MVP is Wilson's to lose at WNBA's midseason mark
Natalie Esquire and Terrika Foster-Brasby check in on the WNBA MVP race, breaking down why it's A'ja Wilson's to lose at the midseason mark and how she has been "the standard" for greatness.
Video Transcript
Welcome to the WNBA on NBC.
Happy Wednesday.
Thank you for joining me, Charika Foster-Brasby.
'Sup, y'all?
Charika, you know, I had some time yesterday, and maybe that wasn't a good thing, 'cause you know when we have time, sometimes I will debate back and forth with fans.
And so I was just seeing some conversation on the internet that I, I couldn't understand, you know?
You know, but it's that time of year.
We, we, we start thinking about awards, right?
I'm seeing some people put out mid-season award ballots and things like that.
And so of course, fans, people react to them and, and weigh in.
And I would love it if these conversations could just be civil, and I would love it if, if we disagree that I don't have to be an idiot and not watch games and not know what I'm doing.
Mm-hmm.
But this is where we are.
And so you know the conversation, the main one that everyone gets into, Charika, is the MVP.
And, you know, it's interesting because at least at this point in the season- Yeah I mean, I think there's a, a clear front-runner for m- for MVP, uh- Yeah you know?
And so look, these are the odds right now that Vegas is giving us, and A'ja Wilson leading the pack by a pretty wide margin, you know?
And then Paige Bueckers, Olivia Malise, Caitlin Clark, Breanna Stewart, and some others, right?
And so this is what Vegas is saying.
I don't know about some of these lines, like if I completely agree with Vegas.
But I, I think definitely some of the names on this list are players that I'm considering.
If I were voting today, they would be on my ballot.
So these are the four players for me right now that I would say I, I would give the most consideration to for MVP.
Charika, where, where do you land in terms of, like, just the players you're considering?
Is it these same four?
It's the same four, and ironically, it's the same four in the order that you have them listed.
Yeah.
Like, that, that is where I am.
I do think there are some cases that can still be made with some additional people that Vegas has up there as the season progresses, because nothing's official right now.
Like, it's literally July, so there's still so much left in the season for people to make cases for.
I mean, this time last year, I think everybody just knew Napheesa Collier would be the MVP, and then the second half of the season happened, and people remembered, oh, wait a minute, A'ja Wilson still exists.
So I think it's just, it's early, but it's fun to have these conversations right now.
For sure.
And, you know, we'll, we'll dig into these potential, MVP ca- candidates, but, you know, again, this is always fluid, so when we have this conversation right now, people, just please remember that this is fluid.
It can change.
And, like, yeah, like, I love that you brought up the point last year with Napheesa, because at this point last year, I think she was the clear front-runner too, and things did change.
And, you know, I know that the Las Vegas Aces and their team took it as people were forgetting about A'ja.
I don't think that it was, but the A's, the Aces had, like, a rocky season to start last season.
Yeah.
But they closed the season on an incredible run, right?
A lot of things had to happen, so obviously A'ja's play was always great, but the team was performing better.
They moved up the standings, and Napheesa Collier got hurt and missed a lot of games.
And while there is no official games played requirement, for many, that took her out of the running for them, depending on w- what your voting philosophy is.
And so- Yeah I hope we don't have any injuries or anything like that, but things can change, you know, and players can move up and down in this conversation.
And so, but right now it's, it's A'ja Wilson's award to lose, right now, based on this point in the season.
And at least what Vegas is saying, it's A'ja and everyone else, you know?
And I- Yeah I don't know what else we can say about A'ja Wilson.
I mean, if she were to win, she already has the most MVPs in league history, Charika, so if she were to win, I mean, my goodness, it'd be an unprecedented five MVPs, and she's still not even 30 yet, right?
Yeah.
We saw the numbers.
She's leading the league in scoring.
She leads the league in blocks.
She's almost averaging a double double.
I mean, and her team is number two in the league, but they're just a game behind the Minnesota Lynx, right?
There's not a big gap between them, and they actually beat the Minnesota Lynx this year, one of the few teams to do it.
So, you know, I- it's just really hard to argue against A'ja Wilson being the, the, the MVP.
