During the 2019 WNBA All-Star Weekend, 34-year old Candice Dupree joined New York forward Tina Charles with the most selections of any player in the 2019 game, as she celebrated her seventh All-Star Game appearance and her second time playing in a Fever uniform.
Jada Brown goes “One-on-One” with @indianafever Forward Candice Dupree (@CandiceDupree_4) ahead of today’s @WNBA All-Star game. #wnba #WNBAAllStar #girlstalksportstv #feverallstars #indianafever #fever20 pic.twitter.com/GZfncLDqFD
— Girls Talk Sports TV (@GrlsTalkSports_) July 27, 2019
For Dupree, it was business as usual as she finished the game with eight points and five rebound but her impact went far beyond the stat sheet. This year her role as a friend and mentor to Fever teammate Erica Wheeler became huge deal as Wheeler became the first undrafted player in WNBA history to win WNBA All-Star MVP.
“My main goal today, and I told Candice Dupree that I don’t know how I’m going to be unforgettable, but I want to be unforgettable once we play this game, and I think I did that.” Wheeler said after winning the All-Star MVP.
Dupree, one of Wheeler’s biggest fans, friends and advocates, took Wheeler’s phone and crouched at mid-court to take her own video during the postgame MVP interview that received ovations from her teammates and the crowd at Mandalay Bay Events Center.
Wheeler also praised Dupree in her post-game press conference with the media.
“I love Candice.” Wheeler said with a smile. “The first thing she said, she was just like, “I always know that you belonged, I always knew it… I said, “Come out there with me,” and she was like, “No, you’ve got to enjoy this moment on your own because it’s your moment.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/B0hIvGjnl5I/
Dupree and Wheeler and the Fever resume their schedule with a pair of home games on this week. This season, Dupree has averaged 11.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per game while playing a role as leader and mentor for the young and improving Fever.