Phoenix Mercury head coach Vanessa Nygaard apologized on Friday for her comments about the All-Star game in which she said that it “will not be an All-Star Game because Diana Taurasi is not there.”

Her comments further raised eyebrows when Mercury star Skylar Diggins-Smith tweeted out a clown emoji – the latest in a series of heated exchanges between Diggins-Smith, Taurasi and Nygaard.

“Didn’t mean to take away from Sky or any of the other All-Stars,” Nygaard said on Friday. “Our team is super excited for Sky. I apologize if my comments took away from that. If it was the other way around, I would stick up for Sky as well.

“We’ve addressed it as a team and we’re moving forward.”

The comments about the All-Star game on Thursday had been a departure from prior comments made about Diggins-Smith’s selection. On Tuesday the guard was named as one of 12 reserves for the game, which will take place in Chicago.

Ahead of the Mercury’s win on Wednesday night, Nygaard had called Diggins-Smith’s All-Star selection a “tremendous accomplishment” and that she was “really, really happy for Skylar.”

“She’s been having a great year statistically across the board for us, and everything she does for us battling every single game, I’m really happy to see Skylar being named an All-Star,” she said. “It’s a great testament not just to her, but our team.”

Team Clark has youth on their side this weekend, with Mystics rookie Sonia Citron gearing up to hit Saturday's 2025 WNBA All-Star court alongside Washington teammate and fellow 2025 draft pick Kiki Iriafen.

"I was not expecting this at all," Citron told WNBA legend Lisa Leslie on Between the Lines last week, referencing her surprise All-Star call-up. "I'm still in shock. I don't really think it's hit me yet."

"We're young, we've got a bunch of shooters, a little bit of everything" she said of Team Clark's lineup.

Saturday's game isn't Citron's only assignment this weekend, with the All-Star debutant also set to compete in Friday's 3-Point Contest.

The Mystics are on the rise this year, exceeding season expectations behind first-year firepower to send three players in Citron, Iriafen, and Washington's scoring leader Brittney Sykes to the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game.

Citron is currently averaging five rebounds and 14 points per game — trailing only Sykes's 17 points per game on Washington's stat sheet. Her rookie campaign has her shooting 45% from the field and 36.5% from beyond the arc.

Fellow first-year Iriafen is also impressing, leading the Mystics with 8.5 rebounds per game as well as sinking nearly 12 points per game while shooting 46% from the field.

"[The rookies] have really played a key piece in our success this season with us being so young, but also them being so adaptable," second-year forward Aaliyah Edwards told Leslie in an earlier episode. "And they're runners for Rookie of the Year, so why not only have one when you can have two? I'm just loving it."

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How to attend a live taping of "Between the Lines"

Just Women's Sports is taking over Indianapolis with multi-faceted activations for the 2025 WNBA All-Star weekend — including a live recording of Between the Lines with Lisa Leslie.

Featuring interviews with Napheesa Collier (Minnesota Lynx), Rhyne Howard (Atlanta Dream), Kelsey Mitchell (Indiana Fever), and Lexie Hull (Indiana Fever), the exclusive podcast taping will occur at 110 S Pennsylvania Street at 3 PM ET on Saturday.

Even with Indiana Fever sharpshooter Caitlin Clark sidelined, Friday's 3-Point Contest and Skills Challenge will heat up the Indianapolis competition before Saturday's 2025 WNBA All-Star Game tips off.

Single-round record holder Sabrina Ionescu (New York Liberty) and reigning champion Allisha Gray (Atlanta Dream) headline the 3-Point Contest, with Kelsey Plum (LA Sparks), Sonia Citron (Washington Mystics), and Clark-replacement Lexie Hull (Indiana Fever) rounding out the bill beyond the arc.

Gray will also be on hand to defend her 2024 Skills Challenge title, with Natasha Cloud (New York Liberty), Skylar Diggins (Seattle Storm), Erica Wheeler (Seattle Storm), and Courtney Williams (Minnesota Lynx) looking to upend the Dream guard.

Players are shooting for more than just bragging rights in the Friday competitions, with Aflac boosting prize money for the second year in a row.

The insurance giant will award $60,000 to the 3-point Contest winner and $55,000 to the Skills Challenge champ, topping off the league's $2,575-per-player All-Star bonus check.

