'GO GET IT DONE' | A'JA WILSON REACTS TO GAME 3 WINNER | WNBA FINALS 2025

 

A'JA WILSON HIT THE GAME WINNER TO LEAD THE SERIES 3-0 | WNBA FINALS

 

ACES' A'JA WILSON BREAKS 2 NAPHEESA COLLIER PLAYOFF RECORD DURING DOMINATING GAME 3

A'ja Wilson just made WNBA history, passing Napheesa Collier's playoff records as the Aces move one step closer to another title.

A'ja Wilson made history during the 2025 WNBA Finals, breaking two significant playoff records previously held by Napheesa Collier as the Las Vegas Aces took a commanding 3-0 series lead over the Phoenix Mercury.

In Game 3, Wilson officially surpassed Collier for the most points in a single playoff run and also passed her for the most stocks, according to a post from I Talk Hoops. Collier had set the previous marks during the 2024 postseason with 285 points and 48 stocks.

Through Game 3 of the Finals, Wilson has piled up 291 points and 50 stocks in the 2025 postseason, with both totals still climbing as the Aces close in on the championship.

Aces star's dominant WNBA Finals performance

The records were broken during a Finals run where Wilson has been unstoppable. Through three games, she's averaging 27.7 points and 12.7 rebounds, but it was her Game 3 heroics that stole the show.

With their season on the line at home, the Mercury battled back from a 17-point deficit to tie the game at 88-88. Just 0.3 seconds remained when Wilson received the ball and hit a fadeaway jumper over two defenders to seal the 90-88 victory. Her 34 points and 14 rebounds pushed the Aces to the brink of another championship.

That performance marked Wilson's ninth career 30-point playoff game, extending her own WNBA record. It was her fourth such game in the 2025 postseason alone, also a single-postseason record, according to ESPN's Alexa Philippou. She also became the first player in WNBA Finals history to post back-to-back games with 25+ points and 10+ rebounds.

At 29, Wilson has turned clutch moments into her calling card. The four-time MVP doesn't just dominate statistically; she delivers when the stakes are highest, making her the most dangerous player in postseason basketball. With the Aces one win away from their third title in four years, Wilson's legacy as a championship performer continues to grow.

- Jayesh Pagar

ACES A'JA WILSON ERUPTS FOR UNREAL FEAT VS. SUN NOT SEEN BEFORE IN WNBA HISTORY

Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson added another impressive record to her prolific career during their win over the Connecticut Sun.

If there were still debates on who's the best player in the WNBA today, Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson squashed them on Sunday.

Wilson led the Aces over the Connecticut Sun, 94-86, at Michelob Ultra Arena for their fourth straight win. Not even the best problem solver in the world could have helped the Sun in trying to stop Wilson. She finished with a monster line of 32 points on 13-of-25 shooting from the field, 20 rebounds, five assists, and two steals.

The Aces veteran also added another milestone to her stellar career after becoming the first player in WNBA history to record a game with at least 30 points, 20 rebounds, and five assists. She almost single-handedly outrebounded the entire Sun, who had 23 boards.

Las Vegas improved to 18-14, while Connecticut fell to 5-25.

It hasn't been the easiest campaign for Wilson and the Aces. She had missed four games due to a wrist injury and a concussion protocol. The Aces, meanwhile, are still in the middle of the pack, although they have been on fire as of late.

The three-time MVP already addressed their struggles earlier this year, stressing the need to get back on track. After winning back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023, the Aces relinquished the throne to the New York Liberty last season.

“We spoiled a lot of people without our greatness, with our legendary basketball style. We spoiled our fan base. We spoiled a lot of people with that, and now they expect that out of us in every single game,” said Wilson in June.

“I think we're in unfamiliar territory, but we're about to get real familiar with being uncomfortable and leaning on one another.”

There have been claims that Wilson has been supplanted by Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier as the best player in the WNBA. With her latest history-making performance, Wilson may have changed a lot of minds.

- Paolo Mariano

WNBA PLAYER RANKINGS

 

MALIA OBAMA NIKE AD 'SHOCKINGLY SIMILAR' TO SUNDANCE PIECE ... Filmmaker Says

Malia Obama-Directed Nike Ad 'Shockingly Similar' To Sundance Piece, Filmmaker Says

A 26-year-old filmmaker has a bone to pick with Malia Obama ... seemingly claiming the former first daughter used one of her works as inspiration for a new Nike ad -- without properly crediting her.

