This story is part of FanSided’s Fandoms of the Year, a series spotlighting the teams, athletes and cultures that defined sports fandom in 2025.
When A’ja Wilson pulled up for a potential game-winning jump shot in Game 3 of the 2025 WNBA Finals, time froze. For any legend of the game of basketball, moments like these make-or-break legacies. Michael Jordan’s controversial shot against the Utah Jazz during the 1998 NBA Finals cemented his status as the then-undisputed greatest basketball player of all time. When Maya Moore hit a game-winner in Game 3 of the 2015 WNBA Finals, and stood at the top of the 3-point line to watch her shot fall in, she became a legend.
Did Wilson think that this jump shot, which everyone knew would go in, could make or break her legacy? It’s hard to imagine it would’ve, considering the 2025 campaign she pieced together after having already played one of the best individual seasons of all time the year prior.
But, all the cards were definitely on the table, simply because of how strange Wilson’s journey from a disappointing 2024 season with the Las Vegas Aces to their 2025 season shaped up to be.
Greatness was lost in the noise
Back in 2024, Wilson was in a contentious battle with Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart for MVP honors. She would eventually win that award by unanimous decision, a symbol of just how dominant she was: averaging 26.9 points per game along with 11.9 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and 1.8 steals. It was a no-brainer to hand Wilson the trophy, which was, at that point, her third MVP award in seven years.
But somehow, she was overshadowed by the arrival of a new generation of hoopers looking to respectfully unseat her. Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese took the momentum of the 2024 WNBA Draft and carried it directly into their respective rookie seasons. Reese was the best rebounder in the WNBA — yes, even better than Wilson — while Clark broke rookie scoring and assist records in Year 1. The Indiana Fever guard eventually won Rookie of the Year over Reese.
Despite Wilson — again — posting the most dominant individual season on record, her run was overpowered by more controversial storylines, like those pitting Reese and Clark against one another before they had even stepped onto a WNBA court. Wilson’s season was, almost unbelievably, lost in the noise. And it ended in a second-round exit at the hands of the eventual 2024 WNBA Championship-winning New York Liberty.
The Aces floundered with Wilson barely getting help from her supporting cast of Kelsey Plum, Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray. There’s only so much an MVP like Wilson can do. As Giselle Bundchen famously remarked about her former husband, Tom Brady, “My husband cannot f---ing throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time.” Wilson couldn’t score, defend and pass for an entire team while handling a juggernaut like the Liberty.
But 2025 presented an opportunity for Wilson and the Aces to rewrite the script. There would be no repeat for the Liberty. There would be no question about who was the most dominant player, or team, in the league. It would be clear from the jump that Las Vegas was extremely serious about getting another championship for Wilson and company to solidify their dynasty.
That’s not at all how the year started out, though.
A season that started sideways
A seismic trade that shipped Plum out to the Los Angeles Sparks and brought Jewell Loyd in the fold for the Aces did not appear to be a win-win, at first. Plum looked like an MVP-caliber player for the Sparks, while Loyd struggled with her shot and role in her first few months in Las Vegas. The former Seattle Storm standout and All-Star was relegated to the bench by head coach Becky Hammon, adding yet another bump in the road for Wilson and the Aces.
An earnest attempt at finding help for Wilson and the rest of the Aces’ core looked like a complete failure. Again, all of her effort to be both the most dominant individual player in the game and a winner with her team looked to be futile. And, the Aces’ record early on reflected a dud.
The team was 11-11 heading into the All-Star break this year, barely hanging on to postseason seeding while teams like the Minnesota Lynx and Liberty dominated atop the standings. That was Las Vegas’ home for the past few seasons. It was now in their rearview, with seemingly no way to return.
The text message that changed everything
Prior to the break, and at the trade deadline, the Aces made a move that befuddled some fans even more than their plan to ship the beloved Plum out of the city: They sent out their 2027 first round pick for NaLyssa Smith of Dallas.
Aside from needing help from the guards around her, Wilson needed a legitimate backup in the post so she could rest. Beyond the shortcomings of Loyd early on, Las Vegas was also left wanting so much more from bench centers Kiah Stokes and Megan Gustafson. Smith was seen as an option, as a forward, to fill in that gap.
Tons of moving parts and a need to rebuild chemistry led to that 11-11 start. Wilson was unhappy. How could a team rostering Wilson, a legend in Gray, a sharpshooter like Young, and an elite scorer like Loyd be struggling to even be in the postseason conversation? It was striking. The most harrowing moment of the Aces season came on Aug. 2 against the Lynx.
They beat the Aces by 53 points, marking the second-worst blowout in league history, and marking another slap in the face to Wilson and the Aces in their quest to simply compete.
According to ESPN, Wilson sent this text message to her teammates following that game: "If you weren't embarrassed from yesterday, then don't come into this gym. You're not needed or wanted here. We need the mindset to shift, because that was embarrassing."
Like a collapsing star, Las Vegas exploded from there.
The run that reminded everyone
The Aces did not lose a single game following that text. 16 wins in a row got them the No. 2 seed, one month after it looked like they might not make the postseason at all. They lost only three postseason games leading into the Finals. Loyd and Smith played pivotal roles off the bench for the Aces in both postseason series for the Aces. Las Vegas’ 5D chess moves gone wrong suddenly looked like the type of genius front office moves that would win Executive of the Year honors. (They didn’t, but man, they should’ve.)
Las Vegas steamrolled into the Finals ready to complete the 180. While Wilson’s final shot in Game 3 likely wouldn’t have made or broken that series — Las Vegas was already leading Phoenix 2-0 — it was a moment foisted upon Wilson in order to solidify her argument for being the best player in the league, and possibly in the history of the league.
Wilson was rewarded, at that moment, for her work, her leadership, her dominance in the face of the most adversity a superstar could handle. She breathes rare air regularly, and demands her teammates do the same, regardless of their surface-level talent. Wilson hit that shot, and, you know the rest. She went on to also win the Finals MVP award, making her the first player ever to win MVP, Defensive Player of the Year and Finals MVP in the same season.
It often takes years of waiting, and stewing, in the aftermath of a legendary player’s career to understand that they were the greatest of all time. Wilson is one of one: an active, living monument to herself every time she steps on the court. Privileged to watch her play is an understatement, but it’s the best way to describe getting to see her work — likely, for years to come.