Aces Enter Playoffs on Seven-Game Streak as Fever Await in Round One
The short version
- A'ja Wilson leads the WNBA at 26.2 points and 1.9 blocks per game and is favored for a fifth MVP.
- NaLyssa Smith's season-ending left leg injury on Aug. 23 left the Aces with a committee approach at center.
- Las Vegas enters the playoffs on a seven-game winning streak.
- The Aces are 11-10 against other playoff teams and 1-2 against first-round opponent Indiana.
Las Vegas chases a fourth WNBA title in five years with A'ja Wilson leading the way, though frontcourt depth and playoff matchups raise questions.
The Las Vegas Aces arrive at the 2026 WNBA playoffs chasing a fourth championship in five seasons, needing nine more victories to complete the task. The franchise celebrated its most recent title with a parade down Las Vegas Boulevard on October 17, 2025, with forward A'ja Wilson holding the trophy aloft, and the same core group is back for another push.
Wilson anchors the case for Las Vegas. She paces the league in scoring at 26.2 points per game and blocks at 1.9 per contest, while her 9.4 rebounds rank fifth. She claimed every Western Conference Player of the Month award this season and stands as the clear frontrunner for what would be a record fifth MVP.
The supporting backcourt of Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray gives Las Vegas the only duo in the WNBA with two players among the top ten in assists. Young sits fourth at 6.8 assists per game and Gray fifth at 6.7, and that shared playmaking lets head coach Becky Hammon rotate offensive responsibilities depending on who is commanding the floor.
The frontcourt is where the concern sits. NaLyssa Smith, who had paired effectively with Wilson since joining midway through last year, suffered a season-ending left leg injury against the Toronto Tempo on August 23. The club brought in Kalani Brown for the rest of the season, and though she has performed well in limited minutes, the plan at center remains a committee arrangement at a point in the calendar when weaknesses get exploited.
Depth, meanwhile, has started to produce. Stephanie Talbot is in her best stretch since joining Las Vegas, scoring a season-high 14 points in the September 22 game against the Los Angeles Sparks and again against the Phoenix Mercury on September 24. Jewell Loyd dropped 25 on the Mercury for his best output of the year, and options such as Dana Evans, Cheyenne Parker-Tyus and midseason signing Mai Yamamoto offer more scoring potential off the bench.
The counterweight is inconsistency. Brianna Turner, starting at center in Smith's absence and valued mainly for defense, is averaging just 1.6 points. Talbot and Loyd have gone through scoring droughts this season, and even Young and Gray have had off nights. Opponents who load up on Wilson and contain the rest of the roster have a path to upsetting the champions.
Momentum favors Las Vegas. The team rides a seven-game winning streak into the postseason, having beaten Connecticut, Toronto, Seattle, Los Angeles and Phoenix along the way. While not a dominant run, it beats entering the playoffs on the back of unexpected defeats.
The record against fellow playoff qualifiers tells a mixed story. Las Vegas went 11-10 combined against the other seven postseason teams, including a 3-0 sweep of the second-seeded Golden State Valkyries, but carries a 1-2 mark against Indiana, its first-round opponent.
The Fever visit Michelob ULTRA Arena to open the series on Sunday, September 27, at 4:00 PM EDT, with the game airing on ABC.
Games to watch
