The days are longer, and the games are chippier. The midseason mark of the WNBA season must be near.
The 2026 All-Star Game will take place at the United Center in Chicago on July 25 (8:30 p.m. ET, ABC), but first, the players competing will need to be determined. The media All-Star ballot allows voters to select up to four guards and up to six frontcourt players (forwards and centers). Players listed on their team roster as guard-forward are counted as guards, while those with the identities switched are available as forwards. There is no consideration for conference affiliation.
The 10 starters are determined by a combination of fan (50%), player (25%) and media (25%) votes. The fan voting closes on Saturday. Indiana Fever teammates Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston moved up to lead the second fan returns released on Wednesday. Players also receive ballots they can fill out and submit.
Once all votes from the three voting groups are tallied, players are ranked by position within each of the groups. A player’s final score is tabulated by averaging the weighted rank from fan, player and media votes. The top four vote earners in the guard category and the six in the frontcourt will be named the 10 All-Star starters. The league’s head coaches will then select the 12 reserves by voting for three guards, five frontcourt players and four players at large, but cannot vote for anyone on their own team.
It was difficult to cut down the guard list to a mere four. In fact, I would have liked to swap out two more guards to replace two frontcourt players as that side of the ballot became trickier to fill. Then again, I would have had an overabundance of point guards.
Without further ado, my 2026 All-Star voting ballot:
Guards
Olivia Miles, Minnesota Lynx
The Minnesota Lynx rookie was one of the few early locks on my ballot. She’s making everything look effortless, leading the Lynx to the top of the table while Napheesa Collier has yet to log a minute of action. Her numbers are so gaudy, she’s in early MVP consideration.
Miles could become the third player to average at least 18 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game. Candace Parker averaged 19.4 points, 10.1 rebounds and 6.3 assists in 2015. She had 1.9 steals and 1.8 blocks per game. Caitlin Clark put up averages of 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 8.4 assists in 2024. She entered the weekend tied for second in win shares (3.2), per Her Hoop Stats.
Caitlin Clark, Indiana Fever
The most impressive numbers amid another All-Star worthy season by Clark relate to her efficiency. She’s shooting 43% overall, significantly better than a year ago and slightly better than her rookie year, and is 34.4% from the perimeter. The third-year point guard is more efficient from 5-10 feet, a result of an emphasis to find the paint and kick out if — or more like when — she draws in multiple defenders.
Clark ranks fifth in scoring, which is currently a career-best, and second in assists, the third consecutive year she could finish top-two. She does all of this with a second-highest 31.6% usage rate and facing the toughest, most physical defensive pressure every night.
Marina Mabrey, Toronto Tempo
Mabrey was on my not-short-enough list, and then she went off for 53 points to tie the WNBA scoring record in Toronto’s 125-94 blowout of Los Angeles on Thursday. Timing works in her favor here, helping bump her into a checkmark on the All-Star ballot.
Mabrey is averaging a fourth-best 21.2 points per game that comfortably sits as a career-high, alongside top marks in field goal percentage (45.9) and 3-point percentage (4.3) She hit nine 3s in that win over the Sparks, tying the WNBA record she also matched two games prior.
In the last three games, she scored 113 points, shooting 56.5% and going 21-of-38 from 3-point range. Her 3.6 3-pointers per game average leads the league. The eighth-year veteran scored at least 20 points in nine of 18 games, and scored at least 30 in three of them.
Rhyne Howard, Atlanta Dream
It was going to be either Allisha Gray or Rhyne Howard as an All-Star Dream starter. They’re averaging about the same offensive output for the third-place Atlanta squad. It’s Howard’s two-way play, slightly elevated stat line and career-best clip from 3-point range that put her in the spot.
Howard is 37.9% on shot attempts beyond the perimeter and ranks second in 3s made (3.3). Deeper down a well-rounded stat line, she’s averaging a league-best 2.6 steals per game. She had never before eclipsed 2. Only teammate Jordin Canada (2.1) is close to her average.
