ESPN and ABC will provide multi-day coverage of the 2022 AT&T WNBA All-Star Weekend, July-9-10, live from Chicago as the reigning WNBA Champion Chicago Sky host this premier midseason event. ESPN will air the WNBA Skills Competition and MTN Dew 3-Point Contest from McCormick Place at 3 p.m. on Saturday, July 9, before ABC televises the 18th WNBA All-Star game from Wintrust Arena on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
ESPN’s lead WNBA commentator team of Ryan Ruocco, Rebecca Lobo and Holly Rowe will call the Skills Competition joined by top host/analyst LaChina Robinson. Rowe will report from the sidelines with the competitors while Robinson will have interviews inside the arena with spectators and special guests.
Ruocco, Lobo and Rowe will call Sunday’s All-Star Game while Robinson and Carolyn Peck anchor studio coverage and the halftime show inside Wintrust Arena.
Fan-voted captains for this year’s event are 2018 MVP Breanna Stewart (Seattle Storm) and 2020 MVP A’ja Wilson (Las Vegas Aces). WNBA legends Sue Bird (Storm) and Sylvia Fowles (Minnesota Lynx) will join Stewart and Wilson, respectively, as co-captains. Bird – a WNBA record 13-time All-Star playing in her 19th WNBA season – and Fowles – an eight-time All-Star playing in her 15th season – are both playing their final year in the league. Las Vegas head coach Becky Hammon will coach Team Wilson while Chicago Sky head coach James Wade will helm Team Stewart.
Both telecasts will feature unique player access elements, including mic’d up participants and in-game interviews. WNBA All-Star & Team Co-captain Wilson will be mic’d up during ESPN’s telecast of the MTN DEW® 3-Point Contest. Throughout ESPN’s coverage Wilson, part of the MTN DEW athlete roster, will provide commentary, insights & real time reactions to the most exciting moments of the event.
During Sunday’s telecast, ESPN will tell the story of Brittney Griner, whom the WNBA has named an Honorary All-Star for this year’s event. The eight-time All-Star and member of the Phoenix Mercury has been detained in Russia since February. ESPN senior writer T.J. Quinn reports.
ESPN Social
ESPN Social will cover the 2022 AT&T WNBA All-Star game with several on-site executions led by Britnee McCoy-Davis and Terrika Foster-Brasby, including original content for ESPN and espnW TikTok and IG Reels, as well as behind the scenes content of players and talent for all social platforms. Special custom images highlighting new All-Stars’ participation, All-Star MVP and more will be shared on various social media platforms as well.
WNBA Hoop Streams Presented by Google, hosted by Christine Williamson, will precede the All-Star game at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday. The digital pregame show is available on ESPN’s Twitter, Facebook and YouTube platforms, as well as the ESPN App.
ESPN Digital
ESPN.com women’s basketball reporters Alexa Philippou and Mechelle Voepel will provide live coverage, analysis and reaction on-site in Chicago. Before and after the All-Star break, ESPN.com will offer a full package of WNBA midseason analysis, including:
- WNBA into the next generation? Philippou forecasts which players might be future MVPs and more midseason picks and awards.
- ESPN.com staff, including Kevin Pelton, weigh in on the biggest surprises of the season, identify MVP front-runners and update predictions on which teams will meet in – and win – the WNBA Finals
- Top 25 players in the WNBA: The staff re-ranks the league’s best, updating the preseason list
- Voepel’s latest Power Rankings examine what all 12 teams must do to finish the season on a high note
ICYMI: Below are notable ESPN stories from the first half of the WNBA season:
- ESPN senior writer Katie Barnes’ ESPN Cover Story on reigning WNBA MVP Jonquel Jones
- Holly Rowe’s feature on Connecticut Sun head coach Curt Miller, the only openly gay male coach in pro basketball
- Rowe’s Outside the Lines feature “The Comeback” on Phoenix Mercury player Diamond Deshields
- ESPN’s “White Mamba” tribute to Diana Taurasi on her 40th birthday, voiced by Vanessa Bryant, wife of the late Kobe Bryant
- ESPN.com’s special data visualization story (written by Voepel) on how Sue Bird, Sylvia Fowles and Taurasi have rewritten WNBA record books
- ESPN special correspondent Angela Rye on Brittney Griner
- DETAIL: Sabrina Inoescu Breaking Down Diana Taurasi
ESPN and ABC will provide multi-day coverage of the 2022 AT&T WNBA All-Star Weekend, July-9-10, live from Chicago as the reigning WNBA Champion Chicago Sky host this premier midseason event. ESPN will air the WNBA Skills Competition and MTN Dew 3-Point Contest from McCormick Place at 3 p.m. on Saturday, July 9, before ABC televises the 18th WNBA All-Star game from Wintrust Arena on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
ESPN’s lead WNBA commentator team of Ryan Ruocco, Rebecca Lobo and Holly Rowe will call the Skills Competition joined by top host/analyst LaChina Robinson. Rowe will report from the sidelines with the competitors while Robinson will have interviews inside the arena with spectators and special guests.
