Stephen A. Smith’s heart beats for New York. Born in The Bronx, he roots for every sports team in the city. However, he is making an exception this year, picking the Las Vegas Aces to beat the New York Liberty. The two teams are set to face off in the WNBA semifinals in a rematch of last year’s Finals.
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In the 2023 championship series, the Aces beat the Liberty 3-1 and became only the third franchise to repeat as WNBA champions. New York is gunning for revenge, but Smith doesn’t believe they can stop A’ja Wilson and her teammates. On First Take, the veteran analyst said,
“When you’re talking about the Aces being the reigning defending WNBA Champions… Having the best player on the planet in A’ja Wilson… Do you see the pride and fervor with which they play? They were struggling in the first half, they came back strong in the second half of the season.”
Smith noted that the Liberty beating the Aces thrice in the regular season gives them the psychological edge. However, he believes the playoffs are a different beast and even though he is rooting for the home team, he isn’t fully sold that they can successfully beat Wilson and the Aces.
This isn’t the first time the analyst has suggested that the Aces will complete the three-peat despite their underwhelming performance in the regular season.
Stephen A. Smith has been rooting for A’ja Wilson and the Aces
Las Vegas had an uncharacteristic start to the season, as they were 6-6 after 12 games, losing as many matches as they did in the entire 2023 campaign. However, despite their dismal start, Smith refused to write them off. In an episode of First Take, he said,
“I don’t think [losing games] is a bad sign. It happens, losses happen during the regular season. Aces are the reigning, two-time defending WNBA Champions. I’ve gotta see it to believe it that somebody is going to stop them, particularly with A’ja Wilson playing the way she plays.”
When the Aces were on a six-game winning streak in July, the analyst reminded everyone of his prediction and anointed the Aces as champions-elect of the 2024 season, saying,
“I don’t give a damn how the Minnesota Lynx, the New York Liberty, or anybody else looks, as long as the Las Vegas Aces are fully loaded and led by A’ja Wilson, ain’t nobody beating them. They’re going to three-peat, plain and simple.”
Game 1 of the best-of-five series for a place in the WNBA Finals between the Aces and the Liberty will commence on Sunday, September 30th.