Natalie Jasmine Harris said Monday the A'ja Wilson vignette that Obama and Nike released this month to promote the hooper's new signature shoe is "shockingly similar" to NJH's 2024 Sundance Film Festival flick, "Grace."

In the Obama-Wilson piece, a young girl can be seen teaching the WNBA superstar her version of "Miss Mary Mack" while on a stoop of a home. In "Grace," two of the characters play a similar game with their hands as they sit on a small staircase leading to a house's front door.

Harris made it clear in a series of social media posts she doesn't believe the lookalike imagery is a coincidence -- especially considering she and Obama at one point linked up during the '24 Sundance event in Utah.

"I know art often overlaps," she wrote on her X page, "but moments like this hit hard when you've poured your heart into telling stories with care and barely get the recognition you deserve."

"If brands want a certain look," she added, "why not hire from the source instead of for name recognition?"

- TMZ Sports 

CLARK, REESE EXCITED TO TEAM UP AT WNBA ALL-STAR

Getty Images 

 PHOENIX -- For 40 minutes on Saturday, Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark and Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese will put aside their rivalry to join forces on Team WNBA in the league's All-Star Game against the United States women's national team.

In a weekend when the stars of women's basketball have congregated in the blistering heat of Arizona, the unification of Clark and Reese has become a storyline unto itself. And they know it.

"That's what everybody wants to see," Reese said Friday.

The two, who played against each other in the 2023 Women's NCAA tournament national championship game when Clark was at Iowa and Reese was at LSU, and then three times in the first half of the WNBA season, have momentarily embraced being teammates. They spent time working on a pick-and-roll together during Friday morning's practice.

"I'm looking forward to it," Reese said. "Everybody can wear their 'Get Along' shirts together for one day, at least. So, I know a lot of people are going to come and watch us, to see all of us, but there's a lot of talent within both rosters of the teams, so they're in for a good one."

Clark thinks sharing a court with Reese will be "fun" and said it'll be "really great" to share the All-Star experience with Reese as rookies.

Clark, who led all players in All-Star Game voting, believes the attention she and Reese, who finished fifth in voting, are bringing to women's basketball will continue and also will help grow the game.

Their impact was evident in the All-Star voting. Both exceeded 380,000 votes. Last season, Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson was the top vote-getter but received fewer than 100,000 votes.

While Clark and Reese will play in the All-Star Game, both declined invitations to participate in Friday night's skills competition -- Clark in the 3-point contest and Reese in the skills challenge.

Reese said she turned down the invitation so she could "enjoy" her first All-Star Game and just watch -- at least for her first year, she said. She plans to spend part of her month-long Olympic break in Paris, even though she's not on the national team, for a vacation. She's planning on fitting in some workouts and vintage shopping.

Clark cited rest as her reason for not participating in the 3-point contest.

"I've been playing basketball for a year straight," Clark said. "It's not an easy thing to just show up to and shoot off of a rack. It's not something I've ever done before. It's not something I've had a lot of time to practice. I've been focusing on helping my team win games, so I think just enjoying this break, I think there's going to be plenty of opportunities for me to do that at some point, but at the same time, like the field of shooters that we have in the competition are really good. They're all like near 40% shooters, so I'm excited for them.

"I'll be there supporting them and it'll be fun. But, yeah, I mean, I think the thing that's best for me is just, like, I need a break and I need to take some time to myself to enjoy what I want to do. And, at times, that can be tough, being in the position that I'm in."

Even though Clark said her goal and dream was to play on the Olympic team, she admitted that getting a four-week break will be "very beneficial." She also plans on going on vacation and taking "some time to breathe."

It won't be easy, said Clark, who described herself as someone "that wants to continue to work and continue to play."

"I probably will feel a little bit uncomfortable, like not touching the basketball for a week or so," Clark said. "But I know that's going to be the healthiest thing for myself and I think just relax, like, turn my phone off, get away from everything and really enjoy it because, obviously, this past year has been super crazy.

"It's something I'm very fortunate for, as well. Like, I wouldn't change it for the world."

Although she's admittedly tired, Clark put some perspective on her exhaustion.

"I mean like, sure, I'm tired, but at the same time, there's so many people that would kill to be in my shoes and so many people that are going through so much worse in their lives," Clark said. "Like, I'm a professional basketball player, my life is pretty, pretty good, so I have no complaints. And if I'm going to be tired, I'll be tired. Like, I'll take that every single day of the week. So, this break will definitely be nice though."

