Despite a slow start to the 2025 WNBA season, the Las Vegas Aces are showing why they’ve been a powerhouse over the past five years. Led by reigning MVP A’ja Wilson, the Aces have now strung together 16 consecutive wins. Aces head coach Becky Hammon has imprinted her mindset, which is evident in their production on the court. However, Wilson seems to have picked up on some of other Hammon’s habits lately.
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It’s easy to allow frustration to take over when things aren’t going right. The Las Vegas Aces began the season 14-14. That amount of losses marked the most in the franchise’s history since their inaugural season in Las Vegas. The standard within that organization is excellence; something that was not being reflected in their performances.
Regardless, A’ja Wilson understood her role as a leader. After the Aces’ sixth straight win on August 15, Wilson addressed the media in her typical candid fashion. The three-time WNBA MVP spoke on how she has been able to maintain composure. In the middle of her response, she used an analogy which caught everyone off guard.
“I told myself after the All-Star break to just let the game come to me,” Wilson said to the media. “It’s going to be what it’s going to be. If I try to harp and force it because I want this win so bad for my team, it’s like forcing a fart and all you get is s***.”
The WNBA world couldn’t believe the extremes of Wilson’s analogy. Her teammate, Chelsea Gray, who was beside her during the post-game presser, proclaimed, “That’s going to go viral.” She was right.
In a recent appearance on ESPN’s NBA Today, Malika Andrews brought up the infamous moment with Wilson. The Aces star couldn’t help but break out into laughter. For those wondering how Wilson was so quick on her feet with that analogy, she proceeded to enlighten the panel.
“In my household, we love analogies. We love just putting things together so people can get a real understanding. And I feel like people understood what I said,” Wilson revealed.
Andrews certainly understood everything Wilson said, but wanted to put the two-time NBA champion to the test. The ESPN host then asked Wilson to share an analogy that perfectly sums up the current state of the Aces. However, instead of sharing an original thought, Wilson revealed an analogy Becky Hammon has shared with the team.
“She was saying, lions wake up every morning, and they know that they have to be faster than the gazelle just to eat. And the gazelle wakes up and knows that they got to be faster than the lion just to survive. It’s every single morning you have to wake up and say, I want to be better just to survive and eat,” she said.
The entire team embodied exactly what she meant and has applied that to their approach. In some games, they are the lion waiting to pounce on their prey. In other instances, they have been the gazelle looking to avoid defeat.
It’s clear they have found the perfect balance at the right time. Now that the regular season is over, the Aces will take their momentum in their first round matchup against the Seattle Storm. This is the time where Wilson and Hammon’s analogies have to go from being just words, to a way of life for every member on the team.
