The WNBA has seen several new-generation scorers emerge in recent years, including Olivia Miles and Paige Bueckers. However, if Caitlin Clark is to be believed, the toughest opponent she has to deal with is undoubtedly five-time MVP A'ja Wilson .
While expressing her admiration for Wilson, Clark praised her versatility and explained how her 6'4" frame, physicality and ability to impact both ends of the floor make her a nightmare for opposing players.
"Oh My Gosh! In the W, definitely A'ja," Clark said on "Not Gonna Lie Podcast." "That would probably be everybody's answer. She's just so difficult, just her size, her physicality, her athleticism. She can make a mid-range jump shot consistently; she can stretch the floor when she wants, can finish around the rim really well."
A'ja has unquestionably cemented herself as the best player in the WNBA by almost every measure over the past seven campaigns. Most impressively, she has won the MVP awards in 2020, 2022, 2024, 2025 and 2026, becoming the first player in league history to collect five such awards.
That means Wilson now stands alongside legends like Michael Jordan, Bill Russell and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the only basketball players to win at least five regular-season MVPs. Moreover, A'ja's accomplishment in 2026 made her the first in WNBA history to win the honor three years in a row.
From a scoring standpoint, A'ja has led the league in scoring for three consecutive seasons, averaging 26.9 points per game in 20204, a single-season record, followed by 23.4 in 2025 and 26.2 in 2026. Wilson also became the fastest player to reach 6,000 career points, accomplishing the feat in 278 games and surpassing Diana Taurasi's previous mark of 291.
On the other hand, her defensive resume is equally impressive. The Las Vegas Aces superstar has won the DPOY award thrice and led the league in blocks on six occasions. In 2025, A'ja became the first player in WNBA or NBA history to win a championship, Finals MVP, regular-season MVP, DPOY and scoring title in the same season.
Wilson made sure to bring her best against Clark and Kelsey Mitchell during the first round of the 2026 playoffs. She opened the series against the Indiana Fever with a 38-point, 16-rebound double-double before following it up with another dominant performance: 36 points and 10 rebounds in Game 3 to close out the series.
Those performances gave Caitlin a firsthand reminder of just how difficult A'ja is to contain. The Fever star explained that allowing a player of Wilson's caliber to find her rhythm early can make the rest of the contest an uphill battle.
"She's one of those players… 'cause we lost to her this year in the first round, when you let a player like that see the first few baskets go in, it's like, 'Ah! It's going to be a long night,'" Clark added. " You're gonna have 30. It is what it is."
Safe to say, regardless of the outside noise surrounding the league, even its brightest stars recognize that going up against Wilson is extremely challenging.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Nov 4, 2026, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
