A’ja Wilson wins record fifth WNBA MVP after three-peat

A’ja Wilson was named the WNBA’s most valuable player on Thursday, becoming the first player to win the award three years running and claiming a record fifth MVP overall.

Wilson, 30, achieved the three-peat after previously winning the honour in 2020 and 2022; this season she led the league in scoring with 26.2 points per game while shooting nearly 53% from the field.

She also averaged 9.4 rebounds, produced a career-high 3.2 assists and recorded 1.9 blocks per game during the campaign.

Wilson received 65 first-place votes and nine second-place votes for a total of 713 points from a national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters.

Minnesota’s Olivia Miles received six first-place votes and 40 second-place votes for 442 points, while Indiana guards Kelsey Mitchell and Caitlin Clark followed with 287 and 212 points, respectively.

Wilson has helped the defending champion Las Vegas Aces reach the WNBA semi-finals for the eighth consecutive season; the Aces trail Golden State 2-0 in their best-of-five series.

No other WNBA player has won more than three MVP awards, with Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie and Lauren Jackson each claiming the honour three times, while in the NBA Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holds the record with six MVP awards and Michael Jordan and Bill Russell each won five.