And there, there is an argument that some have made that, like, w- whether it's voter fatigue or that A'ja's a boring case, and I hope that means that people would not deny voting for her because they think that or But to me, sustained greatness is not boring, Charika.
I love it.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And every time I watch A'ja Wilson play, I'm in awe.
So, you know, I think her greatness demands this, at least right now on this day if I was voting, and, she should be rewarded for her play should it sustain like this and, and, and everyone's play sort of play out like this for the rest of the season.
No, I would 100% agree with, I would p- I would agree with the majority of that.
It blows my mind how many people wanna use this I, let me back up I remember so long how long LeBron James in the NBA was, like, that guy.
But when you look at how many MVPs they have compared to how many great years he has, they don't match.
You know why they don't match?
They don't match because people like to throw out this narrative that because someone has sustained greatness for so long, it becomes just them.
Like, it's just, it becomes the norm of it being, "Oh, that's just them, that's just who they are, that's just how they play."
And that's not normal.
Like, that, and it, like, that is the thing that I think some people completely miss, and that argument lasts with A'ja Wilson.
Like, it, again, it's like we've become so accustomed to their greatness, and we've become so accustomed to the fact that she can average 25, 11, and three blocks and two steals, that instead of saying, like, "This is an MVP-type season," we say, "Well, that's just A'ja," right?
Like, "That's just how A'ja is."
No!
Like, that is incredible basketball, and we have got to, like, we have got to continue to recognize incredible basketball so the standard doesn't fall.
A'ja Wilson is the standard, and I think she's gonna continue to lead the MVP race as long as she s- still plays as one of the most dominant two-way players.
Like, regardless of, you know, where this team ranks defensively is, I know that has been something that's come up, I'm one that thinks MVP is an individual accolade, and as long as she's producing at an elite level on the offensive end, remains one of the best defenders in the WNBA, and continues to have Las Vegas at the top of the standings, they don't necessarily have to be number one, but I mean, if they're at the top, her impact on winning far surpasses specifically any box score or any, you know, anything that any player is doing on a consistent level.
No one's doing it like A'ja.
So for me, like, she's clearly leading the MB- MVP conversation today.
But again, this is fluid and anything can happen, so Absolutely.
Yeah, and I, I think, like you and I, our voting philosophies differ in some ways.
I weigh winning pretty heavily.
Even though these are individual awards, to me they're, they're tied together.
And, also, like, you know, like, the d- defense, we've talked about the Aces defense, it needs to improve.
But if- Yeah you know, for me, that wouldn't impact her for MVP.
Overall she's having an amazing season.
That would impact- Yeah you know, for me, like, a something like a Defensive Player of the Year award, which people have said she's in that conversation or leading it as well.
And so- Right you know, but that's what people need to understand.
People view things differently and weigh things- Yeah you know, differently.
And also- And can I just say really quick, to, so that, so that you don't lose that point, is you view we- winning heavily, I view winning as a separator.
It's not the foundation of what I'm looking for.
It's if I'm neck and neck, I then look at winning, but it's not top of the list for me.
I just wanted to e- Yeah, for sure.
To, to- The last thing I'll just say about voting philosophy is that MVP means a different thing to different people in general.
So, like, that LeBron argument, honestly, I hate hearing it.
Like, I, like, I'm not one of these people- Me too.
Terrible who thinks he should've had it all those years, right?
And so, you could say the same thing about Jordan and lots of other players, right?
Like, MVP doesn't equal best player, not to me.
But that's what for some people it is, you know?
And so that's why But I don't, I don't actually think A'ja is, like, analogous to LeBron.
Like, I think, like, there are cases where, like this, A'ja's stats are so ahead of everyone else's.
It's like, you know, there are years where her numbers, like, you know, her and Breanna Stewart may have had comparable numbers, or there was something going on, like, you know, where the numbers looked more analogous and so you could kinda debate, like, is Stewie having a better season?
Is A'ja having a better season?
The year that Alyssa Thomas got the most first place votes, is she having a better season?
And also what- Number one I know a lot of people factored in that year was, you know, the load that Alyssa Thomas had to carry, right?
But I don't think anyone was ever saying that Alyssa Thomas was the best player in the league, but they thought she was having the, the, an MVP season.
But so were, like, other players.
And so that's why it's like these philosophies differ, and what's happening in a season with a team can affect those things
