With two near-triple-doubles, Chelsea Gray is holding onto a Finals MVP candidacy. Certainly if Jackie Young strings together some more big scoring performances, she\u2019ll be in the mix as well, despite a quiet Game 1. Dana Evans and Jewell Loyd were huge in Game 1 and, like Young, could re-enter the conversation with more big games as the series progresses. And, of course, the Phoenix Mercury could come back from their 2-0 hole and defeat the Las Vegas Aces, allowing someone from their squad to capture MVP honors.<\/p>\n
However, right now, A\u2019ja Wilson is on track to be the 2025 WNBA Finals MVP.<\/p>\n
The question The IX Basketball\u2019s Howard Megdal asked Gray after the 2022 Finals becomes more and more relevant with each passing standout performance by A\u2019ja in this year\u2019s championship round: \u201cIs (Wilson) on track to be the best in the history of (the WNBA)?\u201d<\/p>\n
At the time of Megdal\u2019s question, Wilson was 26 years old with two regular-season MVPs, a title and a Defensive Player of the Year award. It was a bold question to ask, but a relevant one. Though she hadn\u2019t been awarded Finals MVP moments before because of Gray\u2019s incredible heater, she had just completed the trifecta of winning a championship, MVP and DPOY in the same season. And what people often forget is that she was neck and neck with Gray to win Finals MVP; Gray\u2019s best performances that postseason actually came in Game 2 of the first round and Games 3 and 4 of the semis.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, it was a relevant question because Wilson had started to turn the corner on passing Breanna Stewart as the best player in the world. 2022 was the first season that a healthy Stewart in her prime did not win the championship and Finals MVP. Wilson and the Aces defeated her Seattle Storm in the semifinals in four games. After the Aces won it all, Wilson had more regular-season MVP awards than Stewart, and the title to back it up.<\/p>\n
Stewart had seemed destined to, by the end of her career, surpass Diana Taurasi as the women\u2019s basketball GOAT. Megdal\u2019s question sparked the thought that perhaps Wilson was taking the title of GOAT-in-waiting from her.<\/p>\n
The difference between where Stewart was then and where Wilson is now is that A\u2019ja may not be \u201cin-waiting.\u201d<\/p>\n
Taurasi played 20 seasons, retiring after last year. Wilson has played eight. The obvious thing that stands out is that Wilson already has four regular-season MVPs (more than anyone ever); despite all of her greatness, Taurasi only won one. It\u2019s fair to not hold that against Taurasi because even if you\u2019re not the best every season, you can be in the mix to be the best more than anyone else, which she was. But it\u2019s going to be equally fair to not hold Wilson accountable if, perhaps, she doesn\u2019t break Taurasi\u2019s total points record, because taller players (Wilson has four inches on Taurasi) don\u2019t typically have the same longevity as shorter players.<\/p>\n
With all that being said, why not consider A\u2019ja the GOAT right now? If she\u2019s even just pretty good over the remainder of her career\u2014and we know she will be more than that\u2014she\u2019s got it sewn up, right? I mean, think about the defense. She now has three DPOYs; Taurasi was nowhere near as good on that end of the floor.<\/p>\n
What it may come down to, to reduce doubt about A\u2019ja being the clear-cut best, is championships and Finals MVPs. If Wilson captures both this year, she will match Taurasi with three and two, respectively, with a long way to go.<\/p>\n
To leave no doubt, Wilson will try to catch the all-time greats who have more titles and\/or Finals MVPs than Taurasi. Cynthia Cooper has four titles and won MVP in each series. Maya Moore has four rings and one Finals MVP. Sheryl Swoopes has four chips, but Cooper took all the MVP awards during the duo\u2019s Houston Comet dynasty days. And then there\u2019s Stewart, who currently matches Taurasi and what Wilson is seeking with three and two.<\/p>\n
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