CHICAGO — From Candace Parker’s banked 4-pointer to, of course, Sylvia Fowles’ dunk, there were plenty of dazzling plays in the 2022 All-Star Game on Sunday.

Here are five things that stuck out from Team Wilson’s 134-112 victory over Team Stewart and the All-Star Weekend festivities as a whole.

Allie Quigley’s 3-point dominance

After Allie Quigley won her fourth 3-point shooting contest on Saturday — becoming the first WNBA or NBA player to do so — Parker said the competition should be renamed the “Allie Quigley Invitational.” She was right.

All-Star weekend results should generally be taken with a grain of salt. The competitions are supposed to be fun, and players usually take it easy on defense so as not to risk injuries (although A’ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum did not adhere to that when doubling Aces teammate Jackie Young on Sunday), but the 3-point contest is different.

Fatigue plays a factor when going through five racks of five balls, plus two DEW ZONE balls, in just 70 seconds. Plus, the winner has to complete the feat twice. Even the best of shooters have off days, and the chances of that happening in a 3-point contest when the circumstances are unfamiliar is pretty high.

When faced with all of those factors, Quigley’s continued dominance shows just how elite her shooting skills are.

LIGHTS. OUT.@alliequigley BECOMES THE FIRST FOUR-TIME 3-PT CONTEST CHAMPION IN WNBA OR NBA HISTORY‼#WNBAAllStar pic.twitter.com/Nfqy73ds0a

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) July 9, 2022

After saying she wouldn’t compete again after last season’s contest, Quigley insists she’s done for good this time. Winning one more in Chicago — where she plays for the Sky, and 35 miles from her suburban hometown of Joliet, Ill. — was the perfect way to cap her 3-point contest career.

“I’m 100 percent, 120 percent done,” she said with a smile. “This is it.”

Fans should have seen fun Skills Challenge format in person

The idea to pair Nike Nationals EYBL players with WNBA participants during Saturday’s All-Star events was genius. Not only does that level of exposure help promote the game to young athletes, but it also gives fans a glimpse of the future.

Sabrina Ionescu and NC State verbal commit Zoe Brooks put on a great show in the skills challenge, but they did so in McCormick Place, a convention center in downtown Chicago, as opposed to the Sky’s 10,387-seat home arena. So, why weren’t the contests open to the public?

WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said Wintrust Arena was already booked when the league chose Chicago as the host city, and that security concerns were also a factor. Chance the Rapper’s free concert on Saturday was similarly closed to fans after the recent wave of mass shootings, including in Highland Park, Ill., a suburb of Chicago.

“Even having an outdoor festival at this very crazy time, as you see shootings and people driving into restaurants with outdoor diners and things like that,” Engelbert said.

The commissioner added that she thought Saturday’s events were a “great show,” and she understands the frustration expressed by fans.

“Last year, we didn’t have it. The year before, we didn’t even have an All-Star Game, so we’re kind of just trying to build what All-Star Weekend will look like,” she said.

However the league plans to build the event next season, it has to be accessible to fans. The product was great, and more people should have seen it.

Sylvia Fowles shines in last All-Star Game

Kelsey Plum deservedly won MVP, but Fowles easily had the play of the game. With 4:12 left in the second quarter, the 14-year veteran stole the ball from Jackie Young and ran it all the way down to the other end, where she threw down a one-handed dunk. She also dunked in her first All-Star Game in 2009, so doing it at 36 years old in her last was pure poetry.

When she got the steal, Fowles said the crowd’s energy gave her enough of a boost to complete the play.

“I think I just heard the momentum of the crowd,” she said. “I probably heard a couple of benches and seen a couple of faces on the other team and I was like, just go for it. It was just in the moment. I didn’t really think about it.”

🔨 SYLVIA FOWLES 🔨

The steal and the SLAM in her final #WNBAAllStar Game! pic.twitter.com/U5xfickXsN

— WNBA (@WNBA) July 10, 2022

Fowles, who is set to retire at the end of the season after a storied 15-year career, also scored the contest’s first points on a designed play for a 3-pointer. In her career, Fowles has only attempted one other shot from long range, which she also made.

“They had been hyping me the whole time because it was the first shot of the game,” Fowles said. “But I mean, getting out of your comfort zone a little bit, having fun, I think that’s what’s most important about this weekend.”

Kelsey Plum came to play

In her first All-Star Game, Las Vegas Aces guard Plum took home the MVP trophy after scoring 30 points, which tied Maya Moore’s 2015 record.

For fellow guard Sue Bird, Plum’s performance was unsurprising. She was on a plane when captains A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart drafted their teams for the All-Star Game, but said she thought Plum should have been the first pick.

30 PTS and a flurry of triples 🔥

Kelsey Plum set an All-Star Game scoring record (30 PTS) on her way to winning her first #WNBAAllStar MVP award! pic.twitter.com/CH4I5FZVp8

— WNBA (@WNBA) July 10, 2022

“You just knew Plum was going to come in this game and be super hungry,” Bird said. “That’s just who she is. I think she’s in a great place physically, mentally and things are starting to click for her.

“I got to see this firsthand at the University of Washington. When she has her confidence, it’s really tough to stop her and that’s what you’re seeing right now — just a really confident player.”

Brittney Griner continues to be the focus of WNBA players

It’s been 140 long days since Brittney Griner was detained in Russia, and the WNBA continues to push for her return home as she stands trial on drug charges.

Skylar Diggins-Smith dedicated her pregame outfit to Griner, wearing a sweatshirt with her friend and teammate’s face printed on the front. Griner’s wife, Cherelle Griner, was courtside, and the players all wore Griner’s name on their jerseys.

This is for you BG.

