![\"Naz](\"https:\/\/platform.swishappeal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/154\/2025\/09\/gettyimages-2229156845.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,8.3395578129668,100,83.320884374066\")
<\/a><\/p>\nNaz Hillmon. NBAE via Getty Images<\/p>\n
When you think of an ideal bench player, what comes to mind? Probably productivity. Reliability, for sure. And, though they\u2019re a reserve, you\u2019d probably want to be comfortable putting them in the starting lineup once in a while, just in case.<\/p>\n
Naz Hillmon has checked all of those boxes in 2025. The fourth-year forward has continued to expand her game, most recently adding a consistent 3-point shot (she\u2019s made 40 3-pointers this season after making just one in her previous three seasons), and she\u2019s gone from being a decent depth piece to a player who is downright indispensable. In playing a career-high 24.8 minutes per game, Hillmon has also posted career-bests of 8.4 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists\u2013and that doesn\u2019t even tell the whole story.<\/p>\n
The Dream made big splashes last offseason by acquiring centers Brittney Griner and Brionna Jones, and though the on-court fit between the two is a bit clunky, the Dream have been able to make it work, mostly by staggering the time they spend on the floor. Hillmon actually spends more time playing next to Jones (15.5 minutes per game) than Griner does (9.9 minutes), and that\u2019s where her true value shines; she\u2019s typically assigned the quicker opposing frontcourt matchup, and she\u2019s deceptively fleet of foot herself, which largely eliminates the need for the Dream from playing too many lumbering, two-center lineups. To put it simply: Griner and Jones make up the walls of Atlanta\u2019s frontcourt, but Hillmon is the insulation, providing that next layer that isn\u2019t always visible but is just as important. She\u2019s everything you\u2019d want in a Sixth Player of the Year candidate. \u2014 Eric Nemchock<\/p>\n
Jessica Shepard (Minnesota Lynx)<\/p>\n
Jessica Shepard. Icon Sportswire via Getty Images<\/p>\n For a stretch of seven August games, the Lynx were without MVP candidate Napheesa Collier, yet the league leaders barely missed a beat. And that\u2019s in large part due to Jessica Shepard, who shined as she shifted from super sub to starter.<\/p>\n Shepard authored the signature moment during that stretch, delivering a 22-point, 11-rebound and 10-assist triple-double to staunch Minnesota\u2019s only two-game skid of the season. Shepard also owns the highest single-game plus\/minus of the WNBA season, as the Lynx outscored the Las Vegas Aces by 46 points in her 27 minutes in their historic early August road win.<\/p>\n Those statistical curios, however, ultimately serve as leading indicators of her all-round, versatile impact. Back in the WNBA for the first time since 2023, Shepard provided a reliable 7.7-point and 7.1-rebound output during her average of 20 minutes a night, starting in 10 games and coming off the bench in 25. Her career-best 63 percent conversion rate on field goal attempts not only leads the Lynx, but also the league. Her rebounding percentage also has proven elite, as she ranks in the top five league-wide by grabbing almost 18 percent of available boards when she is on the court. During the extended opportunity she received during Collier\u2019s absence, her efficiency and effectiveness impressively increased, as she shot almost 70 percent from the field while corralling 19 percent of rebounding chances in the month of August.<\/p>\n In short, Shepard is a trusted two-way talent for the Lynx, a cog within the league\u2019s best offense and defense who, when called upon, is capable of raising her level of play. That sounds like a perfect Sixth Player of the Year! \u2014 Cat Ariail<\/p>\n Dominique Malonga (Seattle Storm)<\/p>\n Dominque Malonga, defended by Aliyah Boston. Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n