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The latest Aces championship has for some reason brought on a raging online debate about whether they are now in the conversation of best dynasties in WNBA history.
Please stop. It’s settled.
There seems to be a strange consensus of the Aces’ currently sitting a distant third in those rankings based simply on the number of titles. A lot of people must either be stuck romanticizing the past or willfully ignorant of reality to make a case for one of the other epic title runs in league history being much, if any better, than the Aces.
The competition
Sure, the Comets won four straight titles while the Aces have “only” won three in four years. But to make the case for them, one would have to ignore the fact there were only eight teams in the league when the run started in the league’s first-ever season and the skill level of the league as a whole was essentially what fueled all the jokes of chauvinistic detractors of women’s basketball that still exist today despite vast improvements across the board.
The Minnesota Lynx’s run through the 2010s is the only one that can really hold up to any scrutiny against the Aces.
That was a great team with incredible talent that won four titles in seven years and made six finals appearances in that span, though they never won back-to-back championships.
While both of those teams had great runs, there are a couple of key factors that separate the Aces’ three championships in four years.
And neither of them are local or recency bias, which are often strong factors in these types of comparisons.
Best the league has ever been
First is the level of competition now. The talent and perhaps more importantly the depth are phenomenal compared to even a decade ago. Things have changed dramatically.
The Lynx’s run was fueled largely by a core of four Hall of Fame players with few teams having any sort of ability to compete with that kind of talent even though the era brought an influx of very good players that helped build the foundation of what the WNBA is today.
Now there are stars and superstars everywhere in what has become a very competitive and balanced league.
That has also brought more eyeballs and scrutiny to a league that formerly had both the benefit and curse of being looked down upon with what often was a derogatory sense of, ‘Good job, girl. At least you tried.’
More attention and more talent means a higher standard. That’s a very good thing, but it also opens the door to a level of spotlight and criticism that makes it far more difficult to perform and thrive in the modern era.
In other words, one where the only thing harder than winning is winning consistently at a high level.
That’s why the Aces’ dynasty is now the most impressive in league history and, as they say, it’s still written in pencil instead of pen because it may not be over.
This year proved the organizational strength and resiliency that is the real hallmark of a dynasty.
Becky Hammon’s coaching staff got raided and rightfully so. She’s the best in the game, so why not hire her top lieutenants to build a similar program?
The roster needed a refresh and the front office went out and made it happen.
It wasn’t the smoothest process. It took some time, as has been well-documented.
But there was always a vision. The league’s best player and the league’s best coach, surrounded by a phenomenal supporting cast of both returners who had been there before and newcomers who understood how they fit in, had a vision of what it was supposed to look like. And they made it happen. Again.
Several of those players confidently predicted during Friday night’s victory celebration that they would see the crowd again next year for their fourth title in five years.
Could it end?
There’s no reason to doubt them.
Well, maybe one reason.
Remember all that stuff about the league being as deep and talented as ever? Of being the best the league has ever been and drawing so much attention and scrutiny?
All of that could potentially lead to a work stoppage, one that could be prolonged. There’s little reason to trust the league’s current leadership to manage the situation well, which could very well throw a wrinkle into the Aces’ ability to extend the dynasty, at least on a proper timeline.
That would be a shame. But it wouldn’t change the fact they now reign supreme.
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.
