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A'ja Wilson wins the AP WNBA Player of the Year award for an unprecedented third straight year. Angel Reese is named top defensive player.
Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson has been named the AP WNBA Player of the Year for an unprecedented third consecutive year. The award, announced on Sunday, is voted on by a 17-member national media panel. Wilson received 15 of the 17 first-place votes. This is the fourth time she has won the award, breaking a tie with Breanna Stewart for the most since the awards began in 2016.
Wilson Dominates AP WNBA Player of the Year Voting
Wilson led the league in scoring this season, averaging 26.2 points per game while shooting nearly 53 percent from the field. She also averaged 9.4 rebounds, a career-best 3.2 assists, and 1.9 blocks per game. In a phone interview, Wilson said it is a big honor to win three times in a row and that it is not easy because of the talent in the league. She added that she does not take it lightly.
The other players receiving votes were Olivia Miles of the Minnesota Lynx, Caitlin Clark, and Kelsey Mitchell of the Indiana Fever. All had stellar seasons. The WNBA will announce its postseason awards over the course of the playoffs, which begin Sunday. Wilson is a huge favorite to win the WNBA MVP for the third straight season.
Angel Reese Named AP Defensive Player of the Year
Angel Reese dethroned Wilson as the AP Defensive Player of the Year. Wilson had won the award in three of the last four seasons. Reese made the most of her move to the Atlanta Dream this offseason. She was third in the league in steals and had the versatility to guard most positions defensively. She also topped the league in rebounds for the third consecutive season.
Olivia Miles had an incredible first season and was honored as the AP Rookie of the Year as a unanimous choice. The No. 2 pick in the draft by the Minnesota Lynx averaged 19.8 points, 6.0 assists, and 4.7 rebounds to help Minnesota finish with the best record in the league. She set the WNBA record for points by a rookie, surpassing Clark's record from 2024. Miles was joined on the AP All-Rookie team by Azzi Fudd of the Dallas Wings, Sydney Taylor of the Chicago Sky, Flau'jae Johnson of the Seattle Storm, Pauline Astier of the New York Liberty, and Kiki Rice of the Toronto Tempo.
Other AP WNBA Award Winners Announced
Wilson, Clark, Miles, and Mitchell headlined the AP All-WNBA first team. They were joined by Breanna Stewart of the New York Liberty. Reese was on the second team along with her teammate Rhyne Howard, Paige Bueckers of the Dallas Wings, Jackie Young of the Las Vegas Aces, and Gabby Williams of the Golden State Valkyries.
Cheryl Reeve was named Coach of the Year for the third time. She also won in 2020 and 2024. She guided the Lynx to the No. 1 seed in the playoffs while the team was missing superstar Napheesa Collier for the first half of the season as she recovered from offseason surgery on both ankles. Reeve beat out Natalie Nakase of the Golden State Valkyries and Sydney Johnson of the Washington Mystics.
Caitlin Clark was named Comeback Player of the Year. The Fever guard missed much of last season with a variety of injuries. She came back strong this year, playing in 40 games and averaging 22.3 points, 8.3 assists, and 4.0 rebounds. Georgia Amoore of the Washington Mystics and Courtney Vandersloot of the Chicago Sky also received votes.
Jessica Shepard of the Dallas Wings was named Most Improved Player. She came to the team as a free agent and excelled, averaging career highs in points (14.5), rebounds (11.1), assists (5.3), and minutes (31.7). Shepard had six triple-doubles this season. Shakira Austin of the Washington Mystics and Dominique Malonga of the Seattle Storm were next in the balloting.
Janelle Salaun of the Golden State Valkyries was named Sixth Woman of the Year. She came off the bench in all 40 games she played this season and averaged 12.7 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 39.2% from behind the 3-point line. She led all reserves in scoring this season and the Golden State bench averaged over 36 points a game. Marine Johannes of the New York Liberty was next in the voting.
In other news, a local business group with basketball roots is eyeing a WNBA expansion team for Vancouver.
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