Phoenix officially announces 2024 WNBA All-Star Game: 3 things to watch for
When Mat Ishbia became the majority owner of the Phoenix Suns and Mercury in February, the top thing on his extensive list was to bring the WNBA All-Star Game to Phoenix in 2024.
With a short turnaround and a spirited group led by Suns/Mercury CEO Josh Bartelstein and Mercury President Vince Kozar, the Mercury secured the winning bid to make Ishbia's goal come true.
"As you can tell, we’ve done a lot of different things in (Ishbia’s) six months and my three months, but Mat has huge visions," Bartelstein said. "His view is that if you put a process in place to execute it, you’ll figure out a way to get it done. He was checking every single day to make sure we pulled it off.”
All the pomp that came during the official announcement held at Footprint Center, the home of next year’s event, provided a window for next year's high-profile event. From the team's mascot, Scorch, coming down the rafters with sparks flying to a reunion featuring cornerstone players Jennifer Gillom, Bridget Pettis and Tangela Smith, along with current players Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner. There was a lot to unpack for what could happen next year.
A potential farewell to Taurasi
When the two-day event begins on July 19 next year with the Skills Challenge, it will mark 10 years since the event was last held in Phoenix. Both Taurasi and Griner represented the Mercury in the game’s East vs. West format.
Taurasi will be on the final year of her two-year, $469,872 contract next season and said she hopes to honor that.
"It’s a big year, it’s an Olympic year, there’s a lot of things that once this season ends, I need to go back and think about. I’d like to be wearing a jersey so we’ll see what happens," Taurasi said.
What happens after that season will remain a mystery. The idea of the All-Star Game happening in the place where Taurasi has played her entire career seems like a fitting sendoff and Taurasi joked that if she's at the game, she'll do whatever is asked of her.
“If I’m here, I’ll do the skills, the 3-point contest, beer pong, whatever they want me to do," she said.
Olympic year could change format
What could make next year’s game even more important is the fact that it will be an Olympic year. The game’s date of July 20 is close to the Paris Olympics, which will open on July 26.
In 2021, when the Tokyo Olympics were held, the All-Star Game was played between the members of the U.S. national team and a group of WNBA All-Stars, who won 93-85.
At the WNBA All-Star Game last weekend, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert confirmed that there are talks between the league and USA Basketball regarding the format.
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Big things ahead for women's basketball in Phoenix
Despite a 4-15 record, the Mercury still draw the largest attendance figures in the league this season. Women's basketball has survived and thrived in Phoenix with the Mercury and NCAA women's basketball.
Phoenix will host the NCAA Final Four over the next few years with Footprint Center as the host site for the women's Final Four in 2026.
"We talk about this being the epicenter of basketball, we really do mean that," Kozar said. "The fans here get it. They get what this is about and part of the reason for that is the Mercury is an original franchise for this league. One of the things we talked about over the weekend was how do we bring in being an original team and all eight of those original teams and players from those teams to that weekend. That’s part of our legacy too. It’s part of celebrating Diana and the entire weekend.”
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: What could happen at the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game in Phoenix
