HARTFORD, Conn. — Surely, there is a lot of open hardwood, a vast middle ground between the usual, regular-season WNBA game and the All-Star Game, the foot put forward before a large national audience Saturday night.

It’s a slam dunk for a critic to carp in the aftermath of this type of basketball, from the NBA All-Star Game to the Greater Hartford Pro-Am, that it was “defense-optional.” These are among the few games where one is unlikely to hear the modern manufactured word “physicality.” But this is not a bad thing; events like the WNBA All-Star Game in Chicago are supposed to be fun, supposed to be wild and free, supposed to show the players enjoying themselves and each other in a positive light. In this sense, the game, with its record crowd of 19,783 and solid overnight rating of 3.44 million viewers, was a victory for the league.

The officials of all stripes got out of the way and the stars were allowed to be stars, though the steady stream of half-court heaving got a little tedious before Theresa Witherspoon’s All-Stars beat Cynthia Cooper’s 129-121.

Rookie Azzi Fudd won the 3-point shooting contest Friday, but if you tuned in to the game to see a glorious Huskies romp with “Team Coop,” for which three former UConn stars, Paige Bueckers, Breanna Stewart and Gabby Williams were chosen to start, you were somewhat disappointed. This was not the kind of game that played to their strengths, a little too free-wheeling. There were 225 shots taken, and 127 of them were 3-pointers, some shots from the hip, some from as far away as Joliet or Waukegan. And since these were the very best shooters in the women’s game, about a third of them dropped, more early than late. Caitlin Clark, who was injured and missed the game last year, hit five 3s early, and at one point the mic caught an exchange with Bueckers, “You going for MVP, damn,” Bueckers told her.

“This is kind of like a much different feel than a normal basketball game,” Clark told reporters in Chicago after the game. “You’re kind of just like a young kid running around out there, having fun and shooting whatever shots and being creative, playing with flow. And I really enjoy that about the game of basketball, so it was really fun for me to get back out there.”

Clark smiling and laughing, comfortable as she interacted with the league’s other great players, was a refreshing look for the league, which has grown in popularity since she came in 2 1/2 years ago, but has been held back by the nagging issues of flagrant fouls and officiating around her and the perception the other players resent her. Maybe this was that long-needed thawing moment, a step in the right direction.

“We need to continue to create a competitive environment where they can compete aggressively without unnecessary rough play,” commissioner Cathy Englebert told reporters in her state-of-the-W address. Later, she added, “… officiating can always be better.”

Bueckers finished with 12 points and seven assists, Williams had 18 points, six assists and five rebounds, Stewart had six, seven and 13, but it was another of those under-the-radar moments for New York’s Jonquel Jones, Connecticut Sun royalty, who had 22 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists, adding an All-Star Game MVP to a collection that includes a regular season, WNBA Finals and Commissioner’s Cup MVP awards. The moment of the night belonged to Dominique Malonga, 20, who scored a throw-down in transition.

“She makes it look easy,” Bueckers said. “I was on the same Unrivaled team as her so I got to see it up close and personal. And it was against Marina’s team every single time.”

In the next press conference seat, Marina Mabrey, another former Sun star (notice a pattern?) who was representing the expansion Toronto Tempo, playfully protested that take. Mabrey also hit five 3-pointers early for Team Spoon, as the TV cameras showed her sisters celebrating.

“It’s (a) chance to really get to know all these great All-Stars,” said Kelsey Mitchell, who plays with Clark on the Indiana Fever, but was on the other side Saturday. “Get a chance to get to know who they are. and see we all love the game the same way.”

This, it should one day become unnecessary to point out, is what this should all be about. The ABC production did all it could to showcase the young stars and promote the league and its 30-year history, lauding Englebert, who has been under fire, for the “business” growth the league has seen during her time. It was painful to get to the Collective Bargaining Agreement, which is the case in every major sport, but she got there and the players seem satisfied. As for the wisdom of shepherding the Sun out of Connecticut, the traditionally enthusiastic market for women’s basketball, to Houston, where a championship franchise failed to take hold in the league’s early days, well, time will tell.

Other issues, such as fan behavior and social media harassment, are not totally in a league’s control, but a commissioner can foster conversation between players, coaches, owners, agents and officials to iron out some of what could euphemistically be called “growing pains.” Get the angst out of the games, and the crackpots will move on to some other fashionable cause. The NBA generally sets an all-in-this-together tone, the WNBA needs to do that consistently, too.

When The W resumes its regular season this week, it will be more competitive — defense will be a thing again. But it would be wise to keep these positive All-Star vibes going. Somewhere between the half-court heaves and the flagrant fouling and flopping, there lies the best version of the WNBA.

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