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WNBA Season Preview 2019: Las Vegas Aces are ready to break out

By Brendon Kleen

LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 5: A'ja Wilson #22 of the Las Vegas Aces shoots a free throw during the game against the Chicago Sky on July 5, 2018 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by David Becker/NBAE via Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 5: A'ja Wilson #22 of the Las Vegas Aces shoots a free throw during the game against the Chicago Sky on July 5, 2018 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by David Becker/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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As we continue to preview the 2019 WNBA season, next up are the Las Vegas Aces, everyone’s favorite upstart playoff contender.

The conversation around the Aces’ decision to forfeit a game last season due to extreme travel difficulties that saw them en route for more than 24 hours overshadowed just how close Las Vegas came to a surprise playoff berth.

Or, maybe it shouldn’t be called a surprise. The Aces, through a combination of luck and smart drafting, have built a great team for the future full of exciting young players. They will be competing for a long time, especially with their trade for Liz Cambage, just a week before the season started.

Projected rotation

After taking Jackie Young first overall in April’s WNBA Draft, the Aces now boast three No. 1 picks in their starting unit in addition to the 2014 No. 3 pick, Kayla McBride. They are the WNBA 76ers, though their tanking was more a product of failure than strategy.

However, last season showed the impact of new coach Bill Laimbeer, who jumped from New York to Las Vegas to help build the group. It also gave us a look at what the league could be in for over the next 10-plus years trying to contain A’ja Wilson. The Aces are stacked.

Starters

G – Kelsey Plum, McBride

F – Young, Wilson

C – Liz CambageReserves

G – Moriah Jefferson, Sugar Rodgers

F – Tamera Young, Dearica Hamby

C – Carolyn Swords, JiSu Park

If I were Laimbeer, I would start to test the limits of lineups featuring Wilson at center and see how they hold up defensively. Rangy bigs such as Breanna Stewart, Elena Delle Donne and Jonquel Jones will challenge the Aces on a nightly basis, and the team has stockpiled versatile pieces to combat small lineups when their elite, two-big lineups with Wilson and Cambage aren’t working. Let’s see it.

Key questions

What is Plum’s ceiling?

Last year saw exactly the type of leap Las Vegas needed from Plum, as the sophomore cut her turnovers in half despite playing more minutes, upped her field goal percentage from scary territory to nearly .500, and most importantly became one of the best 3-point shooters in the league.

In order to keep everyone in rhythm and split defenses at the seams like this Aces team has the potential to do, Plum will need to create great shots, take care of the ball, and score efficiently.

How effectively can they go small?

Las Vegas was five points better defensively per 100 possessions last season when Wilson went to the bench. They will need to figure out if she can anchor a good defense at center, or if those lineups will be gadgets to throw at opponents on a rarer basis. Wilson boasts a solid 4.4 percent block rate, but Laimbeer clearly trusted Swords far more last year on the back line than Wilson.

However, after drafting Young, acquiring Rodgers and keeping Tamera Young and Hamby, the Aces are better-suited to play small than last season. Long-term, this question will matter for Las Vegas, especially as Wilson continues to grow past the 20-8 star she was in her first pro season.

Prediction

Teams ahead of Las Vegas last season are weaker, including Dallas and Minnesota in particular. That, coupled with expected improvement from nearly every player on the roster and better depth thanks to Rodgers, means the Aces are playoff-bound.

They will improve by several games and finish … with the fifth seed.