Where every WNBA All-Star in history went to high school

By Thomas Frey Jul 14, 2023, 11:00am

A total of 35 states have produced a participant in the league's mid-season showcase.

With WNBA All-Star 2023 tipping Saturday in Las Vegas, we look back at where every player in the history of the mid-season classic went to high school.

The WNBA's inaugural season was 1997 and the first All-Star game took place in 1999 in front of more than 18,000 fans at Madison Square Garden.

Lisa Leslie was the MVP of that game and she is one of 13 total WNBA All-Stars to hail from California. Diana Taurasi, Sabrina Ionescu and Kelsey Plum are others from the Golden State.

Texas has produced the second-most All-Stars with 12, including Tamika Catchings, Sheryl Swoopes and Brittney Griner, who earned her ninth call to the game this season.



Aliyah Boston of the Indiana Fever will become the first rookie to start in the contest since 2014 and is second player to come from a Massachusetts high school. The other is Rebecca Lobo, a Hall of Famer who played in the first All-Star Game in 1999. Lobo will be one of the announcers for the 2023 game, which tips off at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Sabrina Ionescu was a star at Miramonte (Orinda, Calif.) before going to Oregon and becoming the top selection in the 2020 WNBA Draft. Ionescu was named to her second All-Star Game this season and is one of 13 players in the history of the game to come from California. (Photo: Greg Jungferman)
Sabrina Ionescu was a star at Miramonte (Orinda, Calif.) before going to Oregon and becoming the top selection in the 2020 WNBA Draft. Ionescu was named to her second All-Star Game this season and is one of 13 players in the history of the game to come from California. (Photo: Greg Jungferman)
California — 13
Jayne Appel, Carondelet (Concord)
Layshia Clarendon, Cajon (San Bernardino)
Cynthia Cooper, Locke (Los Angeles)
Chelsea Gray, St. Mary's (Stockton)
Charde Houston, San Diego
Sabrina Ionescu, Miramonte (Orinda)
Lisa Leslie, Morningside (Inglewood)
Kelsey Plum, La Jolla Country Day (La Jolla)
Brandy Reed, Balboa (San Francisco)
Danielle Robinson, Archbishop Mitty (San Jose)
Diana Taurasi, Don Lugo (Chino)
Tina Thompson, Morningside (Inglewood)
Adrian Williams-Strong, Clovis West (Fresno)

Texas — 12
Ariel Atkins, Duncanville
Kelsey Bone, Fort Bend Dulles (Sugar Land)
Tamika Catchings, Duncanville
Brittney Griner, Nimitz (Houston)
Lindsey Harding, Cy-Fair (Cypress)
Allison Hightower, Seguin (Arlington)
Nneka Ogwumike, Cy-Fair (Cypress)
Jia Perkins, Granbury
Plenette Pierson, Kingwood
Odyssey Sims, MacArthur (Irving)
Sheryl Swoopes, Brownfield
Teresa Weatherspoon, West Sabine (Pineland)

Florida — 9
Candice Dupree, Wharton (Tampa)
Marie Ferdinand-Harris, Edison (Miami)
Sylvia Fowles, Gulliver Prep (Miami, Fla.)
Tiffany Hayes, Winter Haven
Tari Phillips, Edgewater (Orlando)
Michelle Snow, Pensacola
Erica Wheeler, Parkway Academy (Miramar)
Riquna Williams, Pahokee
Shavonte Zellous, Jones (Orlando)

Georgia — 7
Diamond DeShields, Norcross
Allisha Gray, Washington County (Sandersville)
Dearica Hamby, Norcross
Taj McWilliams-Franklin, Josey (Augusta)
DeLisha Milton-Jones, Bradwell Institute (Hinesville)
Maya Moore, Collins Hill (Suwanee)
Courtney Williams, Charlton County (Folkston)

New York — 7
Nicky Anosike, St. Peter's Girls (Staten Island)
Sue Bird, Christ the King (Middle Village)
Stefanie Dolson, Minisink Valley (Slate Hill)
Chamique Holdsclaw, Christ the King (Middle Village)
Epiphanny Prince, Bergtraum (New York)
Breanna Stewart, Cicero-North Syracuse (Cicero)
Sue Wicks, Center Moriches

Illinois — 6
Yolanda Griffith, Carver (Chicago)
Jewell Loyd, Niles West (Skokie)
Candace Parker, Naperville Central (Naperville)
Cappie Pondexter, Chicago Marshall (Chicago)
Allie Quigley, Joliet Catholic (Joliet)
Tangela Smith, Chicago Washington (Chicago)



