Background and career
A'ja Riyadh Wilson ( AY-zhə; born August 8, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Wilson played college basketball at the University of South Carolina and helped lead the Gamecocks to their first NCAA women's basketball championship in 2017, winning the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player award. In 2018, she won a record third straight SEC Player of the Year award, leading South Carolina to a record fourth straight SEC tournament championship, becoming the all-time leading scorer in South Carolina women's basketball history, and was a consensus first-team All-American for the third consecutive season. Wilson swept all National Player of the Year awards (Wade, AP, Honda, USBWA, Wooden and Naismith) as the best player in women's college basketball. In the 2018 WNBA draft, Wilson was drafted first overall by the Las Vegas Aces. She won her first WNBA MVP with the Aces in 2020, winning again in 2022, 2024, 2025, and 2026, making her the first WNBA player to win three straight MVP awards. In 2022, Wilson helped lead the Aces to their first title in franchise history, a feat she repeated in 2023 while earning Finals MVP. On July 7, 2024, in a matchup against the Dallas Wings, she became the Aces' all-time leading scorer. In 2025, she led the Aces to a third championship title, becoming the first WNBA or NBA player to win a scoring title, be a champion, Finals MVP, MVP and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season. Internationally, Wilson plays for the United States women's national basketball team, with whom she has won two Olympic and two World Cup gold medals.
Wilson was born on August 8, 1996, to Roscoe Jr. and Eva Wilson. She said on NPR's Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! that she was named for her father's favorite song, "Aja" by Steely Dan. Her middle name Riyadh came from the Saudi capital, where her maternal aunt was deployed in Operation Desert Storm. Wilson spent her grade school and high school years as one of the few black students in Heathwood Hall Episcopal School, a private school in southern Columbia, South Carolina. Wilson played a total of 119 high school games after making the varsity team as an eighth-grader. She averaged 24.7 points, 13.9 rebounds and 4.3 blocks a game throughout her high school career. She wore number 22 and played as a forward. After finishing as a runner-up in her junior year, Wilson led Heathwood Hall to the 2014 state championship as a senior. Her 35 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks per game as a senior made her the National High School Player of The Year in 2014, a Parade and McDonald's All-American, and the #1 rated ESPN HoopGurlz prospect in 2014. Wilson committed to play for Dawn Staley at the University of South Carolina.
Wilson played in 37 games her freshman year, leading to four single-game freshman records in the SEC and three single-season freshman records in the SEC, and won the SEC Freshman of the year award. In 2016 as a sophomore, Wilson won her first SEC Player of the Year award and was a consensus All-American, Wilson led the Gamecocks to a SEC regular-season and tournament championship. In 2017, Wilson once again led the Gamecocks to a SEC regular-season and tournament championship, and went on to win the school's first national championship with a stirring victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the championship game. She was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament. In 2018, Wilson had her best season statistically, and won all of the National player of the year awards. She won a record third straight SEC Player of the Year award, and was also a Consensus All-American for the third straight year. Wilson finished her college career at South Carolina as the all-time leading scorer for the school.
In 2018, Wilson was drafted first overall by the Las Vegas Aces. On May 21, 2018, in her career debut, Wilson scored 14 points along with 10 rebounds in a 101–65 loss to the Connecticut Sun. On June 16, 2018, Wilson scored a career high of 35 points along with 13 rebounds in a 101–92 overtime victory against the Indiana Fever, becoming the second rookie in league history to score 35 points and record 10 rebounds. Wilson was voted into the 2018 WNBA All-Star Game. Later in the season, Wilson was named the WNBA Rookie of the Year. She was tied for third in scoring. Her season performance almost led the Aces to the playoffs as they finished ninth place with a 14–20 record.
On June 29, 2019, Wilson scored a new career-high 39 points in a 102–97 overtime victory against the Indiana Fever. In July, Wilson suffered an ankle injury that kept her out for four weeks, causing her to miss the 2019 WNBA All-Star Game. She made her return in mid-August. By the end of the season, the Aces finished with a 21–13 record and the number 4 seed, receiving a bye to the second round, helping the franchise get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2014. In the second-round elimination game, the Aces beat the Chicago Sky 93–92; teammate Dearica Hamby came up with a steal and made the game-winning three-point shot from half-court with four seconds left. However, in the semi-finals, the Aces lost in four games to the Washington Mystics, who went on to win the 2019 WNBA championship. In the 2020 season, the Aces were championship contenders. The season was delayed and shortened to 22 games in a bubble at IMG Academy due to the COVID-19 pandemic. All-star teammate Liz Cambage sat out the season due to health concerns, but Wilson led the team to a 18–4 record and the number 1 seed, receiving a double bye to the semifinals. In the semifinals, the Aces would defeat the Connecticut Sun in a five-game series, advancing to the Finals for the second time in franchise history (first since relocating to Las Vegas); however, the Aces were defeated by the Seattle Storm in a three-game sweep. Wilson won the MVP award for the 2020 season. In 2022, Wilson would win her second MVP and first Defensive Player of the Year award, averaging 19.5 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.9 blocks while leading the league with 17 double-doubles. Wilson helped propel the Aces to their second finals appearance in three seasons, where they defeated the Connecticut Sun in four games, giving Wilson her first championship.
On June 30, 2023, Wilson signed a contract extension with the Aces to stay in Las Vegas. On August 22, 2023, Wilson achieved a new career high in points, scoring 53 points along with seven rebounds in a 112–100 victory over the Atlanta Dream. Her 53-point showing tied the WNBA's single-game record and was one of three 50-plus-point performances in WNBA history at the time. Wilson was named first-team All-WNBA in 2023. She additionally repeated as Defensive Player of the Year.
