Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark is bound for the All-Star game after earning one of two captain slots for the game alongside Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier. The two will have a pretty great pool of players to choose from to form their own All-Star teams, as starters will include Breanna Stewart, Nneka Ogwumike, Paige Bueckers, and Allisha Gray, to name a few.
For each player voted on for the game, we get a glimpse into how their vote was weighed. Players, coaches, and media all get a vote in addition to fans for each year, and this season, players got brutally honest in their evaluation of Clark - amongst other seemingly higher-ranked players in the league.
Clark ranked 9th amongst players in All-Star voting (and they're not wrong)
Clark was ranked 9th in player voting, which on the surface, seems like a shot towards her. Clark is one of the most popular, if not the most popular, players in the WNBA right now. However, we cannot pretend like Clark hasn't also had some struggles in Year 2.
She's been turnover prone in addition to unavailable consistently due to injuries. Her shooting hasn't been stellar, and Indiana isn't atop the standings as a result. So, she was bound to get weighed down by these factors.
Another player with a seemingly low ranking is Los Angeles Sparks guard Kelsey Plum. She finished an abysmal 16th amongst players, despite putting up some ridiculously impressive numbers so far this season for the (losing) Sparks. Plum is averaging 20.6 points per game along with a career-high in assists (5.6) and steals (1.5), yet is ranked in the doldrums.
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While it's unfortunate for Fever fans to see Clark so low on players' rankings, when you see who they ranked higher than her, you may understand where they were coming from. Gray, a potential Most Improved Player candidate who has been lights out from three point range and extremely reliable for the Atlanta Dream this season, was ranked number one amongst players.
Sabrina Ionescu, who has become one of the New York Liberty's core stars, has been having a quietly improved year defensively and has stepped up amidst the loss of Jonquel Jones for an extended period of time, was ranked second. And, most importantly - the Liberty are still towards the top of the standings.
It seems like it has a ton to do with performance and not even so much tenure, as even Bueckers ranked higher than Clark. If that's the case, then it's understandable that players went a different direction with their votes.