A’ja Wilson loves breaking boundaries.
The Las Vegas Aces star was announced as the WNBA’s Most Valuable Player on Sunday in a unanimous vote, becoming only the second player to do so since Cynthia Cooper achieved the feat during the league’s inaugural season of 1997.
Wilson received all 67 first-place votes from a national media panel for a third MVP accolade, adding to her awards in 2020 and 2022.
The 28-year-old has now tied the record for the most MVPs, matching Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie, and Lauren Jackson.
Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier (467 points) finished in second place, followed by New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart (295 points), Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark (130 points), and Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas (83 points) claiming the fifth spot.
It’s a justified award for Wilson, who looks to end her domestic season on a high with the Aces to back up her Olympic Games success with Team USA, where she won a gold medal.
Last season, she finished second in the MVP voting, and that spurred her on as motivation.
“It propelled me a little bit as I started my offseason workouts, but around February, I was over it,” Wilson said of last season’s vote.
“I didn’t want to give that person that energy; that’s when I started to lock in.”
Wilson became the first player in WNBA history to score 1,000 points in a season during the campaign.
She finished the regular season with 1,021 points, 451 rebounds, and 98 blocks, becoming the first player in league history to top the charts in all three categories.
She averaged 26.1 points a game, breaking Diana Taurasi’s record of 25.3 set in 2006.
“I cannot thank you all enough,” Wilson said while addressing her teammates on Sunday.
“I hope you guys understand how much you mean to me. I hope you guys know that this trophy is nothing without y’all. We’ve been through the ringer – and we gon’ continue to go through the ringer – but one thing y’all don’t ever have to worry about is A’ja going anywhere.”
The Aces enter the playoffs as the fourth seed and will tip off their first-round series against the fifth-seeded Seattle Storm on Sunday.
Photo: FIBA