Why Allisha Gray should be in the MVP conversation with Napheesa Collier, Caitlin Clark

The WNBA season is young, but as with any professional sports league, discussion of who should be the MVP has already begun.

It’s not uncommon to first look at the standings of the teams. Usually, the teams atop the standings are first place to look, as you can’t have a great record without MVP-caliber play. 

There are also the big names in the league, the players who draw the crowds, regardless of team standings.

Right now, the two players that come to mind under those criteria are Napheesa Collier of the Minnesota Lynx and Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever. 

The Lynx have the best record in the WNBA at 10-1, having lost only once on the road to the Seattle Storm. Their stellar start to the season is led by Collier, who leads the league in scoring with 26.1 points per game. Before the Lynx's loss to the Storm, Collier had recorded five straight double-doubles.

The forward has been an elite player in the league for years, but is on a whole new MVP/championship level this season. She’s also playing shutdown defense, ranking second in steals per game and fourth in blocks per game. She's also sixth in the league in rebounding.

Now, to look at Clark and the Fever. The reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year missed five games this season due to a quad strain, which didn't come at a good time for her team. The Fever are 5-5 overall (they lost three games without their superstar) but are getting back in it after Clark helped them hand the New York Liberty their first loss of the season in return from injury.

Despite missing five games, Clark still ranks second in scoring in the league this season (21.6 points) and first overall in 3-pointers made per game (3.6). If Clark stays healthy, there’s no doubt she will be in the conversation for MVP.

But there is one name that falls under both categories. And she should certainly be in the conversation for MVP: Allisha Gray of the Atlanta Dream.

Allisha Gray has been the driving force for the upstart Atlanta Dream

The Olympic gold medalist and former WNBA Rookie of the Year is quietly putting together an MVP-like season. The 30-year-old guard is third in scoring in the league (21.0) and has helped the Dream to an 8-3 start, which is third in the league behind the Liberty (the defending champions) and the Lynx (last year’s title runners-up). She’s also averaging a well-rounded 5.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game, in addition to 1.2 steals. 

Earlier this month, Grey became the first Dream player to earn WNBA Player of the Week honors since Rhyne Howard in 2022. The team is off to its best start to a season since 2016.  

 We are only four weeks into this WNBA season — the MVP race is only going to get hotter as the summer boils on.