✖️ @SkyDigg4 pic.twitter.com/dQHiqIkE3h

— Phoenix Mercury (@PhoenixMercury) July 10, 2022

Griner, who was named an honorary All-Star, remained on everyone’s mind all weekend.

“We are all in this fight together to bring her home,” Stewart said. “And I think that when you have, like Sue (Bird) said earlier, those strength in numbers, it makes a bigger splash and we get attention and we are getting people’s attention and we need to continue to ask President Biden and the White House to bring her home.”

Eden Laase is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @eden_laase.

Cameron Brink already has her rookie of the year pick for the upcoming WNBA season, and it’s Indiana-bound star Caitlin Clark. 

In the latest edition of Kelley on the Street, host Kelley O'Hara caught up with Brink in New York hours before the Stanford phenom went No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Sparks at the 2024 WNBA Draft. When O’Hara asked who would win the WNBA's rookie of the year, she answered without pause.

"Caitlin Clark," she said, while a fan commented that she thought Brink would take home the award. Brink later added that the extra foul granted to WNBA players will be "good for me."

"I hope it’s me," Charisma Osborne, who was later drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, said when asked her ROY prediction. "But, I don’t know — we’ll see."

Watch more of Kelley on the Street:

Maria Sanchez issued a statement on Thursday, confirming recent reports that she has requested a trade from the Houston Dash. 

In it, she revealed that the club has been aware of the request "since late March."

"This has all taken a toll and isn’t an easy thing to talk about, but I want to confirm that I’ve requested an immediate trade," she wrote. "My expectations and reasons have been clear. I trust that my current club’s management will honor my decision in a timely manner and proceed with accepting a trade."

"I’m eager to refocus and dive back into what I love most: playing football," she concluded.

Thank you, everyone, for the outpouring of kindness and support. pic.twitter.com/gcnN7dhCJU

— Maria Sanchez (@Maria17_7) April 19, 2024

Reports of Sanchez's trade request first surfaced on ESPN last week, and were later confirmed by multiple sources. 

In December of last year, Sanchez signed a three-year contract with the Dash valued at $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. It was the largest contract in NWSL history at the time — a figure that would be eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months. 

Sanchez spent the offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning that Houston could match any other team's offer to retain her rights. Should the Dash trade Sanchez, her current contract terms would remain intact, limiting potential buyers to teams able to afford to take on an inking of that size.

The Dash has yet to address the trade, instead reiterating to ESPN that Sanchez is "under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023." 

Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close tonight, April 19th, at 12 a.m. ET. The window will stay closed through the next 11 regular season games, reopening on August 1st, 2024.

The four-time league champion Seattle Storm unveiled their new practice facility on Thursday, with Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel dubbing Interbay's Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance the team’s "new home."

"It's just such a special space," Brummel told Fox 13 Seattle. "I think when the players get here, it's gonna be overwhelming."

The sprawling 50,000-square-foot, $64 million property is just the second designated practice facility to be designed and built expressly for a WNBA team, with the Storm further noting that 85% of all design and engineering team members involved in the project's construction were women and people of color. The finished product holds two professional indoor courts, two 3x3 outdoor courts, a state-of-the-art locker room, and players' lounge, plus designated areas for strength and conditioning, kitchen, dining, and nutrition, and recovery. 

"This facility reflects our commitment to providing our athletes an exceptional environment that supports their growth, health, and performance," said Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder in an official team release. "It’s built for women, by women, embodying our dedication to leading the way in professional women’s sports."

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For their part, the team can't wait to make the faciilty their own.

"It's amazing," Storm guard Jewell Loyd told Fox 13. "Not having to drive everywhere around, knowing you have access anytime of the day to get into the gym, to workout." 

Head coach Noelle Quinn said she predicts the team is "never going to leave this building."

"Which is a good thing for me," she continued. "You talk about having an edge in performance. We want our athletes to not only perform on the court, but get whatever they need."

All of the Storm's staff and operations will now live under one roof, and the team also has plans to launch a youth basketball program operating out of the building.

The Caitlin Clark effect is quickly making its mark on the big leagues, as WNBA host teams around the country rush to upgrade their Fever games to larger arenas in order to accommodate surging ticket sales.

With Clark mere weeks away from her Indiana Fever debut, both the Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have officially relocated their scheduled home games with head coach Christie Sides' squad. On Thursday, the Mystics became the latest to adjust their plans, moving their June 7th matchup from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Southwest DC to the more centrally located — and much larger — Capital One Arena "due to unprecedented demand."

The Mystics home court's capacity taps out at 4,200, while Capital One Arena — home to the Wizards, Capitals, and Georgetown Hoya's Men's Basketball — can fit nearly five times that crowd at some 20,000 spectators.

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"The move to Capital One Arena will allow for additional fans in the stands as well as premium hospitality options, including Suites and the all-new all-inclusive courtside Hennessy Lofts," the team announced via Thursday's press release.

The Aces were one of the first teams to switch venues, aiming to take on the Indiana Fever in front of as many as 20,000 fans inside T-Mobile Arena on July 2nd. That’s a sizable a boost from their home venue, which holds just 12,000.

For those still planning to face the Fever in their home arenas, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Previously scheduled construction has already forced the LA Sparks to relocate their first five games — including their May 24th clash with the Fever — to Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid. The temporary venue is quite the downsize, holding just 4,000 in comparison to Crypto.com Arena's near-19,000. As of Friday, the get-in price for that game started around $400.

Despite fans launching a Change.org petition urging relocation, the Chicago Sky say they're unable to move their June 23rd Fever meeting from Wintrust Arena's 10,000-seat facility to the 23,500-seat United Center due to a concert. Tickets for that game start around $325 as of Friday.