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WNBA names All-Star Game captains: Caitlin Clark, Napheesa Collier to pick teams
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- WNBA names All-Star Game captains: Caitlin Clark, Napheesa Collier to pick teams
Caitlin Clark and Napheesa Collier are set to go head to head when the Indiana Fever take on the Minnesota Lynx in the 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup final on Tuesday, July 1. The 2025 WNBA All-Star Game will mark Round 2.
On Sunday, June 29, the WNBA announced that Clark and Collier will serve as captains of this year's All-Star Game after picking up their second and fifth career All-Star nods, respectively. Clark, the reigning Rookie of the Year, and Collier, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, earned the honor by receiving the most fan votes.
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With the title of captain comes responsibilities. Clark and Collier will be tasked with drafting their All-Star teams playground-style from a pool of eight starters and 12 reserves. The remaining eight starters — selected by fan votes (50%), current WNBA players (25%) and media members (25%) — will be announced on Monday, June 30, while the 12 All-Star reserves will be selected by the league's head coaches on July 6.
The WNBA All-Star Game draft will be broadcast on "WNBA Countdown Presented by Google" on July 8.
The Fever shared a social media video of WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert announcing the news to Clark and the Fever. "Caitlin, I just want to personally congratulate you on being named captain for the 2025 WNBA All-Star team," Engelbert said over the phone, which was held by Fever head coach Stephanie White. Clark's teammates cheered and applauded. When Engelbert sent her best wishes for the upcoming 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup final , Clark candidly replied, "We about to get that dub Cathy."
Clark's availability for the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game will be something to monitor. Clark has missed a career-high seven games this season due to injury , including the Fever's last two games due to a left groin injury. Her status for the Fever's Commissioner's Cup championship game vs. the Lynx remains unclear.
The 2025 WNBA All-Star Game will be held on July 19 at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, home of the Fever, and could feature more Indiana stars. In the first returns of fan voting earlier this month, Fever center Aliyah Boston was ranked third, trailing Clark and Collier. Will Clark and Boston team up again? We'll have to wait and see.
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Clark is averaging 18.2 points and 8.9 assists per game, which marks a career-high.
Collier learned she was an 2025 All-Star captain by way of her three-year-old daughter Mila, who wore a shirt that read, "Mama, you're a All-Star." Collier's husband Alex Bazzell was also involved in the unveiling, saying he's "incredibly proud. She's earned it. We're excited about it and hopefully more and more to come."
Collier has led the Lynx to a league-best 13-2 record while averaging a league-high 24.5 points per game and 8.4 rebounds per game, the fourth-highest in the league. She's a frontrunner for the 2025 WNBA MVP award.
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Clark and Collier faced off against each other in the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game , where Clark and Team WNBA handed the U.S. women's national team a loss before they went to the 2024 Paris Olympics and won another gold medal . Collier was held scoreless in three minutes of work off the bench for Team USA, while Clark had four points (2-of-9 FG, 0-of-7 3PT) and 10 assists in 26 minutes of work.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Caitlin Clark, Napheesa Collier named WNBA All-Star Game captains