Louisiana — 6
Seimone Augustus, Capitol (Baton Rouge)
Alana Beard, Southwood (Shreveport)
Cheryl Ford, Summerfield
Vickie Johnson, Coushatta
Sheri Sam, Acadiana (Lafayette, La.)
Sophia Young, Evangel Christian Academy (Shreveport)

New Jersey — 6
Essence Carson, Eastside (Camden)
Tamecka Dixon, Linden
Adrienne Goodson, Bayonne
Asjha Jones, Piscataway
Crystal Langhorne, Willingboro
DeMya Walker, Rancocas Valley (Mt. Holly)

North Carolina — 6
Jessica Breland, Bertie (Windsor)
Angel McCoughtry, Patterson (Lenoir)
Chasity Melvin, Lakewood (Roseboro)
Wendy Palmer, Person (Roxboro)
Cheyenne Parker, Southwest Guilford (High Point)
Andrea Stinson, North Mecklenburg (Huntersville)

Indiana — 5
Alex Bentley, Ben Davis (Indianapolis)
Skylar Diggins-Smith, Washington
Katie Douglas, Perry Meridian (Indianapolis)
Ruth Riley, North Miami (Denver)
Jackie Young, Princeton

Maryland — 5

Rebekkah Brunson, Oxon Hill
Monique Currie, Bullis (Potomac)
Brionna Jones, Aberdeen
Jonquel Jones, Riverdale Baptist (Upper Marlboro)
Nikki Teasley, St. John's Catholic Prep (Buckeystown)

Pennsylvania — 5
Swin Cash, McKeesport
Kahleah Copper, Prep Charter (Philadelphia)
Kayla McBride, Villa Maria Academy (Erie)
Dawn Staley, Murrell Dobbins Vo-Tech (Philadelphia)
Alyssa Thomas, Central Dauphin (Harrisburg)

Virginia — 5
Kara Lawson, West Springfield (Springfield)
Sugar Rodgers, King's Fork (Suffolk)
Jasmine Thomas, Oakton (Vienna)
Kristi Toliver, Harrisonburg
Elizabeth Williams, Princess Anne (Virginia Beach)



Ohio — 4
Jantel Lavender, Cleveland Central Catholic (Cleveland)
Kelsey Mitchell, Princeton (Cincinnati)
Natasha Howard, Waite (Toledo)
Katie Smith, Logan

South Carolina — 4

Allison Feaster, Chester
Shannon Johnson, Hartsville
Ivory Latta, York
A'ja Wilson, Heathwood Hall Episcopal (Columbia)

Mississippi — 3

Ruthie Bolton, McLain
Jennifer Gillom, Lafayette (Oxford)
Tamika Whitmore, Tupelo

Missouri — 3

Danielle Adams, Lee's Summit
Napheesa Collier, Incarnate Word Academy (St. Louis)
Betty Lennox, Fort Osage (Independence)

Tennessee — 3
Rhyne Howard, Bradley Central (Cleveland)
Glory Johnson, Webb (Knoxville)
Nikki McCray, Collierville

Alabama — 2
DeWanna Bonner, Fairfield
Merlakia Jones, Carver Montgomery (Montgomery)

Connecticut — 2

Nykesha Sales, Bloomfield
Rita Williams, McMahon (Norwalk)

Delaware — 2
Elena Delle Donne, Ursuline Academy (Wilmington)
Betnijah Laney, Smyrna

Massachusetts — 2
Aliyah Boston, Worcester Academy (Worcester)
Rebecca Lobo, Southwick Regional (Southwick)

Michigan — 2
Tonya Edwards, Northwestern (Flint)
Deanna Nolan, Flint Northern (Flint)

Oregon — 2

Kara Braxton, Westview (Portland)
Soni Schimmel, Franklin (Portland)



Washington — 2
Briann January, Lewis & Clark (Spokane)
Courtney Vandersloot, Kentwood (Covington)

West Virginia — 2
Vicky Bullett, Martinsburg
Renee Montgomery, South Charleston

Wisconsin — 2
Anna DeForge, Niagara
Arike Ogunbowale, Divine Savior Holy Angels (Milwaukee)

Arizona — 1
Nicole Powell, Mountain Pointe (Phoenix)

Arkansas — 1
Shameka Christon, Hot Springs

District of Columbia — 1

Marissa Coleman, St. John's (Washington)

Kansas — 1

Jackie Stiles, Claflin

Kentucky — 1

Kym Hampton, Iroquois (Louisville)

Minnesota — 1
Lindsay Whalen, Hutchinson

South Dakota — 1

Becky Hammon, Stevens (Rapid City)



Utah — 1
Natalie Williams, Taylorsville