Alyssa Thomas, Elena Delle Donne and Napheesa Collier headline the 12 reserves who will compete at the 2023 WNBA All-Star Game. The reserves were announced on Saturday following a vote by WNBA head coaches. They will join the 10 All-Star starters — voted on by fans, media, and players — who were revealed last week.

2023 WNBA All-Star Game Reserves

  • DeWanna Bonner (Connecticut Sun)
  • Napheesa Collier (Minnesota Lynx)
  • Kahleah Copper (Chicago Sky)
  • Elena Delle Donne (Washington Mystics)
  • Allisha Gray (Atlanta Dream)
  • Sabrina Ionescu (New York Liberty)
  • Ezi Magbegor (Seattle Storm)
  • Kelsey Mitchell (Indiana Fever)
  • Cheyenne Parker (Atlanta Dream)
  • Kelsey Plum (Las Vegas Aces)
  • Alyssa Thomas (Connecticut Sun)
  • Courtney Vandersloot (New York Liberty)

Five players will make their All-Star debut in 2023: Gray, Magbegor, Mitchell and Parker, plus starter Aliyah Boston.

Sabrina Ionescu will make her second All-Star appearance thanks to the coach vote after she was ranked 19th amongst guards by her fellow players.

Of the reserves, Elena Delle Donne boasts the most All-Star Selections (nine), while Brittney Griner leads all All-Stars with nine.

While much fan and media attention is spent on comparing starters vs. reserves, that division becomes much less important once the All-Star game tips off. Both starters and reserves earn the “All-Star” label, playing time is typically divided more evenly than regular games, and there’s nothing to keep a reserve from being named All-Star MVP. Erica Wheeler (2019) was the most recent reserve to accomplish the feat.

All-Star captains A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart will draft their teams during a special WNBA All-Star selection show on Saturday, July 8 (1 p.m. ET, ESPN). The WNBA All-Star Game will be played at Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday, July 15, with the game airing on ABC (5:30 p.m. PT/8:30 p.m. ET).

Also on Saturday, the WNBA confirmed that Las Vegas head coach Becky Hammon (14-1) and Connecticut Sun head coach Stephanie White (12-4) will serve as All-Star head coaches thanks to their records through June 30. Hammon will coach Team Wilson, while White will coach Team Stewart.

In her first game back at Climate Pledge Arena since leaving the Seattle Storm for the New York Liberty, Breanna Stewart dealt with a deluge of emotions.

“It was an emotional rollercoaster of a day for me,” Stewart said after the game, earning her a supportive pat on the back from Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello.

Competing with a black eye she picked up over the weekend, Stewart struggled in the first half of Tuesday night’s game, scoring eight points.

“In the first half, I was just floating. I don’t think I was really doing anything,” she said.

The two-time WNBA Finals MVP gave herself a halftime pep talk to help turn things around: “I was like, ‘C’mon, let’s get my s— together.”

Stewart went on to record 25 points and 11 rebounds in New York’s 86-78 win, handing her old team its third straight loss to start the season.

In doing so, Stewart became just the second WNBA player to record at least 25 points and 10 rebounds in a first game against a former team, according to ESPN Stats & Info. The other WNBA player to achieve the feat was Chamique Holdsclaw, who scored 27 points and 10 rebounds for the Los Angeles Sparks against the Washington Mystics in 2005.

Sabrina Ionescu added 20 points in the win, while Courtney Vandersloot contributed 11 assists.

For the Storm, Jewell Loyd recorded 26 points, while Ezi Magbegor added 12 and recorded a career-high 14 rebounds.

“So weird to play against Jewell. We really haven’t done it since college,” Stewart said of her former WNBA teammate. “We still had the competitors in us, but also very light-hearted. Like, at one point, I slapped her in the face, and it was like, you know, we were in practice. I wish her and Ezi and (Mercedes Russell) the rest of them nothing but success.”

Earlier this month, Stewart made some Storm fans a little salty when she told a packed crowd at Barclays Center that she “made the right decision” in choosing the Liberty. But the former Storm star received a warm welcome at Climate Pledge Arena. After the game, she also got a hug from retired teammate Sue Bird, who had a front row seat to Tuesday night’s game.

Stewart isn’t the only player on the Liberty facing down a former team this week. On Saturday, New York defeated Jonquel Jones’ old team, the Connecticut Sun. On Friday, New York will tip off against the Chicago Sky, Vandersloot’s former team.

“We were joking in the locker room about it being a revenge tour,” Ionescu said.

The Seattle Storm got their second win of the season Wednesday, taking down the Chicago Sky 74-71 behind a high-powered performance from Ezi Magbegor.

The 22-year-old Australian tied her career high of 21 points while adding six rebounds, four assists and two blocks in the win. It’s the second straight game in which she’s been a factor on offensive while filling in for an injured Mercedes Russell in the starting lineup.

“When Ezi is aggressive, everyone is able to play off of her,” said Breanna Stewart, who made her return from health and safety protocols Wednesday night. “Her taking on a bigger role and realizing that and embracing it is obviously going to help her continue to grow in her career.

“But also know, whatever Ezi wants to do she can do on the court and I’m going to read off of her and Sue (Bird) is going to read off of her and Jewell (Loyd) is going to read off of her because we know the type of player she is and can continue to be. When Ezi plays like she did tonight, it can only help our team.”

Stewart was the only other Storm player to score in double digits. She recorded 13 points, five rebounds and four steals in her first game back. Since she entered the WNBA’s health and safety protocols last week, she has been vocal about the COVID-19 risks created by the league’s travel policies.

But Wednesday night, the duo of Stewart and Magbegor was too much for the Sky to overcome, despite having four players score in double digits.

Azurá Stevens had 18 points to lead all Sky players, while Courtney Vandersloot added 11 points and 12 assists. Candace Parker and Emma Meesseman also had 11 points each. Seattle managed to hold Chicago to 6-for-17 shooting from 3-point range.

The Sky mounted a comeback in the fourth quarter, outscoring Seattle 22-16 to pull within three points of the lead. But a 3-point attempt by Allie Quigley bounced off the rim at the buzzer.

Ezi Magbegor is the WNBL’s Youth Player of the Year for 2021-22, marking her third time winning the award.

In her fourth WNBL season, Magbegor has contributed greatly for the WNBL’s Melbourne Boomers. Through 15 games, she’s averaged 16.1 points and 7.5 rebounds.

“As a club we are incredibly proud of Ezi’s continued growth as not only a star player, but also as a leader,” said Boomers GM Jake Keogh. “She is a very deserved winner of the youth player of the year, and we can’t wait to see her take her great form further into finals.”

The award is given to the most outstanding Australian basketball player under the age of 23. Magbegor last won the award in 2020.

She was also recognized for her Australian Olympic debut at the Tokyo Olympics last summer, averaging 12.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game for the Opals. She’s also a member of the WNBA’s Seattle Storm, with whom she won the 2020 WNBA Championship.

“I appreciate being considered for this award and I’m very grateful to receive it, especially knowing all the young talent that is in the WNBL,” Magbegor told WNBL Media. “Receiving this award is an honor, but the main focus now is continuing to help my team win the WNBL championship.”