The single most important story out of WNBA All-Star Friday Night is a rookie doing something no rookie has ever done, and that is a sentence worth reading twice.
WNBA Best Bets Today: The Fudd Floor Just Got Higher
Azzi Fudd, Dallas Wings guard, won the 2026 State Farm WNBA 3-Point Contest, posting 30 points in the final round to edge Portland Fire forward Bridget Carleton and become the first rookie in WNBA history to win the event. Thirty. In the final round. Dallas had to cool her down with water between rounds, which tells you everything about how hot she was running. The field included Moriah Jefferson, who finished with 18 points in her round, and Carleton, who got to the final and still could not match the rookie. Fudd did it with her UConn teammates in the building, her father Tim watching courtside, and the full weight of a historic milestone on her shoulders. She handled it.
For the board, this matters. Fudd's shooting range and confidence heading into the second half of the season are now on the record in the most public possible way. When Dallas comes back from the break, the Wings have a confirmed shooter at guard who just proved she performs in pressure situations in front of a national audience. That is a data point, not a vibe.
Team Washington Wins the Shooting Stars
Elena Delle Donne, Shakira Austin, and Jezelle "GG" Banks represented the past, present, and future of Washington basketball and they were not playing around. Team Washington posted 31 points in the championship round of the Kia WNBA Shooting Stars to take the title. Delle Donne and Austin led the scoring in the final. The WNBA framed it as past, present, and future in one lineup, and that framing is accurate. Banks is a name to know going forward.
For Washington specifically, the energy around this team at All-Star is genuinely good. They have the Sun coming in on Tuesday, July 28 at 7:30 PM ET, and a Shooting Stars trophy on the shelf heading into that stretch. Vibes are not points, but confidence is a real thing in a sport with thin margins.
What I'm Watching
The league resumes Tuesday, July 28, with a five-game night that includes some genuinely interesting matchups.
| Game | Time (ET) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Connecticut Sun @ Washington Mystics | 7:30 PM | Washington riding All-Star momentum |
| Toronto Tempo @ Minnesota Lynx | 8:00 PM | Lynx schedule worth tracking |
| Indiana Fever @ Seattle Storm | 9:30 PM | Fever road spot |
| Portland Fire @ Las Vegas Aces | 10:00 PM | Carleton and the Fire come off a strong All-Star showing |
| New York Liberty @ Los Angeles Sparks | 10:00 PM | Liberty road trip |
Nothing has cleared my number for any of those games yet. The All-Star break complicates the rhythm reads, rest and rust both exist in that window, and I want to see how the opening numbers land before committing to a side. The Washington game is the one I am most curious about given what just happened in Dallas this weekend. Delle Donne's presence and health status heading into that Connecticut matchup is the first thing I will be checking Tuesday morning.
Bridget Carleton and the Fire play the Aces on Tuesday as well. She got to the final of the 3-point contest and that is not nothing. Portland has been worth watching all season and the Aces are the Aces, but pace and shooting volume matchups sometimes produce live totals. Eyeing it.
The numbers for Tuesday are not on the board in any form I trust yet. That is the honest answer. All-Star break lines are soft in this league, markets are thin, and the books know the same things I know about who just had a great weekend in Dallas. Mind the gap like it owes you money on any number that opens wide.
