Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The 2026 WNBA All-Star starter predictions reveal a tight race, especially in the guard positions where fan votes will play a critical role.
- Several players are poised for their first All-Star appearance, showcasing breakout performances that have reshaped their teams' fortunes.
- The list also highlights notable snubs, with strong candidates narrowly missing out due to depth at their positions and competitive voting dynamics.
It might seem the 2026 WNBA season just began, but as of Thursday, voting is open for the 2026 All-Star Game. This year's All-Star Game roster will be interesting, as a couple of perrennial names — Napheesa Collier and Sabrina Ionescu — haven't played enough (or at all, in Collier's case) to make this year's roster.
So, what will the 2026 All-Star roster look like? Here's our best guess at the starters, first-time All-Stars and snubs for 2026.
All-Star Game starter predictions
Position | Players | Players |
|---|---|---|
G | Caitlin Clark | Paige Bueckers |
G | Olivia Miles | Allisha Gray |
F | Alyssa Thomas | Natasha Howard |
F | Breanna Stewart | Jessica Shepard |
F | A'ja Wilson | Aliyah Boston |
To me, the biggest question here is if Azzi Fudd gets enough fan votes to make the starting unit. I doubt she'd be selected by the coaches as a reserve, so her one shot is to run the fan vote — which accounts for 50 percent of the formula for determining starters — up by a big enough margin. As you can see from my projected list, I think she comes up just shy. The guard spots are just such a tight battle this year, and while Fudd will likely garner more votes than Olivia Miles from the fans, the coaches and players should give Miles the push she needs to make the All-Star starting lineup as a rookie.
Beyond the Fudd question, the four backcourt spots feel easy to predict. Clark and Bueckers will run up the fan vote high enough that they'll be shoo-ins to make the starting lineup and Miles deserves it based on her play, but Allisha Gray vs Kelsey Mitchell for the other spot will be interesting. Mitchell will almost certainly get a higher percentage of the fan vote, but the coaches and players should put Gray over the top.
As for the frontcourt, injuries for Collier, Satou Sabally and Brionna Jones make this a weird year. A'ja Wilson is a lock. Aliyah Boston, Breanna Stewart and Alyssa Thomas are virtual locks. The other two spots, though? This is where it'd be nice if Rhyne Howard had forward eligibility for voting purposes, because you're going to end up with six forwards who all work best at the four or five in the All-Star starting lineup. Jessica Shepard and Natasha Howard have both been very good players in 2026, though, and should have a great shot to earn a role as an All-Star starter.
First-time All-Star selections
Jessica Shepard, Dallas Wings
Jessica Shepard was not viewed as the biggest former Lynx forward to join the Wings this offseason. Alanna Smith was supposed to be the one who changed the game in Dallas. Instead, Smith has seen her minutes fall off tremendously as the season has gone along while Shepard has been one of the league's best players.
Dallas has let Shepard make a lot of decisions with the ball, and that's paid off. She's averaging 5.8 assists per game and just 1.3 turnovers, giving her the league's best assist-to-turnover ratio. She's scoring the ball efficiently — eighth in the WNBA in field goal percentage — and is averaging double-digit rebounds per game, with her 11.1 per contest ranking second in the league.
Olivia Miles, MInnesota Lynx
Barring an injury, it's hard to see how anyone catches up to Olivia Miles in the Rookie of the Year race. She's averaging 17.8 points, 6.3 assists, 5.2 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. Her turnovers are a bit higher than you might like, but she still has a strong argument for being the best point guard in the league so far this season.
Of all the projected first-time All-Stars, Miles is by far the most likely to just make this a yearly occurrence. The way she's adjusted this quickly to the league is almost unbelievable, and she might be even better once Naphessa Collier is back, because she'll have someone else to take some of the pressure off her shoulders.
Veronica Burton, Golden State Valkyries
Golden State's strong start to the season has mostly been a team effort, but someone is going to be rewarded for that with an All-Star berth. At the moment, Veronica Burton looks to be that player.
The fifth-year guard is averaging career highs in points while still maintaining essentially her same assist numbers from 2025 — down just a tad at the moment from 6.0 last season to 5.8 this season. She's been the Valkyries' best player, though she does continue to rank among the league's least-efficient scorers, even if she's shooting a career-best this season. (That career best is only 40 percent).
Top players who will be snubbed
Marina Mabrey, Toronto Tempo
Marina Mabrey deserves an All-Star nod, but there's just too many good guards this year. She'll likely wind up as the biggest snub, which is a real shame, because in her first real chance to be a team's best player, she's doing a great job.
Mabrey is averaging 17.9 points per game and is notably shooting 42.4 percent from the floor, which would be her best mark since 2020. Turnovers are an issue, but Toronto basically just needs Mabrey to make buckets, and that she's doing.
Shakira Austin, Washington Mystics
It's hard to see both Washington Mystics frontcourt players getting All-Star nods this year. So, who gets in between Shakra Austin and Kiki Iriafen?
Points Per Game | Rebounds Per Game | Blocks Per Game | |
|---|---|---|---|
Shakira Austin | 15.4 | 8.3 | 1.3 |
Kiki Iriafen | 14.6 | 8.9 | 0.4 |
It should be Austin, right? She has the edge in two of the three key stats that you'd expect will matter when choosing All-Star backups. So, why do I think Iriafen gets the nod instead?
IDK. This is kind of just a vibes thing. Iriafen plays a little more "exciting" of a game and also adds some versatility to the All-Star roster in a way Austin doesn't necessarily do. This could definitely go the other way and Iriafen is who gets left out, but regardless, it feels like the Mystics have two deserving frontcourt All-Star options and will only end up with one making it.
Carla Leite, Portland FIre
Carla Leite's WNBA journey has been interesting, as she's been drafted in expansion drafts in two consecutive seasons. It's safe to say, though, that the Portland Fire will be protecting her the next time there's one.
Leite won't make the All-Star roster because of the huge glut at guard, but she deserves mention here for her strong play. On paper, the Fire should be a disaster of a team, but Leite's scoring and ball-handling has been the biggest factor in keeping the team respectable, even if a playoff appearance is slipping farther and farther from their grasp.
Sonia Citron, Washington Mystics
Early in the season, I would have called Sonia Citron a lock to make the All-Star Game. She came out of the gates strong, scoring 26 points in a season-opening win against Toronto then, a week later, putting up 30 in a double-overtime win against Indiana.
But Citron's only scored 20 points once since then, cooling off just enough that she's now on the All-Star bubble. Unless Washington starts winning more basketball games, she's likely another victim of the numbers game in a season where guard play is at an all-time high.
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