WNBA All-Star Game Draws Record Chicago Crowd as Caitlin Clark Returns

Caption: Caitlin Clark in 2025. Credit: John Mac, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

The United Center Filled for Women’s Basketball

The WNBA All-Star Game drew 19,783 fans to Chicago’s United Center, setting an attendance record for the event as the league celebrated its 30th season. The crowd came for a roster filled with established stars, emerging players and Caitlin Clark’s return to the All-Star stage.

Team Spoon defeated Team Coop 129-122 in a game built around offense rather than defense. The final score mattered less than the scale of the room: a building associated with Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls was packed for a women’s basketball exhibition.

Clark Returned With the Shots Fans Expected

Clark scored 17 points and made several deep three-pointers early in the game. Her return added one of the league’s most recognizable players to an event already designed as a showcase of personalities and styles.

The attendance record should not be credited to one player alone. The game included many of the WNBA’s leading stars and took place during a season of broader audience growth. Clark’s presence nevertheless gave the Chicago crowd a familiar center of attention.

Jonquel Jones Nearly Recorded a Triple-Double

Jonquel Jones finished with 22 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists to earn All-Star Game MVP honors. The performance made her the first player to combine a WNBA championship, Finals MVP, Commissioner’s Cup title and All-Star MVP.

Jones played while mourning a personal loss, adding a human dimension to a performance that could otherwise be reduced to a statistical line. Her control of the game helped Team Spoon withstand a 28-point performance from Kelsey Mitchell on the other side.

A 20-Year-Old Center Produced the Viral Moment

Seattle’s Dominique Malonga delivered one of the night’s clearest visual highlights when the 20-year-old threw down a dunk. Dunks remain rare enough in the WNBA that the play immediately separated itself from the game’s many three-pointers.

Malonga finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds. The moment gave the event something every All-Star game needs: a play that casual viewers can understand immediately without knowing the score, defensive coverage or season standings.

The League’s Audience Is Still Growing

The record crowd arrived as WNBA television viewership continued to rise. Sports Business Journal reported that average game audiences were up year over year at the All-Star break, with tens of millions of people having watched at least part of a league game during the season.

New media partners, established stars and the continuing draw of players such as Clark have expanded the league’s reach. Attendance and viewership are different measures, but both indicate that the WNBA is attracting audiences beyond its previous core.

The Record Belonged to the Whole Event

Clark’s return made the game easier to market, Jones delivered the most complete performance and Malonga supplied its most replayed play. The record crowd came to see all of those things together.

That is the larger significance of 19,783 fans in the United Center. The WNBA no longer needs every major event to rest on a single storyline. Its stars can share the stage, and the building can still be full.

References: AP News | Sports Business Journal