NEW YORK, NY – JULY 14, 2015 – New York Liberty center Tina Charles (Queens, N.Y.) has been voted an Eastern Conference starter in WNBA All-Star Balloting 2015 presented by Boost Mobile, it was announced Tuesday evening.
This is the fourth consecutive and overall All-Star appearance for Charles (2015, 2014, 2013, 2011), who was voted a starter for a second time and the first since 2011; there was no All-Star game in 2012 due to the Olympics, although she was named the WNBA Most Valuable Player that season.
“I think it’s a blessing. To become a starter, that means that people voted, they recognize your game, what you do for your team, and who you are as a person, how you are in the community. To be named an All-Star starter again is pretty great,” said Charles.
“Obviously Tina has been our main weapon this season,” said New York Liberty head coach Bill Laimbeer. “I think she is playing at a high level, she overcame some adversity during a small stretch in the beginning of the year, and is playing really well.”
Charles was 3rd in All Star balloting for Eastern Conference frontcourt players, tallying 6,129 votes. This was the first year all players were eligible for voting through WNBA.com, Twitter and Facebook using #WNBABallot.
Boost Mobile WNBA All-Star 2015, featuring the Eastern Conference All-Stars against the Western Conference All-Stars at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., will be nationally televised by ABC on Saturday, July 25 at 3:30 p.m. ET.
Charles is steadily compiling one of the most impressive careers in league history, climbing up the all-time scoring and rebounding ranks.
She sits seventh in the league this season in scoring, averaging 16.2 points per game and is fifth in the WNBA with 8.9 rebounds per game. Charles boasts career averages of 17.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in her sixth year in the league; her scoring average is 11th on the all-time list, while her rebounding average is tops in league history.
Charles was the fastest player in league history to record 300, 400, 500, 600 and 700-career rebounds, and is already 20th overall with 1,837 boards in just five-plus seasons.
On June 9, she joined the 3,000-point club, becoming the 10th fastest player in WNBA history to achieve the milestone, and currently ranks 49th all-time in total points with 3,027.
She also recorded her 100th-career double-double in a win over the Atlanta Dream on June 21, and ranks second all-time in the WNBA in career double-doubles (102), trailing just Lisa Leslie (157).
Charles has five double-doubles this season, scoring in double figures in 9-of-12 games in 2015, while hitting the 20-point mark four times, including in each of the last three games. In the four games leading up to the All-Star announcement, she has averaged 21.1 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, shooting 49.2 percent from the field.
Eastern Conference Starters: Western Conference Starters:
Elena Delle Donne, Backcourt (Chicago Sky) Skylar Diggins, Backcourt (Tulsa Shock)
Shoni Schimmel, Backcourt (Atlanta Dream) Seimone Augustus, Backcourt (Minnesota Lynx)
Tamika Catchings, Frontcourt (Indiana Fever) Maya Moore, Frontcourt (Minnesota Lynx)
Angel McCoughtry, Frontcourt (Atlanta Dream) Brittney Griner, Frontcourt (Phoenix Mercury)
Tina Charles, Frontcourt (New York Liberty) Candice Dupree, Frontcourt (Phoenix Mercury)