Ruocco, Lobo and Rowe will call Sunday’s All-Star Game while Robinson and Carolyn Peck anchor studio coverage and the halftime show inside Wintrust Arena.
Fan-voted captains for this year’s event are 2018 MVP Breanna Stewart (Seattle Storm) and 2020 MVP A’ja Wilson (Las Vegas Aces). WNBA legends Sue Bird (Storm) and Sylvia Fowles (Minnesota Lynx) will join Stewart and Wilson, respectively, as co-captains. Bird – a WNBA record 13-time All-Star playing in her 19th WNBA season – and Fowles – an eight-time All-Star playing in her 15th season – are both playing their final year in the league. Las Vegas head coach Becky Hammon will coach Team Wilson while Chicago Sky head coach James Wade will helm Team Stewart.
Both telecasts will feature unique player access elements, including mic’d up participants and in-game interviews. WNBA All-Star & Team Co-captain Wilson will be mic’d up during ESPN’s telecast of the MTN DEW® 3-Point Contest. Throughout ESPN’s coverage Wilson, part of the MTN DEW athlete roster, will provide commentary, insights & real time reactions to the most exciting moments of the event.
During Sunday’s telecast, ESPN will tell the story of Brittney Griner, whom the WNBA has named an Honorary All-Star for this year’s event. The eight-time All-Star and member of the Phoenix Mercury has been detained in Russia since February. ESPN senior writer T.J. Quinn reports.
ESPN Social
ESPN Social will cover the 2022 AT&T WNBA All-Star game with several on-site executions led by Britnee McCoy-Davis and Terrika Foster-Brasby, including original content for ESPN and espnW TikTok and IG Reels, as well as behind the scenes content of players and talent for all social platforms. Special custom images highlighting new All-Stars’ participation, All-Star MVP and more will be shared on various social media platforms as well.
WNBA Hoop Streams Presented by Google, hosted by Christine Williamson, will precede the All-Star game at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday. The digital pregame show is available on ESPN’s Twitter, Facebook and YouTube platforms, as well as the ESPN App.
ESPN Digital
ESPN.com women’s basketball reporters Alexa Philippou and Mechelle Voepel will provide live coverage, analysis and reaction on-site in Chicago. Before and after the All-Star break, ESPN.com will offer a full package of WNBA midseason analysis, including:
- WNBA into the next generation? Philippou forecasts which players might be future MVPs and more midseason picks and awards.
- ESPN.com staff, including Kevin Pelton, weigh in on the biggest surprises of the season, identify MVP front-runners and update predictions on which teams will meet in – and win – the WNBA Finals
- Top 25 players in the WNBA: The staff re-ranks the league’s best, updating the preseason list
- Voepel’s latest Power Rankings examine what all 12 teams must do to finish the season on a high note
ICYMI: Below are notable ESPN stories from the first half of the WNBA season:
- ESPN senior writer Katie Barnes’ ESPN Cover Story on reigning WNBA MVP Jonquel Jones
- Holly Rowe’s feature on Connecticut Sun head coach Curt Miller, the only openly gay male coach in pro basketball
- Rowe’s Outside the Lines feature “The Comeback” on Phoenix Mercury player Diamond Deshields
- ESPN’s “White Mamba” tribute to Diana Taurasi on her 40th birthday, voiced by Vanessa Bryant, wife of the late Kobe Bryant
- ESPN.com’s special data visualization story (written by Voepel) on how Sue Bird, Sylvia Fowles and Taurasi have rewritten WNBA record books
- ESPN special correspondent Angela Rye on Brittney Griner
- DETAIL: Sabrina Inoescu Breaking Down Diana Taurasi
