Saturday’s WNBA season opener brings together the defending champion Las Vegas Aces and the Phoenix Mercury in a highly anticipated rematch of last year’s championship series.
The Aces enter the 2026 season having captured their third title in four years, powered by superstar A’ja Wilson, who just completed her record-breaking fourth MVP season.
Wilson made history by overtaking WNBA legends Lisa Leslie, Sheryl Swoopes and Lauren Jackson for most MVP awards in league history. This season, she has the opportunity to become the first player to earn the honor three years in a row.
As the WNBA welcomes an influx of emerging talent, Wilson begins her ninth professional season determined to maintain her position as the league’s premier player, according to her comments to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
“I like proving people wrong,” Wilson said. “I like to let people just burn because me and my team are doing great, or they never could have imagined it could have been me in this situation or my team in this situation.”
Wilson’s 2025 campaign featured averages of 23.4 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, along with a career-high 3.1 assists. She earned Finals MVP honors after a dominant postseason where she scored 26.8 points per game — the highest mark across her seven playoff appearances — while adding 10 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 2.5 blocks and 2.1 steals.
The Aces completed a four-game championship series sweep over Phoenix, with Wilson delivering back-to-back performances of 34 and 31 points in the final two contests, ultimately ending the Mercury’s unexpected playoff journey.
Phoenix surprised many by reaching the Finals as the fourth seed, defeating top-seeded Minnesota 3-1 in the semifinals. Ten-year veteran Kahleah Copper contributed 17.8 points per game throughout the postseason.
Veteran leadership proved crucial for the Mercury, as 18-year league veteran DeWanna Bonner recorded two double-doubles in the Finals, while 12-year veteran Alyssa Thomas notched three Finals double-doubles and a triple-double in the series finale.
Though the experienced trio helped Phoenix reach the championship round, Thomas acknowledged during Wednesday’s media day that the playoff experience served as valuable education for the team’s younger players.
“We had a lot of people on our team who were … first time going through playoffs,” Thomas said. “I don’t think you can prepare people enough for how hard playoffs is.”
The Mercury’s young core includes Monique Akoa Makani, who started throughout her rookie campaign last season.
Makani and Phoenix’s backcourt will face the challenge of containing Las Vegas’ talented perimeter group featuring Jackie Young, Chelsea Gray, Jewell Loyd and new addition Chennedy Carter.
