Why Caitlin Clark declined NBA's 3-point contest invite at All-Star Weekend 2025
The Indiana Fever guard is enjoying her offseason out of the spotlight, and Clark is planning to compete in her first 3-point contest at WNBA All-Star Weekend in Indy next July.
Will the third time be the charm? It’s certainly looking that way for Caitlin Clark.
She declined to participate in the WNBA All-Star 3-point content last July in Phoenix and now she has officially passed on being involved at NBA All-Star Saturday night next month in San Francisco.
There had been cautious hope given to the idea of Clark taking the floor in The Bay Area. That idea evaporated Wednesday afternoon when her representatives at Excel Sports Management issued a statement to reporters.
“Caitlin will not be at NBA All-Star,’’ it read.
One of the most memorable moments on the court to come out of Indy’s All-Star Weekend last February was the shooting display by Steph Curry and Sabrina Ionescu on a special LED court installed at Lucas Oil Stadium. Curry held on for the win, but Ionescu, who just won her first WNBA title with the New York Liberty in October, kept things tight until the very end.
Meanwhile, Clark elected to lay low this offseason after playing basketball and being in the spotlight for almost a year straight — from Iowa’s run to the national championship game to leading the Fever back to the postseason for the first time since 2016, all while selling out every arena she played in and having 38 of 40 games appear on national television.
As I’ve said and written many times now, Clark doesn’t move the needle.
She IS the needle.
She is in demand. Every one wants a piece of her.
And what she’s done this offseason has been smart, measured, and mature — just like how she carried herself during her rookie season.
Once again, she chose herself.
“I think the biggest thing for me is I need a break and I need to take some time to myself to enjoy what I want to do,” she said at WNBA All-Star weekend last July and the same is likely true here. “And at times that can be tough being in the position that I'm in, but I think it's gonna be healthiest for myself.”
To top it off, Indianapolis will be hosting WNBA All-Star Weekend — for the first time — July 18-19 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. They accepted when the WNBA reached out after Dallas changed course, per league sources.
And so there was one more sentence provided by Clark’s representatives.