Aces Surge From Collapse to Contention With Dynasty at Stake

After dismantling the Seattle Storm in Game 1 of the first round of the WNBA playoffs, the Las Vegas Aces are one of the league’s title favorites alongside the No. 1 seed Minnesota Lynx. 

That idea seemed inconceivable just six weeks ago when, on Aug. 2, the Aces lost by 53 points to the Lynx and fell to 14–14, a game away from falling out of the playoff picture. 

Las Vegas has won 17 straight games since then, including a 16-game winning streak to close out the season, the second-longest regular-season winning streak in WNBA history. The turnaround has shut down plenty of the questions that surfaced during the season.

One centered on the team’s roster construction. After back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023, the Aces didn’t make the Finals last year. While the roster faced depth questions, the team decided to replace All-Star Kelsey Plum with Jewell Loyd, another veteran All-Star guard.

By Aug. 2, Loyd was having one of the worst statistical seasons of her career, while the Aces’ bench was last in the league in field goal percentage and plus-minus.

There were also some doubts surrounding head coach Becky Hammon, especially after she lost assistant coaches Natalie Nakase (Golden State Valkyries) and Tyler Marsh (Chicago Sky) to head coaching positions around the league. Las Vegas was below Nakase and the Valkyries in the standings with just over a month left in the season.

But Hammon made a key change in late July that proved to be one of the season’s key turning points. She decided to have Loyd, a six-time All-Star and the 2023 WNBA scoring champion, come off the bench July 27. The Aces have lost just one game since Loyd moved to the bench: the Aug. 2 defeat to the Lynx.

A’ja Wilson also forced her way back into the MVP conversation alongside Lynx star Napheesa Collier, who missed significant time in the back of the season, and Phoenix Mercury big Alyssa Thomas. The two-time MVP finished the season as the league leader in points (23.4) and blocks (2.3), and she was second in rebounds (10.2) per game. 

The Aces are far from assured of a title, especially with a now-healthy Lynx expected to stand across them in the Finals. But with the majority of the league entering free agency in the offseason (the Aces having just one player under contract for next year), the miraculous turnaround is at least a strong showcase entering the most consequential offseason in WNBA history.