A’ja Wilson and Becky Hammon Get Cheeky While Describing 2x MVP’s Defense vs Dream
Credits: USA TODAY Sports

The WNBA season has reached its mid-way mark and teams have started to make a push to secure a berth in the postseason. Last year’s Champions, the Las Vegas Aces had a rocky start to the season. But brilliant performances from star A’ja Wilson have carried the team back to contention as they currently hold a 15-7 record in the league. However, the heavy load of carrying her team seems to have taken a toll on Wilson, which manifested in a hilarious exchange between the two-time champion and her veteran coach during a recent presser.

The incident took place at the post-game press conference of the recently held Aces v. Atlanta Dream game on Friday. While Wilson led her squad to an 84-70 victory, the 27-year-old center looked exhausted. During the interview, the reigning Finals MVP acknowledged her defensive flaws in the recent games and admitted that she has to do better on that end of the court.

“I stunk today. I felt like on the defensive end I was not the greatest. I’m terribly sorry,” Wilson said.

However, Aces HC Becky Hammon was surprised by her player’s humble admission and disagreed with her strongly. After exchanging a funny look with Wilson, Hammon burst out laughing. Afterwards, she said “Her initial defense was pretty good…You know, she got her hands on a lot of balls, blocked a lot of shots.”

The last sentence left the Aces center grinning from side to side. She then said suggestively, “You know how I zoom.” This immediately sent the duo into a fit of laughter.

Later, A’ja Wilson posted a video clip of the interaction to her X account, even captioning her post “Gotta love some good D…efense.”

While Wilson’s comments are clearly NSFW, they are a welcome surprise, considering the No. 22’s reserved nature. Add to the fact that A’ja has been running full steam for the past three seasons and it only seems fair that she gets to crack some cheeky jokes from time to time.

But moving forward, Wilson will have her work cut out for her as her future goals are no laughing matter. The All-Star center has the opportunity to cap off the season with a three-peat, an MVP, and a possible DPOY trophy to add to her collection of silverware.

A’ja Wilson isn’t joking when it comes to winning at basketball

A’ja and the Las Vegas Aces have won nine of their previous 10 contests and are looking to extend their record[ 15-7] even further. Currently, the Navada-based team is sitting at the fourth spot in the season table with just half a game behind the Conference leaders, the Minnesota Lynx.

With their recent momentum, it’s hard to see the Aces not making a deep postseason run. But besides chasing their three-peat, star center A’ja Wilson will also have the unique chance of becoming the first player in WNBA history to win a third DPOY and an MVP alongside her third title.

While Wilson’s 26.9 points, 11.3 rebounds and 1.9 steals a game[per ESPN] puts her at the forefront of the MVP race, the Aces star will have a way harder time capturing the DPOY trophy as Lynx center Napheesa Collier has been dominant on defense this year.

Over the season, Collier has led her team to the best defensive record in the league [91.8 points allowed per 100 possessions] and has recorded the third-best record in rebounds and second-best in steals over 23 games played. On the flip side, the Aces have slid to the 7th spot on defensive rating [101.6 points allowed per 100 possessions], which might be enough of a reason for voters to steer clear of Wilson.

But on an individual level, the 27-year-old is doing just fine, coming in second in defensive rebounding[ 8.7 per game] and first in blocks made[ 2.6 per game].