This season has been a roller coaster for the Aces. Struggling to incorporate new pieces and make up for the loss of key players from the 2022 and 2023 championship teams, the Aces got off to an uninspiring start. For too long, it seemed that the Aces’ era of dominance was over and they would struggle to even make the playoffs.
Led by A’ja Wilson, who continues to put up MVP-level numbers, the Aces turned things around. With an 83-61 win over the Phoenix Mercury, the Aces extended their longest win streak of the season to nine. They have won twelve of their last fifteen games, rapidly climbing in the standings. Having overtaken the Liberty and Mercury, the Aces now sit in third place and look ready to compete for homecourt advantage in the playoffs.
The team has taken massive strides compared to earlier in the season and looks much more like the team fans got used to a few seasons ago despite some new faces. Becky Hammon still has her eyes set on more success, though.
“I still think offensively this team has more in it,” Hammon said after the win over Phoenix. “I think we’re not playing our best basketball yet.”
If the Aces can get to yet another level, they could cause some serious trouble for teams that emerged as contenders earlier in the season.
The Aces successfully solved their biggest issues
Las Vegas was bothered by a few consistent issues earlier in the season: few players outside of A’ja Wilson impressed offensively, the frontcourt rotation was too thin, and the team wasn’t locked in defensively.
Trading for NaLyssa Smith solved the second issue, allowing Hammon to replace Kiah Stokes with an impactful scorer. Jewell Loyd has been much more productive since Hammon agreed to move her to the bench, and Chelsea Gray has been impressive as a playmaker recently. Coming into the game against Phoenix, she had totalled 34 assists over her last three games.
The Aces have also been more focused on defense during their turnaround. Over the last 15 games, they have only allowed opponents to shoot 43.4 percent from the field and given up an average of 81.8 points per game. Both of those numbers are top-five in the league. For the entire season, the Aces rank eighth in opponent points per game and field goal percentage.
The Aces are now in a good position to enter the playoffs with a favorable matchup. Only two of their remaining seven games are against established playoff teams, so they should be able to finish in the top half of the playoff standings.
The final three playoff spots are currently occupied by the Storm, Valkyries, and Fever. Indiana is without Caitlin Clark, Aari McDonald, Sydney Colson, and Sophie Cunningham. Seattle dropped off drastically compared to the beginning of the season, and Golden State is trying to make the playoffs without All-Star Kayla Thornton. While any of those teams can put up a great fight, they are the most favorable first-round opponents.