Chicago Sky veteran guard Allie Quigley has been named a WNBA All-Star for the second consecutive year.
For the first time ever, selections for the 15th WNBA All-Star Game were determined by votes from fans, players, coaches and media. The list of 22 All-Stars was revealed Tuesday evening on ESPN’s SportsCenter.
“My initial reaction when finding out was [honestly] shocked,” Quigley said. “But after the shock wore off, just happy and excited that I’m going to be going to my second All-Star Game.”
Currently in her 10th WNBA season, Quigley is averaging 16.1 points per game in 30.7 minutes played. She sits fifth in the league in three-pointers made (43) and is averaging 42.4 percent from beyond the arc.
“Allie’s consistent investment in the continued development of her overall skill, strength, stamina, mental preparation, and strategy is what sets her apart as an All-Star athlete,” Sky general manager and head coach Amber Stocks said. “Both on and off the court, she represents the characteristics that all of us would appreciate in a teammate, a neighbor, or a role-model.”
A Joliet native, Quigley was drafted out of DePaul University in the second round of 2008 WNBA Draft by the Seattle Storm, before being waived by the team shortly after. From 2009 to 2011, the 5-foot-8 guard made short-lived appearances on the rosters of the Phoenix Mercury, Indiana Fever, San Antonio Stars (now the Las Vegas Aces), and the Seattle Storm once more, but never played more than 10 minutes per game in her first six WNBA seasons.
Quigley returned to her hometown to play for the Chicago Sky in 2013. Within two years, she was not only one of the team’s top performers, but making history within the league. In 2015, Quigley became the second player to be named the WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year in back-to-back years after helping lead the Sky to the second-best record in franchise history.
“Allie’s passion for the city of Chicago is just as intense as her passion for the game, and anyone who sits in the seats at Wintrust Arena and watches her play can not only see that, but can feel it as well,” Coach Stocks said. “She is a vocal leader willing to both give and receive constructive feedback. She’s relentless, she’s resilient, she’s focused, and she ties it all together with a genuine warmth and kindness that comes from an innate desire to not only consistently better herself but to have a positive impact on anyone she comes in contact with — fans, friends or teammates — in all ways she can.”
Nearly a decade after her professional basketball career first began, Quigley made her WNBA All-Star debut in 2017 at the age of 31. She walked away champion of the WNBA Three-Point Contest. The 2017 season was also her first as a full-time starter.
“Thinking back, I never dreamed that this would happen,” Quigley said at the time. “It just makes you think about the beginning, what used to be, and what is now. I’m very blessed.”
It’s Quigley’s unique and impressive career trajectory that also made her a candidate for the WNBA’s Most Improved Player Award.
“My most memorable moment from last year’s All-Star Game was just having my whole family there,” Quigley said. “My parents and siblings came and supported, Courtney [Vandersloot] was there, my teammate, so she was there in the audience, so it was cool to have that whole experience with all of them. It would have been so different had I been there by myself, but to share it with all of them, it was amazing.”
The 15th WNBA All-Star Game will take place on Saturday, July 28 at Target Center in Minneapolis. at Staples Center in Los Angeles. ABC will televise the game live at 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT.
Receiving the highest number of votes for the 2018 WNBA All-Star were Washington Mystics forward/guard Elena Delle Donne and Los Angeles Sparks forward/center Candace Parker, which earned each spots as respective team captains.
The brand new All-Star Game format replaces the traditional matchup between conferences. Delle Donne and Parker will select their teams from the pool of remaining All-Stars to form two 11-player rosters. Delle Donne will make the first pick, Parker will have the second, and two captains will then alternate until all players have been selected.
Rosters for Team Delle Donne and Team Parker will be revealed on Thursday, July 19 at the start of ESPN2’s telecast of a game between Washington and the Dallas Wings (8 p.m. ET tip-off). On Friday, July 27, the All-Star team captains and head coaches will meet to determine the starting lineups. The starters will be revealed that night on ESPN2 (7 p.m. ET) during a live telecast of the WNBA All-Star Welcome Reception in Minnesota. Seattle head coach Dan Hughes will lead Team Delle Donne, while Phoenix head coach Sandy Brondello will guide Team Parker.