Part of why she knows she has to put down the ball is to absorb and reflect on everything that has happened to her over the past year.

"It goes so fast and you don't want to miss any of the moments," Clark said. "It's crazy. It feels like yesterday I was just in college and now I'm at my first All-Star Game, so just reflect back on everything and enjoy it and get some time to reset and then come back and be ready to go for the second half."

- Josh Weinfuss, ESPN Staff Writer

US BASKETBALL NAMES 12-MEMBER. WOMEN'S ROSTER FOR PARIS

Reuters 

 USA Basketball announced a veteran roster for the upcoming Paris Olympics, boasting a squad where each member has at least an Olympics or World Cup gold medal.

The Phoenix Mercury's Diana Taurasi was named to her sixth Olympics, with 38 Olympics basketball games to her credit, the most of any women's player in USA Basketball history. She is second in Olympics points scored (414) behind Lisa Leslie (488).

The team, which consists entirely of players from the WNBA, also includes Napheesa Collier (Minnesota Lynx), Kahleah Copper (Mercury), Chelsea Gray (Las Vegas Aces), Brittney Griner (Mercury), Sabrina Ionescu (New York Liberty), Jewell Loyd (Seattle Storm), Kelsey Plum (Aces), Breanna Stewart (Liberty), Alyssa Thomas (Connecticut Sun), A'ja Wilson (Aces) and Jackie Young (Aces).

Cheryl Reeve is the head coach of the team, after serving as an assistant coach the past two Olympics under Geno Auriemma (2016) and Dawn Staley (2020).

"We were supposed to be giving Cheryl a team that has experience and familiarity with international competition, familiarity with the coaching system, leadership abilities, versatility, depth at every position," national team committee chair Jen Rizzotti told The Athletic. "The 12 that we selected, we felt were the best when it boiled down to a basketball decision."

Not included was collegiate star Caitlin Clark, who took Iowa to the Final Four in consecutive seasons and is in her rookie WNBA season with the Indiana Fever.

"Certainly, the success that Caitlin had in college in addition to the way that she's played in the beginning parts of the (WNBA) season was taken into consideration as we talked about this roster, but I think out of respect for the process, we tried to make sure we upheld our integrity when it came to selecting the roster," Rizzotti told The Athletic.

"Marketability, popularity, TV viewership, jersey sales was not something that we were supposed to be measuring."

Clark addressed the pending roster decision Sunday.

"Honestly, no disappointment," Clark said. "It just gives me something to work for; it's a dream. Hopefully one day I can be there.

"I think it's just a little more motivation. You remember that. Hopefully when four years comes back around, I can be there."

Taurasi, Collier, Gray, Griner, Loyd, Stewart and Wilson all were in the 2020 Olympics squad in Japan that went 6-0 while winning the gold medal. Wilson and Griner each scored 16.5 points per game in Japan, while Stewart had 10.0 rebounds per game.

Plum and Young also won a gold medal at Japan, but that was in the inaugural three-on-three tournament.

Staley also was on the committee that selected the roster, in addition to the WNBA's Bethany Donaphin, Atlanta Dream general manager Dan Padover of the Atlanta Dream, LSU assistant coach Seimone Augustus and Old Dominion head coach DeLisha Milton-Jones.

The USA women's team will have training camp at Phoenix then play an exhibition game against a team of WNBA all-stars on July 20. The squad also is set to play an exhibition game against Germany on July 23 at London.

Team USA opens Olympics group play at Paris against Japan on July 29 before facing Belgium on Aug. 1 and Germany on Aug. 4.

- Reuters 

A'JA WILSON'S SIGNATURE SNEAKER, NIKE A'ONE, IS COMING IN 2025

ACES OVERCOME LIBERTY TO WIN SECOND STRAIGHT WNBA TITLE

USA TODAY Sports 

The Las Vegas Aces became the first team in more than 20 years to repeat as WNBA champions after holding off the New York Liberty 70-69 in Game 4 of the Finals on Wednesday.

A'ja Wilson, named the Most Valuable Player of the Finals, produced 24 points and 16 rebounds to help the Aces recover from a 12-point deficit in Brooklyn.

New York had appeared on track to keep their first Finals campaign in 21 years alive, with guard Courtney Vandersloot leading with 19 points, but an error-filled second half cost them dearly.