Missed the cut: It was difficult to leave off Sparks guard Kelsey Plum, whose 23.9 points per game are second in the league. Her 52.7 field goal percentage is not only the best of her career by nearly five percentage points, but an impressive mark given the number of 3s she attempts. Ultimately, the Sparks’ standing kept her off. It was even more groan-inducing to leave off second-year Wings point guard Paige Bueckers, another efficiently producing perimeter threat with a well-rounded stat line on a contending team.
Forwards
A’ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces
A’ja Wilson and All-Star/award ballots are synonymous at this point. The seven-time All-Star is averaging 25.1 points per game, the second-most of her career, and on track to lead the league for the third consecutive season.
She’s more comfortable from the perimeter, a dangerous prospect for opponents while she shoots 42.5% on a career-high 1 make per game (on 2.4 attempts). She’s the key to everything the second-place Aces do with a 32.8% usage rate. It leads the league and it would be the fourth consecutive time she finishes top-two. She could also lead the league in blocks (1.9) for a fifth straight year.
Breanna Stewart, New York Liberty
Stewart is still one of the most versatile, do-it-all players in the league and the fulcrum for a Liberty squad that overfloweth with talent. The 10-year veteran and seven-time All-Star is ninth in scoring (19.4), fifth in rebounding (8.8) and ninth in blocks (1.4).
The 3-point shot continues to be a glaring red flag for a third consecutive season; she’s averaging fewer than one make per game on 3 attempts. Last week, she said she asked to be fined every time she misses in a quest to see improvement. That would be nice, but even without the success we’re used to seeing from Stewart, she’s still one of the league’s best players and an easy All-Star selection.
Jessica Shepard, Dallas Wings
The Wings signed both co-Defensive Player of the Year Alanna Smith and reserve forward Jessica Shepard from the 2025 league-leading Lynx squad. It’s Shepard who is putting up massive numbers as a key asset to this up-and-coming Wings team. She should be a first-time All-Star here in her sixth season.
The 6-4 forward is averaging a league-best assist-to-turnover ratio among forwards (3.41) and is tied for second in win shares (3.2), per Her Hoop Stats.
Natasha Howard, Minnesota Lynx
Howard slotted into Minnesota head coach Cheryl Reeve’s system well with numbers to show for it. The 13-year veteran is second in net rating among forwards (18.6) and a 63.9 true shooting percentage is near the top. It leads the way among forwards with the highest usage numbers.
She is fifth in win shares (3.0) and third in steals (1.8). She has not made an All-Star appearance since 2022, when she played alongside Sabrina Ionescu on the pre-superteam New York Liberty. It would be her third All-Star appearance, and on the heels of winning the Commissioner’s Cup MVP honor last year with Indiana.
Aliyah Boston, Indiana Fever
Much of Clark’s success is because of Boston in the post, and vice versa. The fourth-year center looks increasingly comfortable playing a two-woman game with Clark, as well as hitting shots from the perimeter, and still asserts her dominance in the paint. She’s also becoming one of the league’s best defenders, a stronger skillset first broached in Unrivaled.
Boston has yet to miss out on an All-Star nod in her WNBA career. She’s averaging a career-best 17 points per game, despite playing fewer minutes; her 25 points per 40 minutes is 10th in the WNBA, and more than five points higher than last season. She’s top-10 in rebounding and top-15 in blocks.
Jonquel Jones, New York Liberty
Jones is often overlooked, a downside of joining a talent-heavy squad. She also goes about her business with an even-keel approach that borders more on consistent than splashy. She is the guiding engine in New York.
The 10-year veteran center is averaging numbers similar to the other frontcourt players on this ballot, and eerily similar to frontcourt mate Stewart, with better efficiency from the field. She’s one of the team’s most dangerous outside threats, shooting 39.3% on nearly five attempts per game. Should Jones be named an All-Star for a sixth time, she should absolutely be in the 3-point challenge again. Her 2.7 win share trails Shepard, Howard and Stewart.
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