Evaluating WNBA All-Star Rosters: A’ja Wilson, Caitlin Clark Team Up Against Paige Bueckers

Which WNBA All-Star team has the edge?

A’ja Wilson and Caitlin Clark will be on Team Spoon in the WNBA All-Star Game | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

WNBA legends Teresa Weatherspoon and Cynthia Cooper linked up to select the teams for the league’s All-Star Game, which will take place at the United Center in Chicago on July 25.

The two leading votegetters from the fan vote were assigned to one of the All-Star general managers each ahead of the draft. Paige Bueckers, who led the fan ballot, landed with Cooper while Caitlin Clark was assigned to Weatherspoon.

Cooper and Weatherspoon went back and forth to fill out their starting lineups and reserves from the predetermined group of All-Stars. It’s a stacked group highlighted by A’ja Wilson, Breanna Stewart, Kelsey Mitchell and rookie standout Olivia Miles. Jessica Shepard, Marina Mabrey and Dominique Malonga join Miles as first-time All-Stars, while young stars like Angel Reese, Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen also made the cut.

With any group of All-Stars comes a list of snubs on the outside looking in. This year, the biggest WNBA All-Star snubs were Alyssa Thomas, Brittney Sykes, Kahleah Copper and Veronica Burton. The 10 All-Star starters were determined by fan, media and player voting while the 12 reserves were selected by the league’s 15 head coaches, who were not permitted to vote for their own players.

With the pool of 22 All-Stars determined, Cooper and Weatherspoon selected their rosters in a draft show broadcast on ESPN on Wednesday. Here’s how it all went down:

2026 WNBA All-Star rosters

Paige Bueckers led the fan vote for the WNBA All-Star Game | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With Bueckers assigned to Cooper’s team as the top vote-getter and Clark on Weatherspoon’s squad, Weatherspoon got the first pick from the rest of the starters. She took Aces superstar and four-time MVP A’ja Wilson first before Cooper took two-time MVP Breanna Stewart with her first selection.

The draft order gave Cooper the first pick from the group of reserves. She took Dream star Angel Reese at the top of the reserve group, then Weatherspoon took Reese’s Atlanta teammates Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray as her first reserve picks.

Here’s a look at the full All-Star rosters for Team Spoon and Team Coop:

Pick	Team Spoon	Team Coop
1	Caitlin Clark (Indiana Fever)	Paige Bueckers (Dallas Wings)
2	A’ja Wilson (Las Vegas Aces)	Breanna Stewart (New York Liberty)
3	Olivia Miles (Minnesota Lynx)	Kelsey Mitchell (Indiana Fever)
4	Aliyah Boston (Indiana Fever)	Natasha Howard (Minnesota Lynx)
5	Jessica Shepard (Dallas Wings)	Gabby Williams (Golden State Valkyries)
6	Rhyne Howard (Atlanta Dream)	Angel Reese (Atlanta Dream)
7	Allisha Gray (Atlanta Dream)	Marina Mabrey (Toronto Tempo)
8	Jonquel Jones (New York Liberty)	Dominique Malonga (Seattle Storm)
9	Courtney Williams (Minnesota Lynx)	Kelsey Plum (Los Angeles Sparks)
10	Kiki Iriafen (Washington Mystics)	Jackie Young (Las Vegas Aces)
11	Nneka Ogwumike (Los Angeles Sparks)	Sonia Citron (Washington Mystics)

Does Team Spoon or Team Coop have the edge in the WNBA All-Star Game?

Gabby Williams is an All-Star starter as she leads the 17–7 Valkyries | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

At the top of the rosters, the matchup between Bueckers and Clark steals the show. The star guards each have top-seven marks in both scoring and assists across the WNBA. Clark’s squad is aided by Wilson, the league’s leading scorer this season at 25.5 points per game.

Team Spoon’s starting lineup is rounded out by Miles, Shepard and Aliyah Boston—Clark’s Fever teammate. Clark and Boston are a dynamic pick-and-roll duo each game. Now that you add Wilson to that duo, watch out. Miles is already one of the WNBA’s top players in her first season. She’s a top-10 scorer at 19.4 points per game as she’s helped lead the Lynx to a league-best 19–6 record all without Napheesa Collier. Clark and Miles are two of the most exciting playmakers across the league—watching them play next to each other will be undoubtedly fun. Shepard has been one of the best all-around players in the league this year, too, as she leads the league in triple-doubles with three.

Weatherspoon’s bench unit is stacked as well with Howard and Gray at the top. They bring the scoring punch while Iriafen, Jonquel Jones and Nneka Ogwumike add premier frontcourt depth. Miles’s Lynx teammate Courtney Williams is on the roster as well. She’s led Minnesota alongside Miles, Kayla McBride and Natasha Howard without Collier in the mix.

On the other side, Team Coop’s star power is equally strong. Bueckers will have Stewart, Howard, Kelsey Mitchell and Gabby Williams beside her in the starting five. The All-Star Game will put Indiana’s star guards against each other in Clark and Mitchell. Mitchell is the WNBA’s leading scorer besides Wilson, as she’s averaged a career-high 22.7 points per game. She’s done that while shooting a whopping 40.9% from three-point range, too.

The Valkyries are a true title threat in their second WNBA season, thanks largely to Williams’s standout season. She makes her second All-Star appearance in a row and her first with Golden State after she joined the franchise as a free agent this past offseason. With the Valkyries, she’s put up 15.0 points per game—a career-high mark by more than three points per game.

Team Coop’s bench unit has more scoring power compared to Team Spoon with Marina Mabrey, Jackie Young, Sonia Citron and Kelsey Plum. Plum has been out since June 21 with a leg injury. She was slated to miss four weeks, which puts her recovery timeline right up against the All-Star festivities in Chicago. It doesn’t make much sense for her to play unless she returns before the All-Star Game. That creates a potential opening for one of the snubs, which could bring even more scoring to Team Coop. In addition to the scoring, Reese and Malonga collectively are a defensive force behind the already elite frontcourt of Howard, Williams and Stewart.

Both rosters are extremely talented, and in an All-Star format, the game can go either way. On paper, however, Team Spoon gets the nod due to the superstar trio of Clark, Wilson and Miles. Bueckers, Mitchell and Stewart stack up nicely, but two of the league’s best facilitators next to the top scorer gives Weatherspoon’s squad a slight edge. Clark didn’t participate in the All-Star Game last year due to injury, which makes this year’s contest quite exciting. Fans will get to watch Clark play alongside Wilson and next to Miles in the backcourt, who’s in the midst of one of the greatest rookie seasons ever.

This year also marks the first All-Star Game where Bueckers and Clark will square off. Although it’s a lighthearted environment, the star guards will certainly play to win—hopefully exchanging deep threes in the process.

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