2026 Las Vegas Aces Season Preview: Can A'ja Wilson Lead a Repeat?

Las Vegas Aces Season Preview: Can They Do It Again?

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Back-to-Back, A’ja for Five, and the Best Show in Vegas

They’re about to raise another banner at Michelob ULTRA Arena, and if you live in Las Vegas, you already know the script. The Aces win all the chips in this town. 3 of ’em in 4 years, with the biggest dawg in the sport lugging four MVP trophies, and space for more. I think she’s gonna get another one.

On August 2, 2025, the Las Vegas Aces were a .500 team that had just lost by 53 points. Remember that? Everybody was talking sh*t like they were dead in the desert. People were talking as if the championship window had closed, and they needed to blow up this team.

They kept receipts… Literally.

Then the Aces did what the Aces do. They ripped off 16 straight wins to close the regular season, climbed from eighth all the way to the No. 2 seed, and walked into the playoffs as the most dangerous team in the bracket. The first round and the semifinals both went the distance. By the time Las Vegas reached the Finals — the first best-of-seven Finals in league history — c’mon, it was a wrap.

A four-game sweep of the Phoenix Mercury. A 97-86 win in Game 4 that sealed another trophy for Las Vegas. A’ja Wilson averaged 28.5 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 2 blocks across the series, dropped 31-9-4-3 in Game 4, and became the first player in WNBA history to win MVP, Finals MVP, and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season.

The Offseason: The Core Is Back, and the Bench Got Better

Check this out, WNBA: the Aces wanna run it back. The championship core is still in Vegas, and the front office actually upgraded the depth around them.

A’ja Wilson signed a three-year supermax worth $5 million, which is the kind of contract you give a player you plan on retiring in your colors. Jackie Young became the first million-dollar player in league history when she put pen to paper. Chelsea Gray — the heartbeat of every championship run this team has put together — re-signed for three years and $3 million fully guaranteed. Jewell Loyd, who was the best in-season acquisition in the league last year, is back, too.

So is the rotation glue. NaLyssa Smith and Dana Evans both returned on new deals, and the front office added Stephanie Talbot, a 6-foot-2 three-time Australian Olympian entering her eighth WNBA season. Talbot’s big frame also allows Coach Hammon to run more of her small-ball sets when necessary, without a large drop-off in rebounding. Veteran rim protector Brianna Turner joins the squad with added pressure as the loss of Kiah Stokes creates the need for her to get in her defensive bag when A’ja gets a blow. Turner’s ability to anchor the paint during A’ja’s rest minutes ensures the Aces’ defensive rating won’t go to sh*t, a luxury they didn’t always have last season. When the pair plays together, Turner’s presence should allow A’ja to roam as a free safety—a role where Wilson is virtually unstoppable.  Chennedy Carter, the former Chicago Sky guard, is in on a training camp contract and is the kind of bucket-getter who could stick if she fits the culture. The Aces also lost Aaliyah Nye to the expansion draft. Another promising rookie lost to the turbocharged growth of this league.

The Becky Factor

Oh my God, Becky. Becky Hammon is the best coach in Las Vegas. Not “one of.” The best. 3 chips in 4 years. A deep playoff run in the off-year. Injuries, identity crises, mid-season blowouts, and a rebuilt rotation could not stop the woman from staying the course and guiding this team to another parade on the strip.

The 53-Point Turning Point

The loss in August didn’t cause a panic. Hammon steadied the ship, and the team went for 16 straight dubs. She tightened the screws, leaned harder into her stars, and trusted the work. The core was still intact. A’ja Wilson was still the best player in the world. These were Champions. The single best offseason acquisition in The W, Jewell Loyd to the Aces, started showing it’s value, as “The Gold Mamba” showed up off the bench. She got another Trophy too.

Vegas is a championship sports town, now, with rings and trophies across multiple leagues. But nobody in this city has been more consistent, more dominant, or more unbothered by the noise than Becky. She’s the standard.

Preseason: One Win, One Loss, and Plenty to Like

The Aces split their two-game preseason games, and both were exactly what you want exhibition games to be — useful film and healthy bodies.

The home opener on April 26 was a 94-78 win over the Japan National Team. The Aces controlled the floor from the jump, the new pieces got real minutes, and the building got its first look at the 2026 rotation. Talbot fit right in. Turner looked like a defensive plug-and-play.

The closer on May 3 in Austin was a 101-84 loss to the Dallas Wings, and before anyone panics, it’s a preseason game. The Wings shot the lights out, the Aces played a deep bench for stretches, and the staff was clearly experimenting with lineups. Hammon will care more about the film than the final score, and that film will be extremely valuable when the regular season tips off.

What I saw across both games: the chemistry is there. The core knows each other. The new additions don’t look lost, and their conditioning and health are tracking ahead of where they were at this time last year. That’s the headline.

My Prediction: Back-to-Back, MVP No. 5

I mean, I led with it. The Aces are winning the 2026 WNBA Championship. The roster is deeper than last year, the core has another chip under their belt with all the chemistry that comes with it, and Jewell Loyd is no longer the new girl. This team plays best when it’s been told what it can’t do, and there will be plenty of “they won’t repeat” content all season long. Good. They eat that for breakfast.

But then again, maybe it won’t. What dumbass would look at this team and not understand that there isn’t one better in this league?

A’ja Wilson is winning her fifth MVP. She averaged 23.4 points, 10.2 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.6 steals, and 2.3 blocks last year on 50.5/42.4/85.5 splits — and she did all of that while becoming the first player in league history to put MVP, Finals MVP, and DPOY on the same shelf in the same year. She’s getting better, not worse. She’s healthier, not more worn down. She probably has a chip about being on the all-time list, and there is no version of a healthy season that ends with her finishing second in the voting.

Mark it down. Banner goes up. Trophy comes back. A’ja for five. See you at Michelob ULTRA Arena.