With big money on the line, both Gray and Ionescu are battling to become just the second WNBA player to win multiple 3-Point Contests, following in the footsteps of retired Sky guard and four-time event champion Allie Quigley.

How to watch the All-Star 3-Point Contest and Skills Challenge

The 2025 WNBA All-Star Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contest will take the Indianapolis court at 8 PM ET on Friday, with both competitions airing live on ESPN.

Team Collier is looking locked and loaded for Saturday's 2025 WNBA All-Star Game, with captain Napheesa Collier heading up a roster stocked with talent from the league-leading Minnesota lineup.

The Lynx star will start the game alongside 2023 MVP Breanna Stewart (New York Liberty), Allisha Gray (Atlanta Dream), Nneka Ogwumike (Seattle Storm), and rookie phenom Paige Bueckers (Dallas Wings).

Team Collier's bench showcases a balanced group of Courtney Williams (Minnesota Lynx), Skylar Diggins (Seattle Storm), Angel Reese (Chicago Sky), Alyssa Thomas (Phoenix Mercury), and Kelsey Plum (LA Sparks).

Kayla McBride (Minnesota Lynx) will also join the squad, replacing the injured Rhyne Howard (Atlanta Dream), boosting the team's Minnesota contingent to three players.

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Adding to the Lynx representatives is Minnesota manager Cheryl Reeve, who will serve as the squad's head coach following a first-of-its-kind draft-day swap between the Collier and fellow All-Star captain Caitlin Clark.

"I'm just glad people are understanding Phee's greatness," Reeve said about Collier before the 2025 WNBA All-Star weekend. "There's nothing else you can say at this point."

With a steady front and backcourt presence, Team Collier has experience on their side as they take on a youth-heavy Team Clark on Saturday.

How to watch Team Collier at the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game

Team Collier and Team Clark will square off in the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game in Indianapolis at 8:30 PM ET on Saturday.

Live coverage of the game will air on ABC.

Team Clark will tip off the 2025 WNBA All-Star weekend without its namesake captain, after superstar Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark announced she'll be sitting out of both the 3-Point Contest and the All-Star Game due to a lingering groin injury.

"I will still be at Gainbridge Fieldhouse for all the action and I'm looking forward to helping Sandy [Brondello] coach our team to a win," Clark said in a statement.

In lieu of Clark as well as the previously injured Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally, Team Clark added both Washington Mystics guard Brittney Sykes and Atlanta Dream forward Brionna Jones to Saturday's roster.

Meanwhile, Clark's fellow Fever guard Lexie Hull will take over her spot in Friday's 3-Point Contest.

The availability of another starter on the Indiana star's All-Star squad is currently up in the air, as a recent knock to the wrist has Las Vega Aces icon and reigning WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson's status listed as "to be determined."

As of Friday morning, there is no announcement for a replacement player should Wilson be unavailable on Saturday.

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Roster shifts won't distract Team Clark

Despite the roster shakeups, Team Clark still boasts serious talent.

Along with Wilson, assuming she is playing, Saturday's tip-off will feature Aliyah Boston (Indiana Fever) and Sabrina Ionescu (New York Liberty), with Brondello set to name the team's two additional starters.

Team Clark's deep pool of reserves include Kelsey Mitchell (Indiana Fever), Gabby Williams (Seattle Storm), Sonia Citron (Washington Mystics), Kiki Iriafen (Washington Mystics), Jackie Young (Las Vegas Aces), Kayla Thornton (Golden State Valkyries), as well as the aforementioned Sykes and Jones.

Liberty boss Brondello will lead Clark's side, with the 2024 WNBA champion coach anticipating a little intra-team strife back in New York.

"I'm going to trap [Ionescu]," Team Collier forward — and Liberty star — Breanna Stewart joked earlier this week. "Full-court press on Sab [Ionescu] in the All-Star Game."

Though injuries are taking their toll, it would be unwise to count out a roster as young and hungry as Team Clark this weekend.

How to watch Team Clark at the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game

Team Collier and Team Clark will square off in the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game in Indianapolis at 8:30 PM ET on Saturday.

Live coverage of the game will air on ABC.