Las Vegas Aces players huddle after a 117-80 victory over the Phoenix Mercury in Game 2 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff series at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Mandalay Bay Saturday, Aug. 20, 2022.
Friday, Aug. 26, 2022 | 2 a.m.
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Don’t ask A’ja Wilson for her thoughts about the bubble. She’s blocked it out.
The good stuff she’ll remember, like winning the MVP and leading the Las Vegas Aces to the WNBA Finals in 2020. Even getting swept by the Seattle Storm is a vital memory.
Everything else about the 97 days in Bradenton, Fla., is worth forgetting.
“I don’t need that energy,” she said.
A lot has changed in the near two years since the Aces reached the pinnacle but fell short. As Wilson puts it, “we’ve played a couple games. We’ve been through the mud.”
Going through that mud has meant exorcising some ghosts of playoff failure past. The first round was a two-game sweep of the Phoenix Mercury, albeit without Diana Taurasi, Brittney Griner and others, getting retribution from their semifinal loss to Phoenix last season.
The Aces are in the league’s final four for the fourth consecutive season. Getting back to the WNBA Finals requires completing another leg of the revenge tour: Knock off the Storm in a best-of-5 series, starting with Game 1 on Sunday (1 p.m., ESPN) at Michelob Ultra Arena.
“It’s a new year, new season,” said guard Jackie Young. “We just try to come in, focus on Game 1, not about what happened in the past.”
The past might haunt the Aces until they’re the last team standing. But this semifinal showdown with the four-time champion Storm could signal a changing of the guard in the WNBA landscape.
Seattle has been a pillar of consistency, missing the playoffs just twice since 2004, and winning two titles since 2018.
That 19-year run of success has been captained by 41-year-old Sue Bird. The legendary point guard will retire after this season, but the farewell tour is far from done. Bird became the oldest player in WNBA history to pick up a double-double, with 18 points and 10 assists, Sunday in a series-clinching 97-84 win against the Washington Mystics at home.
Bird’s vision has always been second-to-none. The way she sees the floor, Aces guard Kelsey Plum calls Bird “the human computer.”
“Sue’s game, her IQ and how she sees the game is crazy,” Wilson said. “Of course, we love competing against that because it makes us better.”
Jewell Loyd has been the perfect complement to Bird in the backcourt. The All-Star guard has reached double digits in scoring in five straight games, including a 38-point outburst in the regular season finale against the Aces on Aug. 14.
“They have great guards. Some of the best in the league,” Young said. “It’s always a good matchup when we face them. I think really, we’re just focusing on ourselves and trying to get the job done.”
Seattle ensured its bright future before Bird flies off into the sunset, while giving itself a chance to win this year. The Storm signed former league MVP Tina Charles in the offseason, and the 33-year-old has been a quality addition.
But this series will ultimately be decided in the battle between the superstar forwards.
The benchmark and the future of the WNBA arguably sits on Seattle's Breanna Stewart. The 27-year-old forward is already a two-time champion and two-time Finals MVP in just six seasons.
Wilson, the league leader in blocks per game during the regular season, will be tasked with slowing down the 6-foot-4 Stewart. The former No. 1 pick from UConn averaged close to 22 points and eight rebounds during the regular season, including a 35-point, 10-rebound effort on Aug. 7 in Las Vegas.
“Stewie makes me better every possession, just understanding and trying to figure it out, and I think it’s vice-versa for her, as well,” Wilson said. “I feel like we love competing against each other because we know we’ll play our best basketball and have fun while doing it.”
The Aces will have an important piece for this series that they didn’t have in the finals.
Plum missed the entire 2020 season due to a torn Achilles. The All-Star guard has scored at least 20 points in five straight games, including consecutive 22-point efforts in the wins over Phoenix in the first round.
Not that Wilson had to go at it alone two years ago, but having Plum reach superstar mode helps an Aces team that has become battle tested in a short time.
“I think we’ve handled our composure and who we are, and staying with it great this season,” Wilson said. “That’s the difference, especially when you’re playing against a Seattle team that’s been together for a long time, that’s won together for a long time. They know how to dictate things, and at the same time, you’ve got to be composed.”
Aces-Storm schedule: Best-of-5
Game 1 (at Las Vegas): Aug. 28 (1 p.m.)
Game 2 (at Las Vegas): Aug. 31 (7 p.m.)
Game 3 (at Seattle): Sept. 4 (Noon)
*Game 4 (at Seattle): Sept. 6 (TBD)
*Game 5 (at Las Vegas): Sept. 8 (TBD)
*if necessary
Danny Webster can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Danny on Twitter at twitter.com/DannyWebster21.
