Jackie Young and Breanna Stewart have two of the most stacked achievement portfolios in basketball — frankly, across all of women's sports. Both added a couple more big accolades to their cases over the weekend.
12 of the WNBA's best — including Young and Stewart — just spent the last couple of weeks representing Team USA in Berlin, Germany, at the FIBA World Cup. On Sunday, the USA won its fifth straight gold medal with a 97-79 victory over France. This tournament was one of the most challenging that the USA has overcome in a long time, and while every player brought something special, Young and Stewart were by far the most valuable pieces in this year's success.
Stewart was named tournament MVP for the second time in her career, becoming the first player to do so. Young, on the other hand, was the only Team USA player to score in double digits in each World Cup match. She was named Player of the Game after her gold-medal-winning performance. These are more historic ticks in the argument for each player's claim to 'most decorated women's hooper of all time.' Now, our goal here isn't to pit two highly impressive women against each other, but instead to highlight the history we're watching.
Breanna Stewart
- 4x NCAA National Champion (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016)
- 3x 5x5 Olympic Gold Medalist (2016, 2020, 2024)
- 4x FIBA World Cup Champion (2014, 2018, 2022, 2026)
- 2x FIBA World Cup MVP (2018, 2026)
- 3x WNBA Champion (2018, 2020, 2024)
- 2x WNBA MVP (2018, 2023)
- 3x EuroLeague Champion (2021, 2023, 2026)
- 1x Unrivaled Champion (2026)
You might be thinking, "When has Stewie had any time to sleep?" And truly, we cannot answer that question. For as long as many basketball fans can remember, Stewart has been a winner.
We've all heard 'win or go home,' except Stewart has taken it to another level. She has never lost a game while wearing red, white and blue. She's 20-0 at the Olympics and 26-0 at the FIBA World Cup. Oh yeah, and UConn's colors are also red, white and blue. Through all four years at UConn, Stewart never lost in a tournament game, resulting in four straight titles — she only lost five games total during her collegiate career.
Jackie Young
- 1x NCAA National Champion (2018)
- 1x 5x5 Olympic Gold Medalist (2024)
- 1x 3x3 Olympic Gold Medalist (2020)
- 1x FIBA World Cup Champion (2026)
- 3x WNBA Champion (2022, 2023, 2025)
With Team USA's World Cup victory, Young became the first athlete to win a high school state title, NCAA title, WNBA championship, 3x3 gold medal, 5x5 gold medal and World Cup title. This is likely a title Young will hold for quite a while — and rightfully so. She got off to a slow start for the Las Vegas Aces this season, uncharacteristically being held scoreless in back-to-back games. This tournament and new historic milestone was a great way for Young to remind everyone exactly who she's been.
After winning Player of the Game and claiming the World Cup title, she told TNT's Allie LaForce, "Basketball's a game of, you know, ups and downs... With how my season started, back in the W, a lot of people counted me out... just trusting my work."
While it's hard to determine exactly who is most decorated, one thing is for sure: these two players aren't done making history. Stewart and Young are both heading into the WNBA playoffs, where they're each looking to get their fourth title — joining an elite group of only nine other players to do so. In the offseason, they'll both return to Unrivaled.
Young will be looking to further her name in the history books by securing a championship in another league. Finally, I'd expect both of these players to be on the 2028 Olympic team. Perhaps Stewart is looking to narrow the gap between her and Diana Taurasi, who holds the record for most Olympic gold medals with six.
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