Sparks Coach Weighs in on 'Ridiculous' Kelsey Plum All-Star Starter Snub
When the WNBA All-Star starters were announced a couple storylines stood out. One was that no member of the Atlanta Dream was named a starter, while another was the absence of Los Angeles Sparks star Kelsey Plum.
Plum is out injured, so the result is moot when it comes to her actually taking part in the exhibiition. But, her season up to this juncture has certainly been All-Star worthy. This is why her coach Lynne Roberts had some very strong words when discussing the snub with John W. Davis.
"It's ridiculous. It's ridiculous. It's become a social media popularity contest, not about who the most impactful players are. She's the best one-on-one player in the league, having an MVP season," Roberts said.
Roberts lamented the social media aspect further and called on the league to ensure a system where merit on the court is what is rewarded, before adding, "KP's about winning. She's about being great, being excellent, she'll take it in stride."
It Wasn't Just Popular Vote That Snubbed Plum
The breakdown of the voting for WNBA All-Star starters is 50% fan vote, 25% media vote, and 25% player vote. So while Roberts is correct that popularity clearly plays a role, half of the vote total does come from the media and player peers.
The latter is where Plum actually came up particularly short. Ballots could include four guards, and Plum finished 6th amongst fans and 5th amongst media. She was 12th however with the players.
That position is shockingly low considering her production and has generated a lot of discussion since Caitlin Clark also finished low with the players (11th). Clark and Plum are first and second in points generated in the WNBA.
Perhaps Plum's injury played a role in her overall placement, but the position here is she should have been top four across the board based on her season thus far.
Plum was second in the league in points per game before going down, and scoring at a super efficient clip. She is averaging 23.9 points on 52.7% shooting and 38.3% from deep. That's to go along with 6.4 assists, as she has made plays for her teammates as well.
It's tough to imagine the Sparks surviving during her injury absence, which speaks to the impact Roberts noted. And in looking where Plum ranked in contrast to the numbers she has put up, it's hard not to agree with the Sparks coach's "ridiculous" stance.
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Robin Lundberg is a media veteran and hoops head who has spent the bulk of his career with iconic brands like Sports Illustrated and ESPN. His insights have also been featured on platforms such as Fox and CNN and he can currently be heard hosting shows for Sirius XM and on his burgeoning YouTube show. And now he brings his basketball expertise to Women's Fastbreak on SI!
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