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As part of its historic 25th season, the WNBA shared details today about its “W25” platform and “Vote for the GOAT” program. The engagement platforms will allow media members, women’s basketball advocates and fans to select and honor the league’s greatest and most influential players since the league tipped off in 1997.
Earlier this year, the WNBA announced the “W25” platform, a selection process to decide the 25 greatest players in WNBA history based upon contributions on and off the court, including each player’s role in the overall growth of women’s basketball.
The eligibility criteria to be nominated for consideration on the W25 list, shared in a statement by the league, were further clarified in the league’s statement today:
The nominees must have been a member of a WNBA team for at least two seasons and met four of the following seven criteria: been the winner of a major individual award; a selection to either the All-WNBA First Team or All-WNBA Second Team; a selection to either the WNBA All-Defensive First Team or WNBA All-Defensive Second Team; a selection to the WNBA All-Star Game; a member of a WNBA Championship team; a current ranking among the top 40 career leaders in at least one major statistical category; and/or a recipient of the WNBA’s season-long Community Assist Award.
A panel of media members and women’s basketball pioneers and advocates will cast votes for the top 25 from a list of nearly 75 nominees that meet the eligibility criteria. The panel’s votes will be revealed on Sunday, Sept. 5, during the broadcast of the Las Vegas Aces at Chicago Sky game (3 p.m. E.T. on ABC).
Immediately following the release of the W25 list on Sept. 5, fans can begin to cast their votes for the definitive greatest of all time (GOAT) out of the list of 25. Fans can vote once per day on WNBA.com and the WNBA App. Fans can also cast votes on Twitter. Fan voting concludes at 11:59 p.m. ET on Sunday, Sept. 19.
The GOAT will be revealed during the 2021 WNBA Finals.
