A'ja Wilson had already seized the record for points scored in a WNBA season. And the Las Vegas center took advantage of the match against the Connecticut Sun to pass the milestone of 1,000 points scored in a campaign!
A symbolic bar that the best player in the world reached at the start of the last two minutes of the match, while the crowd at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas was stamping their feet with impatience…
The power of small things
A'ja Wilson then fired a shot from mid-range, in her backyard, to blow up the room and the Aces' bench.
“I really try to focus on the little things.”, she explains how she continues to progressat 28, after two league MVP titles and two championship titles. “Anybody can come in and say, ‘Oh, I want to win a championship.’ But what are the little things you’re going to do to get there? That’s what I want to do best. I really have to emphasize my offseason work and my preparation. I take time away from basketball, which I miss. So when I’m playing, I don’t take it for granted. My screensaver says, ‘Rest at the end, not in the middle,’ and that’s what I tell myself every day.”
Sure, the increase in the number of games in the WNBA seasons helped A'ja Wilson reach that symbolic 1,000-point mark, but the Las Vegas Aces center also validated the record for points scored on average in a season. Even if she played the last two games without scoring a single point…
Record for points, blocks… and rebounds?
With 27.0 points on average this season, at 52% success, she is ahead of Diana Taurasi, who had compiled 25.3 points on average in 2006. It should also be noted that she is also averaging 12.0 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and 2.3 assists on average this season, and that she is, in addition to points, the player who has the most blocks this season. But also that she is only two rebounds behind Angel Reese in terms of rebounds!
With the latter injured, A'ja Wilson should therefore finish the season with the most points, rebounds and blocks among players. Something that has never been done in the history of the league.
“It’s not easy being A’ja Wilson every day. It’s not easy. There’s a lot of expectations.”explained his coach, Becky Hammon, after his team's third consecutive victory (84-71). “The city is lucky to have her grow up. She has become not only an incredible player, but also a person who gives back to her community, who cares about the people she plays with and interacts with.”
Which will undoubtedly validate his third MVP title, even if his team is only 4th in the standings (25-13).
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Shots made / Shots attempted; 3pts = 3-pointers / 3-pointers attempted; LF = Free throws made / Free throws attempted; O = Offensive rebound; D = Defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = Assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Steals; Bp = Loose balls; Ct: Blocks; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the court; Pts = Points; Eval: Player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
