Only 85 of 180 WNBA Players Cast All-Star Votes as Ballot Delivery Problems Surface

Q: Why is Caitlin Clark an All-Star starter when her peers ranked her as the 11th-best guard?

Caitlin Clark is an All-Star starter because WNBA starters are not chosen by player vote alone. The league uses a weighted formula in which fans count for 50% of the result, while current players and media each count for 25%. Clark’s peer ranking was low — 11th among guards — but she finished second in fan voting and third in media voting. Those stronger results carried much more weight overall and gave her a weighted score of 4.5, which was enough to place her among the starting guards. The low player turnout also matters. Fewer than half of WNBA players, about 85 of 180, submitted ballots, and some teams had ballot-delivery problems, including the Sparks. That means the player portion reflected only a limited share of the league. Her on-court production also supports why fans and media rated her highly. Clark is averaging 21.2 points, 8.2 assists and 4 rebounds, with her assist average ranking near the top of the league. In other words, the final result reflects the league’s voting system: broad fan support and strong media backing outweighed a weak showing in player voting. The same pattern appeared elsewhere in the voting. Kelsey Plum ranked only 12th with players but much higher with fans and media, showing that large gaps between peer voting and the final outcome were not unique to Clark.

3 articles · Updated · ESPN · Jul 3

About 85 of the WNBA's roughly 180 players submitted ballots for All-Star starters, leaving player participation below 50% in a vote weighted at 25% of the final result.
Email distribution problems drove some of the shortfall: the Los Angeles Sparks said some players never received ballots or learned of them only after voting closed, and the team accepted responsibility.
That low turnout may have amplified familiar gaps between player, fan and media preferences, with Kelsey Plum ranking 12th among players but sixth with fans, while Caitlin Clark was 11th with players and top-three elsewhere.
The 10 starters were announced Thursday for the July 25 game in Chicago, and WNBA head coaches will pick the 12 reserves before Tuesday's announcement.