On May 17, the Las Vegas Aces tip off their 2025 season in a revenge game against the defending champion New York Liberty.
After coming up short in the semifinals against the Liberty, the Aces have now had an entire offseason to lick their wounds and regroup. To that end, they made a massive move that saw Kelsey Plum depart for the Los Angeles Sparks in exchange for former Seattle Storm guard Jewell Loyd, as well as reconfigure most of their bench. With new faces surrounding the championship-winning core of A’ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray and Jackie Young, the Aces are hoping team chemistry comes along early and carries them to the promised land once again.
For the Aces to be successful in their next quest at another title, these three storylines will come into major focus.
‘Starving’ for another championship
One thing that stood about about the Aces was how no one was happy about the way last season ended.
After hopes for a threepeat came to an abrupt end at the hands of the Liberty, the Aces went into the offseason wondering about what could have been. However, the desire for another championship burns brighter now, as the mindset of the team has changed from holding onto the crown to winning it back.
“The mindset is different,” said Aces head coach Becky Hammon during the team’s Media Day. “It’s not good enough to be hungry. You have to be starving in this league. New York was starving last year, and I think, every game, you went out and felt that they were the best team all along the whole season.”
While it is somewhat of a relief to have the pressure of the threepeat off and starting the season with a clean slate, Hammon emphasized the point that her team has only one goal in mind: bringing another championship to Las Vegas.
“We talk about dogs, like “oh, this person is a dog,”” Hammon continued. “I’m done with the dogs, I want the hungry wolves. Give me the wolves. We’re building our pack.”
In good health
One of the major reasons why the Aces could not find the championship formula last season was health betraying them at the worst possible moments.
Gray missed a significant part of the season and played the lowest minutes of her career since 2016. Wilson and Young also suffered injuries at points during the year, meaning the Aces were not operating at full strength for most of the season and the playoffs. All three players are healthy coming into the season, however, meaning that the core is ready to begin the hunt for another championship.
“Last year, I was barely able to walk,” said Gray about her foot injury last year.
“Today, I can just sprint down the stairs real quick, come back up. I feel good. When you’re talking about professional athletes, your body is your work. My body just wasn’t right last year. I’m in even better shape this year than I was last year, both mentally and physically.”
While the core being healthy is promising, the Aces’ depth will be tested early one. Cheyenne Parker-Tyus announced that she would miss most of the season due to her pregnancy, while Megan Gustafson is out indefinitely after sustaining a leg injury during training camp. Guard Dana Evans also missed the Aces’ preseason games with a knee injury, but she is expected to be available for the season opener.
“I think the most important thing is that I’m healthy, especially if we’re going into the second half of the season,” said Gustafson about her injury. “However long this takes, I don’t know, but I want to be able to be healthy for the most important part of the season. The timing isn’t great, getting hurt in the second day of training camp, but it could have been worse. It could have happened later on in the season and then I wouldn’t be ready for playoffs.”
A’ja ‘four’ MVP?
Wilson is on the doorstep of history heading into this season.
Winning the MVP award unanimously last season, Wilson is now tied with Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie and Lauren Jackson as three-time winners. Winning another trophy, however, would make her the only woman in league history to win the award four times, further cementing her as the greatest player of all time.
“It would be a blessing to have my name in that conversation,” said Wilson. “Every year, I try and be better than I was last year just to give myself a chance in this league because we’re getting better, we’re growing. So at this point, you just want to maintain your stamina, you want to maintain your mental, all of that, because the season gets hard.”
With Wilson in the fold, the Aces always have the opportunity to win another championship. She has dominated the league since arriving in 2018, and there is nothing suggesting that will stop anytime soon.
“She went and got better, which is hard to do when you’re already the best,” said Hammon about Wilson. “It speaks to her work ethic, her desire, and her mindset this whole offseason. We talked a lot this offseason. She’s a busy lady, but I can tell you what she always does is her workouts. She’s always getting her workouts in, first and foremost. She never gets her priorities jumbled up.”
