WNBA: Why A’ja Wilson and the Aces are ready to reclaim their crown

The 2025 WNBA regular season is closer than ever, and the Las Vegas Aces are primed to reclaim the throne after possibly their wildest off-season since landing in Vegas.

The Aces traded a centerpiece of their team, swapping out Kelsey Plum for Jewell Loyd. A lot of eyes—even more than usual—are on their superstar due to the launch of A’ja Wilson’s A’One Nike campaign. Vegas had a sneaky good draft by adding promising young guards that, after an acclamation process, could add to the team’s arsenal. All this leaves the Aces in a place of vulnerability that they haven’t been accustomed to, but not one that the Aces cannot overcome—and still achieve their ultimate goal.

A certified new star and rookies with potential

While losing Kelsey Plum may have been a Band-Aid rip of a trade, don’t make the mistake of sleeping on the addition of Jewell Loyd to this team.

While the loss of chemistry with Plum’s departure may be hard on the emotions, Loyd, a multi-time All-WNBA player, multi-time All-Star, multi-time champion and 2023 WNBA scoring champion, amongst many other accolades, is an amazing addition to an Aces squad that shouldn’t be taken lightly.

The Aces also went guard-heavy in the 2025 WNBA Draft, and while all three of their rookie acquisitions may not make the final roster, they have a nice batch of prospects to analyze. Aaliyah Nye, Harmoni Turner and Deja Kelly are three promising pickups that all had their respective standout collegiate careers, giving the Aces a lot of potential to look through as they prepare for the regular season.

A’ja loading…

Honestly, what more could anyone ask of A’ja Wilson after last season? Is there anything more she can do? Is there anything more that she can prove?

Coming off of a very historic 2024 campaign, A’ja is in a state of pure superstardom and it doesn’t appear that there’s anything in the world that could knock her off of her pedestal.

She is literally bigger than basketball right now.

This is bound to be nothing short of another stellar season for Wilson and the Aces, and the only true question is: How far can they go while the rest of the league has improved in such a short amount of time as well?

Playing their championship cards

While the Aces may have had an uncharacteristic ending to their season last year, it doesn’t mean that they aren’t still being hunted. Las Vegas still has their championship swagger, most of the same returning players, their Hall-of-Fame coach and their next-level supporters—and arguably the best hooper on the planet.

This season will be an interesting sample of how the next era of Aces’ hoops will look as the team begins the Loyd chapter of this dynasty. I think the Aces are still primed to be a top team in the league, and ultimately finish with the crown and the trophy once again.