The excitement surrounding WNBA All-Star Weekend just got a little more lucrative. Thanks to the WNBPA expanding its deal with a sponsor, the total purse is getting bumped. Not only will the league’s top shooters now get a bigger cash reward for winning the coveted 3-Point Contest crown, but for the second consecutive year, the winner will also earn a bigger payday than the NBA’s 3-Point Contest champion.
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Front Office Sports’ Colin Salao broke with his article. “First at @FOS: The WNBPA is adding $170,000 in prize money to the WNBA’s 3-Point Contest and Shooting Stars, up from $115,000 last year. The 3-Point winner will earn $70,000 total, $10,000 more than the NBA’s 3-Point Contest champion,” he captioned the post on X.
This is the direct result of OneTeam negotiating the expansion of the deal between the WNBPA and Aflac, who have increased their investment. The American insurance company is contributing $85,000 each in supplemental payouts for both the 3-Point Contest and the Shooting Stars competition.
Specifically, this year’s WNBA All-Star 3-Point Contest champion will receive a base prize of $30,000 from the league, along with an additional $40,000 from Aflac. That brings the total payout to $70,000, which is $10,000 more than what their NBA counterpart earns from the same contest.
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UNCASVILLE, CT – JUNE 13: An advertisement for WNBA, Basketball Damen, USA All-Star Voting to vote daily in the WNBA App is shown on the scorers table during the WNBA game between the Indiana Fever and the Connecticut Sun on June 13, 2026 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT. Photo by Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire WNBA: JUN 13 Indiana Fever at Connecticut Sun EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon26061379
The first and second runners-up in the contest will also receive substantial prize money. The second-place finisher will take home a total of $40,000, consisting of $10,000 from the league and $30,000 from Aflac. Meanwhile, the third-place finisher will receive $10,000 and $15,000 from Aflac, equating to a total payout of $25,000.
This year’s 3-Point Contest will feature Marina Mabrey, Rhyne Howard, Bridget Carleton, Natisha Hiedeman, Janelle Salaün, and 2026 No. 1 overall pick Azzi Fudd. As for the Shooting Stars challenge, which is a team-based challenge, there will be four teams. Each team will consist of one current WNBA player, one WNBA legend, and one Nike EYBL youth player.
Aflac will also be contributing a total of $85,000 toward the brand new Shooting Stars challenge, which replaces the traditional Skills Challenge. According to Front Office Sports, current players will receive a baseline of $7,500 for participating and $15,000 for winning. This is the same prize structure that was previously allocated to the Skills Challenge under the collective bargaining agreement.
This new WNBA Shooting Stars challenge is entirely different from the traditional Skills Challenge it replaces. It swaps out solitary obstacle courses for a multi-generational, pure-shooting format, and aims to add more variety to the annual event.
New WNBA Shooting Stars Challenge Explained: Format and Rules
While the 3-Point Contest follows the same format as in previous years, the WNBA Shooting Stars competition is brand new for the 2026 WNBA All-Star Weekend. The event therefore introduces a different but interesting format, giving fans a fresh team-based challenge to look forward to.
First, each of the four teams must make shots from seven designated locations on the court in a specific order. The shots are designed to become progressively more difficult. Each location carries a different point value based on its level of difficulty.
5-time WNBA champion Rebekkah Brunson and Courtney Williams will be on Team Minnesota. Hall of Famer Lauren Jackson will lace up alongside rookie Flau’jae Johnson for Team Seattle. Meanwhile, Shakira Austin will join Class of 2026 Basketball Hall of Famer Elena Delle Donne for Team Washington. Finally, Jessica Shepard will team up with 3-time WNBA champion Deanna Nolan for Team Dallas/Detroit. At the moment, the participating Nike EYBL youth players for each team have not been revealed.
Since there are three players on each team, they will shoot in a strict rotation throughout the challenge. However, each team will have a maximum of seventy seconds to complete the entire 7-shot course. To maximize speed, the shooters will have WNBA legends Cynthia Cooper and Teresa Weatherspoon rapidly feed them the balls throughout the competition.
There will be two rounds in the challenge. The two teams that complete the course in the fastest times during the opening round will advance to the championship round, where they’ll compete to determine the winner.