Aces UP: Crown Her

The 2022 WNBA season ended with the Las Vegas Aces defeating the Connecticut Sun in four games to win the title. It is the first title in franchise history and first professional championship for the city of Las Vegas. The Aces were among the top seeds all regular season long and continued that dominance into the playoffs. Chelsea Gray was named Finals MVP.

The best example of the Aces’ dominance is that their team now holds the MVP, DPOY, MIP, All-Star Game MVP, Coach of the Year, Finals MVP

One player cannot be solely responsible for a team’s success. However, if a player is that great, they can elevate what is already there with that team. As stated above, the Aces have a lot of award-winning talent. But one woman is at the center of the team’s brilliance because she has been brilliant for as long as she’s held a basketball. That woman is A’ja Wilson.

Wilson is the 2022 WNBA MVP and Defensive Player of the Year. In her five seasons in the WNBA, she has two MVP trophies and two Finals appearances. She is a four-time All-Star and is already one of the best players to grace the W. It feels like Wilson is both well established and still in the early stages of a great career. That kind of feeling surrounding her is only reserved for the true greats.

And then, there is the winning outside of her WNBA career. She won a title with Dawn Staley at the university of South Carolina in 2017, as well as a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. After celebrating the title with her Aces teammates, she headed to Australia to help Team USA advance to the knockout round. In her first game over there, she came off the bench to score 20 points and grab 8 rebounds, all while still dealing with jet lag. There is a level of competitiveness within her that elevates her teammates.

“A’ja cussed me out.” That’s what Kelsey Plum said after snapping out of shooting struggles during the WNBA playoffs. It’s that kind of leadership and willingness to bear the burden of accountability that allowed the Aces to be the best team in the W throughout the regular season and playoffs. With former WNBA great Becky Hammon as coach and a supernova like Wilson as the franchise cornerstone, the Aces will be in a position to win for quite a while. Congratulations to them and to an incredible 2022 WNBA season.