Seeing the Aces win a third championship in four years wasn’t on many people’s bingo cards after the start Las Vegas had to the season. The Aces obviously struggled to maximize Jewell Loyd, and the Kelsey Plum trade seemed to be aging badly. Then, something clicked for the Aces and they surged to the second seed and ended their season by sweeping the Phoenix Mercury in the finals.
A’ja Wilson, Jackie Young, and Chelsea Gray further cemented their status as one of the best cores in league history and the Aces will do anything in their power to re-sign all three in free agency. With a new CBA that could drastically change the future of the league and a wild free agency period coming up, there could be some big surprises, though.
One of those surprises would be if Jackie Young left the Aces. It seems unlikely, but The Athletic still asked the obvious question in a free agency piece in mid-October: “Could she be enticed by a team that wants to make her the No.1 option like Plum was a year ago?” The article also noted that Young was the only member of the Aces core who isn’t represented by Klutch Sports since she changed agents ahead of the 2025 season. Losing Young would be an absolute nightmare for the Aces.
Jackie Young is one of the two biggest reasons for the Aces’ success
Four-time MVP and three-time DPOY A’ja Wilson is the face of the Aces and the driving force behind her team’s success. As long as the Aces have Wilson, they will be able to field a competitive team. Wilson needs championship-level players around her to realize her full potential, though. Expecting Wilson to carry the Aces to more success without any substantial help wouldn’t be fair. In recent years, none of her teammates has been more impactful than Jackie Young.
Young averaged over 15 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal in all of the past four seasons and has continued to expand her game year after year. This season, she didn’t only act as the Aces’ top perimeter defender and secondary scorer after Wilson, but also took on more responsibility as a ball handler and playmaker, filling the void left by Plum’s departure. In the playoffs, Young averaged a career-high 20.4 points and 5.5 assists.
Losing Kelsey Plum was a tough blow for the Aces and caused some serious trouble early on. Nevertheless, they bounced back and figured out how to play without her. Losing Young would be a second blow the Aces might not recover from.
There is no indication that Young wants to leave
While it isn’t impossible that Young will pursue new opportunities in free agency, there is no reason to panic quite yet. It is very unlikely to see her play for a new team next season. First of all, there has been no indication that Young wants to leave and few teams will be able to make her a more enticing offer than the promise of winning another championship with the Aces.
Secondly, if coring still exists under the new CBA, the Aces will undoubtedly use that option to ensure Young sticks around. She is guaranteed to attract a lot of attention in free agency, even if pursuing her turns out to be a fruitless endeavour for other teams, but that doesn’t mean she will sign anywhere else.