Dawn Staley’s bold Aliyah Boston prediction could come true sooner than expected

In mid-November, Dawn Staley said that Aliyah Boston was “on her way to being MVP.” While it may be a while until Boston truly enters the WNBA MVP conversation that is still firmly controlled by A’ja Wilson, she is making a very strong case for the 2026 Unrivaled regular-season MVP award. 

Boston is one of the most productive players in the league on both ends of the floor, and her team already clinched a playoff spot behind impressive performances from her and Kelsey Plum. 

Boston is currently averaging 19.9 points on over 50% shooting from the field, 10.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.2 steals, and 2 blocks in 18 minutes per game. She is one of four players who averages a double-double. Aaliyah Edwards, Monique Billings, and Dominique Malonga are the other three. None of them has contributed to as much team success as Boston. Moreover, Boston added a 3-point shot to her arsenal. 

Eleven games into the season, Boston ranks seventh in points per game, fourth in rebounds per game, fifth in steals per game, and first in blocks per game. She also ranks seventeenth in assists per game, but every player ahead of her except for Rickea Jackson and Alyssa Thomas is a guard. 

There’s a lot of competition for the MVP award

Last season, the MVP race was over pretty early on. Napheesa Collier was the most productive player in the league and led the best team in Unrivaled. This season, no one has separated themselves in the same way, and several players have a strong case for the MVP award. 

If Boston is a candidate, Kelsey Plum should be in the conversation, too. She leads the Phantom in points and assists. Moreover, the Laces’ record gives their stars credibility, even though Brittney Sykes, Jackie Young, and Alyssa Thomas haven’t really separated themselves from the rest of the league like Collier did last season. The Laces’ success has been a team effort through and through. 

Mist BC sits just below the Laces and Phantom in the standings with a 7-4 record, and Allisha Gray and Breanna Stewart also threw their names in the MVP conversation early. Gray averages 20 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal despite only averaging around 15 minutes per game. Stewart put up 19.7 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1 steal over her first 11 games. 

Other than that, Chelsea Gray should never be counted out despite some recent struggles, and Paige Bueckers’s and Marina Mabrey’s production also put them in the conversation. Their team’s records will hurt them, though. The Lunar Owls have the worst record in the league, Breeze got off to an underwhelming 5-5 start, and the Rose lost three of their last five games.