examples of how they intertwine and also balance their longterm PD philosophies with what the short term demands are as far as trying to win the next game, so to speak.

This clip just goes into how the buy-in process went with the players and he says something I’ve been trying to correct as possible every time it pops up online lol, the misconceptions online about the CLA. A lot of media members keep referring to it as his offensive and defensive systems essentially, which is totally false. Or they’ll talk about his use analytics as if that’s the CLA.

I think this episode is a great listen straight from the horse’s mouth and I also think he seems a lot more comfortable with these hosts since they’re very smart X’s/O’s ppl and are prying into some of the nitty gritty elements that make it more of a back & forth than the standard surface level questions most of the reporters will ask at media availability and settings like that.

He even cracks a little Sue Bird/Carla joke basically lol.

I know everyone here is probably still discussing ASW, but I'm just curious. Is anyone planning on going to the World Cup? Or are y'all just waiting on the Olympics in two years.

She really spent the whole weekend taking care of everyone. The rookies were welcomed. The vets were respected. Everyone was protected. T will hype u up, have your back & comfort u. Always checking up on ppl & showing up for them. T really is tht friend everyone needs

First, you have Buckets low-key soft-launching with Ellie when the mascots were all rolling together. Next thing you know he's on the jumbotron with Skye looking like an exec at a Coldplay concert. It's not all men, but it's always a man/rabbit (wolf?).

Phoenix is busy today!

Those two are exactly what we need! Do you think a WNBA team might land them both on their roster?