The defending champion Las Vegas Aces will host the Phoenix Mercury in a Saturday matinee to launch the 2026 WNBA season, renewing the rivalry from last year’s Finals series.
Las Vegas enters the new campaign looking to build on its third title in four seasons, powered by A’ja Wilson—the reigning MVP who claimed her fourth such honor in 2025. Wilson’s latest MVP award moved her past Lisa Leslie, Sheryl Swoopes, and Lauren Jackson for the most in league history. Now, in 2026, she has a chance to become the first player ever to win the award in three straight seasons.
Despite the rise of many young stars across the league, Wilson, entering her ninth year, is determined to stay at the forefront. She told the Las Vegas Review-Journal, “I like proving people wrong. I like to let people just burn because me and my team are doing great, or they never could have imagined it could have been me in this situation or my team in this situation.”
In 2025, Wilson averaged 23.4 points, 10.2 rebounds, and matched a career-best 3.1 assists per game. During the playoffs, she earned Finals MVP honors while posting averages of 26.8 points—her highest in seven postseason appearances—along with 10 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 2.5 blocks, and 2.1 steals. She closed out the Aces’ four-game sweep of Phoenix with back-to-back games of 34 and 31 points, ending the Mercury’s surprising postseason run.
Phoenix, which entered the playoffs as the No. 4 seed, stunned the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx in the semifinals (3-1) before falling to the Aces. The Mercury will again lean on a veteran core. Kahleah Copper, a 10-year veteran, averaged 17.8 points during the playoffs. DeWanna Bonner, now in her 18th season, delivered two double-doubles in the Finals, while 12-year veteran Alyssa Thomas recorded three double-doubles in the series and a triple-double in the title-clinching game.
Speaking at the Mercury’s media day on Wednesday, Thomas noted that the playoff experience provided invaluable lessons for the team’s younger players. “We had a lot of people on our team who were … first time going through playoffs,” she said. “I don’t think you can prepare people enough for how hard playoffs is.”
Among those young contributors, Phoenix welcomes back Monique Akoa Makani, who started regularly as a rookie last season. Makani will be part of a Mercury backcourt tasked with slowing Las Vegas’ perimeter group, which includes Jackie Young, Chelsea Gray, Jewell Loyd, and offseason addition Chennedy Carter.
