A’ja Wilson becomes second unanimous MVP in WNBA history

Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson continues to make history. On Sunday, the WNBA announced that she was unanimously named the league’s Most Valuable Player.

Wilson is only the second player to win the award unanimously, following Cynthia Cooper, who won the award during the competition’s inaugural season in 1997.

Wilson received all 67 first-place votes from a national media panel and has now won the award three times. The Aces star was also honored in 2020 and 2022. With her third win, the 28-year-old tied the record for most MVPs, tied with Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie and Lauren Jackson.

Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier (467 points) finished second this season, followed by New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart (295 points), Indiana Fever forward Caitlin Clark (130 points) and Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas (83 points) in fifth place.

Wilson also finished third in last year’s WNBA MVP voting, behind winner Stewart and runner-up Thomas, in the closest MVP race in league history. Of the contenders, Wilson was the only player to be voted fourth, a decision she mocked throughout the Aces’ run to a second consecutive championship.

“It helped me a little bit when I started my offseason workouts, but by February I was done with it,” Wilson said of last season’s mood. “I didn’t want to give that person that energy, that’s when I started to commit.”

Wilson was named Finals MVP when she led the Aces to titles in 2022 and 2023, and is aiming for an unprecedented three-peat this year. While the Aces struggled at times during the regular season this time around, Wilson has been a constant, dominating on both ends of the court.

Earlier this season, Wilson became the first player in WNBA history to score 1,000 points in a season. She finished the regular season with 1,021 points, to go with 451 rebounds and 98 blocks, becoming the first player in league history to top the league’s all-time scoring charts in all three categories. Her season scoring average (26.1) also broke Diana Taurasi’s 2006 record of 25.3.

“I can’t thank you enough,” Wilson said as she addressed her teammates on Sunday. “I hope you understand how much you mean to me. I hope you know that this trophy is nothing without you. We’ve all been through it before — and we’ll all be through it again — but there’s one thing you never have to worry about: A’ja isn’t going anywhere.”

The Aces enter the playoffs as the No. 4 seed and open their first-round matchup on Sunday against the No. 5 Seattle Storm.