A’ja Wilson won the WNBA MVP award for the fifth time Thursday, becoming the first player in league history to win three consecutive MVP honors. The announcement landed one day before the Las Vegas Aces face elimination in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series against the Golden State Valkyries.
Wilson received 65 of 74 first-place votes and nine second-place votes for a total of 713 points, according to ESPN. Olivia Miles finished second with six first-place votes and 442 points, while Kelsey Mitchell, Caitlin Clark and Breanna Stewart rounded out the top five, per Yahoo Sports.
A’ja Wilson Fifth MVP Award: The Main Development
Wilson’s fifth trophy puts her alongside Michael Jordan and Bill Russell as five-time MVPs in major pro basketball history. Only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has won more, with six NBA MVP awards. Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie and Lauren Jackson each won three WNBA MVPs, and no other player in league history has topped three before Wilson’s run.
Wilson’s mother, Eva, presented her with the trophy. Wilson called the achievement humbling. “That is incredible to be listed amongst those names.
That’s basketball royalty. But also, this is the journey. I have to thank everybody.
Just being a part of it, it has not been easy. But just to be in [that] list … It speaks for itself,” she said, according to the Associated Press.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris sent Wilson a voice message congratulating her on the award. Wilson said she appreciated sharing the moment with Harris “through the phone call and the message of her delivering that I won my fifth MVP,” per the AP.
What It Means: A Different Kind Of Fifth
Wilson said this MVP felt distinct from her previous four. “Each one of these has not been taken lightly. In my heart, they’ve always been so special.
But this one here, I cried a little bit harder,” Wilson said, according to the AP. She added that the honor connects to goals she wrote down as a young girl that she never imagined checking off.
Despite the recognition, Wilson made clear her attention is on Friday’s game rather than any celebration. “Tomorrow, when it comes to hoisting it in front of the fans, I love the fans … but I doubt I will be doing that. I’ll be warming up with my team,” she said.
“Everyone in this room knows the competitor that I am. Everyone knows what my main focus is, and that is to get a game.”
Context: The Numbers Behind The Award
Wilson led the WNBA in scoring at 26.2 points per game, blocks at 1.9 per game, Player Efficiency Rating at 32.4 and Win Shares at 9.4 during the 2026 regular season. She shot 52.7% from the field and 86.4% from the foul line, becoming the first WNBA player to average at least 25 points while shooting 50% from the field and 40% from 3-point range. Her scoring average ranked second-best in league history, trailing only her own single-season record set two years earlier. Wilson also averaged 9.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.9 blocks across 41 of the Aces’ 44 games, playing 32 minutes a night.
Aces coach Becky Hammon offered her own assessment of Wilson’s standing in the sport. “Like I’ve said, ‘Take her off Mount Rushmore, she’s Everest.’ Now I’m taking her off Everest, and I just have to put her on a different planet. You can be a really talented and skilled basketball player and not win as much as she has, and not become individually great as much as she has.
She’s the most coachable player I’ve ever been around. There’s a reason why she keeps coming back better and better each year,” Hammon said, per ESPN.
Wilson has won three WNBA championships with Las Vegas in 2022, 2023 and 2025, along with two WNBA Finals MVP awards. In 2025 she became the first player in league history to win a championship, Finals MVP, league MVP and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season. The USA Today report noted Wilson dealt with a leg injury that limited her to missing three regular-season games in 2026, while ESPN reported she also managed back issues that kept her out of the FIBA Women’s World Cup in September.
Team Impact: Aces Facing Elimination
The MVP announcement arrives at a tense moment for Wilson’s team. The Aces trail the Valkyries 2-0 in their best-of-five semifinal series, with Game 3 set for Friday. Las Vegas finished the regular season 31-13 after winning its final seven games, claiming the No. 3 seed in the playoffs. The Aces are chasing a fourth WNBA title in five seasons, a pursuit that now runs through an elimination game just hours after Wilson’s latest individual honor was revealed.
Wilson, 30, was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 draft out of South Carolina, where she led the Gamecocks to their first NCAA title in 2017. She is also a two-time Olympic gold medalist, winning with Team USA in 2020 and 2024. Readers can revisit how Wilson has produced in previous win-or-go-home games in the Total Apex recap of Wilson’s 36-point Game 3 performance against Indiana and the preview of the earlier Fever-Aces Game 3 matchup.
What’s Next
The Aces play Game 3 against the Valkyries on Friday with their season on the line. A loss would end Las Vegas’ bid for a fourth championship in five years, while a win would push the series to Game 4.
Don't stop here
Every Score. Every Story. One Home.
Breaking sports, entertainment and news from across the Total Apex network, updated all day.
Get the Full Story →
