Basketball On The Internet.

BOB'S BONUS: Our man-on-the-ground in the USA, BOB CRAVEN, has bounced in early with a wrap of the WNBA All Star game which last weekend featured the farewell appearances of two of the league's all-time great superstars but soon-to-be retirees, Sue Bird and Sylvia Fowles.

AFTER two decades of being at the forefront of all things WNBA, including the financial, cultural, social, and literal growth of a 26-year-old league that’s the most successful in women’s sports history, Sue Bird of the Seattle Storm and Sylvia Fowles of the Minnesota Lynx are passing the torch to the next generation of stars. 

The leading candidates to carry the league into the future were on display this past weekend in Chicago at the WNBA All-Star Game and related other events.

Bird and Fowles—who combine for 21 All-Star appearances and six WNBA titles—are retiring after this season, and their exits will represent a changing of the guard for a league that appears to be undergoing a renaissance of sorts with young stars-in-the-making. 

In addition to Bird and Fowles, veterans such as Diana Taurasi of the Phoenix Mercury, the league’s all-time leading scorer, and two-time MVP Candace Parker of the Chicago Sky, both may not return next season, and they are being peppered with questions about retirement.

But the league’s future appears in good hands with players such as Breanna Stewart of the Seattle Storm and A’Ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces. Both are already established stars and are poised to take over. 

Additionally, a number of younger players, such as Sabrina Ionescu of the New York Liberty, and Kelsie Plum of the Las Vegas Aces, are becoming recognised as stars-to-be in the near future.

As for the All-Star Game itself, the 36-year-old Fowles stole the show in her final All-Star Game appearance. 

While the younger players dashed around the court and made long-range jumpers in the typical mid-season spectacle where the only defence played is what NBA Hall of Famer Rick Barry called the “matador defence”, Fowles double-teamed Jackie Young, stole a pass and raced ahead of the rest for a breakaway dunk late in the second quarter.

Fowles’ last dunk in a game was in 2008. She also started the game with a three-pointer, a big surprise as she’s only tried one three-pointer in her career. 

The two team captains, Wilson and Stewart, chose up sides with Wilson’s team winning 134-112.

Plum scored 30 points, tying the All-Star Game record for most points scored, and was also voted MVP.  Perhaps the most poignant moment in the game was the start of the sceond half when every player came out of the locker room wearing #42 jerseys in honor of Brittney Griner.

In related All-Star Weekend activities, Sabrina Ionescu won the Skills Challenge, while home-town favorite Allie Quigley of the Chicago Sky won a record fourth Three-Point Contest title. 

Other related factoids included Chicago’s Candace Parker as being the richest WNBA player with a net worth of just shy of $USD6 million, and the top five most-popular player jersey sales:  In order, they are Sabrina Ionescu, Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, A’ja Wilson, and Breanna Stewart.