Dream's Allisha Gray Makes History, Wins WNBA Skills Challenge and 3-Point Shootout
Allisha Gray kicked off the WNBA All-Star Weekend by making history. The Atlanta Dream guard won the Skills Challenge and the 3-Point Shootout, becoming the first player in league history to take the top prize in both events in the same season.
Gray participated in both events on Friday and took home an additional $110,000 for winning both the Skills Challenge and 3-Point Shootout ($55,000 bonus for each event).
After winning the skills competition earlier in the day, Gray advanced to the final round of the 3-Point Shootout, where she faced off against New York Liberty forward Jonquel Jones. Gray finished the final round with 22 points.
Jones had 21 points and had a shot to tie but missed on the final attempt. Below is the moment when Gray won the shootout:
"That was very cool. Now I'm glad I accepted the call when they asked me to play in both of them," Gray said after winning both events. "Now I've got another $55K in my pocket, so I'm happy about that."
Gray followed up her Friday night performance with a solid outing in Saturday's WNBA All-Star Game. The veteran scored 16 points, grabbed three rebounds and dished out three assists for Team WNBA in a 117-109 win over Team USA.
Gray has been an All-Star selection each of the past two seasons. She was also named the WNBA Rookie of the Year in 2017.
This season, Gray is averaging 15.5 points, 41. rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. She's shooting 42.% from the floor and 36% from 3-point range.
Gray wasn't alone in her history-making performance over the weekend. Plenty of stars shined brightly in Phoenix during WNBA All-Star festivities.
Dallas Wings star Arike Ogunbowale dropped 34 points in Team WNBA's victory over Team USA, setting a new All-Star Game record. She scored all of her points in the second half and knocked down eight-of-13 shots from 3-point range. Ogunbowale also had six assists.
Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese finished the game with 12 points and 11 rebounds, becoming the first rookie to record a double-double in the WNBA All-Star Game. The league started playing the game in 1999.
Finally, Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark dished out 10 assists in Team WNBA's win, setting an All-Star game record for a rookie. She came up one assist short of tying Sue Bird's all-time record of 11 assists in an All-Star Game.
A lot of history was made of the weekend in Phoenix. Gray was a big part of it all.