PHOENIX, AZ (July 19,2024) — Atlanta Dream guard and two-time WNBA All-Star Allisha Gray became the first player in WNBA history to win both the WNBA Kia Skills Challenge and Starry 3-Point Contest at WNBA All-Star weekend.
“The competitor in me wanted [Jonquel Jones] to miss of course,” Gray told ESPN after her victory in the 3-Point Contest. “But the person in me, I like to see other people be successful as well, so with her winning I’d still be just as happy.” The guard also becomes the first Dream player to win a WNBA All-Star event in franchise history.
Gray first participated against Sophie Cunningham, Brittney Griner, Marina Mabrey and Kelsey Mitchell in the Kia Skills Challenge. Gray and Cunningham advanced to the final round after finishing the first round with a time of 31.2 and 35.5 seconds, respectively. Gray, winning with a time of 32.1 seconds, beat out Cunningham’s time of 34.5 seconds in the final round to become the 2024 champion.
“I started so fast, so it gave me a little padding on the end,” Gray told ESPN. “It was all a part of the strategy, because I knew the second time around I would be a little fatigued from the shots, so I had to make my passes accurate.”
Soon after, Gray took on Stefanie Dolson, Jonquel Jones, Marina Mabrey and Kayla McBride in the STARRY® 3-Point Contest. Gray opened the first round with a score of 23, going 3-for-5 from the money ball rack. Jones finished with a score of 26, and both advanced to the final round. Gray went first in the final round, where she went 3-for-5 again from the money ball rack to finish with a final score of 22. Jones fell just one shot short of Gray with a score of 21.
Dream teammate Rhyne Howard was also in the spotlight with the 3×3 showcase. Howard was dominant in Team USA’s win, scoring 12 of the group’s 19 points. Team USA was victorious in the exhibition match, winning 19-16.
“Shooter’s shoot,” Howard told ESPN after the match. “So that’s never going to go away, but just being able to come back from an injury like I have, it says something about my work ethic.”
Gray will take center court tomorrow for Team WNBA as they take on Team USA in the AT&T 2024 All-Star game at Footprint Center.
