SEATTLE -- Jonquel Jones was among the WNBA All-Stars enjoying the view from atop the Space Needle on Friday morning. And we do mean "top," not the observation deck.
"This is awesome," Jones said. "I don't think I've been on top of the Empire State Building, but I have been on top of the Eiffel Tower before. This reminds me of that. I love it."
Connecticut's Jones, Seattle's Breanna Stewart, Minnesota's Rebekkah Brunson and Los Angeles' Nneka Ogwumike and Chelsea Gray all joined WNBA president Lisa Borders in raising an orange WNBA flag to fly from the Space Needle ahead of Saturday's All-Star Game (ABC, 3:30 p.m. ET) at KeyArena.
The event is in the Pacific Northwest for the first time, and the Storm's preparations have been going on since last fall. The franchise has worked hard to make this happen.
"The reason we have the All-Star Game is we have an incredibly dynamic, energetic and committed group," said Ginny Gilder, co-owner of the Storm, along with Dawn Trudeau and Lisa Brummel.
Of the owners' commitment to the franchise and the league, Storm veteran and 10-time All-Star Sue Bird added: "They're badass women who have done a lot in business. They're inspiring."
The Storm group -- and all owners in the league -- are hoping that talent continues to come into the WNBA to help not just sustain it, but grow it.
To that end, this All-Star Game gives us a glimpse of the players who might become great in the future versus those who are already there.
The obvious narrative for Saturday is the West's much greater experience than the East's, and the contrast is extreme. Indiana forward Tamika Catchings' retirement leaves a void; she appeared in 10 All-Star Games.
Now there are eight first-time All-Stars for the East, including New York guard Sugar Rodgers, the replacement player for injured Elena Delle Donne of Washington.
Candice Dupree is the only East All-Star who has won a WNBA title. She's in her first season with Indiana after seven years in Phoenix, where she helped the Mercury win the 2014 championship.
The West is the exact opposite: Seattle's Breanna Stewart and Dallas' Skylar Diggins-Smith are the only West players who haven't won at least one WNBA title. Four of the West All-Stars -- Phoenix's Diana Taurasi and Minnesota's Seimone Augustus and Maya Moore all have three titles; the Lynx's Rebekkah Brunson has four, including a championship with Sacramento.
It's difficult to pinpoint a single factor that has caused such an imbalance; in a general sense, the West has dominated the WNBA for a lot of its history. And with the change in the playoff format last year -- in which the eight teams are seeded by records and conference affiliation doesn't matter -- the West's power won't necessarily impact the potential quality of the WNBA Finals.
It didn't last season, when a five-game series between Minnesota and Los Angeles went to the wire. Both those teams currently lead the league, with the Lynx at 16-2 and the Sparks 14-6.
It means that this could be a lopsided All-Star Game. Or the East players, with New York's Tina Charles and Dupree as veterans, might approach this with a chip on their shoulders, thinking they really have something to prove.
However, regardless of how this All-Star Game turns out, the fact that so many first-time players are involved can be taken as a good sign for the high quality of play continuing even after some of the most well-known stars are finished.
"For a lot of these guys, it's going to eventually happen," Taurasi said of those players who are still striving to win a title and establish themselves. "Sue is going to go away, I'm going to go away, Minnesota will not be as dominant. It's all a circle. That's the way life is, and the way this league is.
"Hopefully, we have shown them that you can sustain a high level of play for a long time, and that's going to be their next challenge. Anyone can have one great season. Can you put eight seasons like that together? I think these younger kids can do that, because that's how talented they are."
The 6-foot-6 Jones, who is currently leading the WNBA in rebounding at 11.2 per game and is also averaging 15.8 points in her second season, wants to be that kind of consistent strong presence. She has been a huge reason that Connecticut has defied dire predictions thus far, and is third in the WNBA at 12-9. She's here with Sun teammates Jasmine Thomas and Alyssa Thomas, also making their All-Star debuts. Thomas was named to the East's starting lineup Friday, replacing the injured Delle Donne.
"In this league, people come in hard at the basket, and you have to be ready," Jones said of how she has learned so quickly to hold her own. "I think people were expecting a lot of our [2016] draft class. We had Breanna Stewart, Morgan Tuck, Moriah Jefferson, Rachel Banham, myself.
"I think as we all develop our games, you'll see us at a lot of All-Star Games in the future. I hope we bring some new stuff to the table. You'll want the players to keep getting better."
But there's more to it than their play, of course. In a league like the WNBA, there's also an expectation to always be engaging with fans, doing clinics, trying to increase viewer interest. The veterans have logged their time with all of that as well.
"We never like to talk about how old we're getting," said Lynx guard Augustus, who is 33 and in her 12th WNBA season. "But we understand our time is nearer the end, so it's great to have the diversity here with the younger players.
"There are some kids who are really talented, and people may not know them as well. But this is one of the platforms where they can showcase their talents."
Augustus counsels younger players about being patient and understanding that to get where the Lynx are now was a process. It was development of top picks such as herself, the right coaching, smart trades, and even some good luck.
She also tells them that winning often takes individual sacrifice, such as how she gave up some of her scoring potential and focused more on defense to fit what the Lynx most needed.
Augustus knows a lot of these things might not seem like satisfying answers to younger players, but they're reality. She also sets an example with how she goes about her job.
"I was embraced when I came into the league by players like Katie Smith; she was really my mentor," Augustus said. "She told me about being focused and being a professional.
"I get to work two or three hours early. I want to be ready. If you want to get better, you can't stay the same player. There just aren't any shortcuts. And the league itself isn't going to grow if you aren't also reaching out to people."
This All-Star Game, then, is a showcase of a lot of things: Seattle's commitment to get the contest here, the West's immense strength at this point, the potential that we can see from players who will experience all of this for the first time.
"It shows our growth," said Atlanta's Tiffany Hayes, who is another first-time All-Star. "It's our time to step up. A lot of players have been doing that for a while, and the rest of us are really willing to do that, too."