A'ja Wilson Gets Emotional as Las Vegas Aces' Struggles Continue

The Las Vegas Aces have now lost four of their last five games and have fallen to 6-6 on the season. After Saturday's loss to the New York Liberty, Aces star A'ja Wilson got emotional, saying she's determined to get the team back to the top of the WNBA.

Las Vegas Aces forward A'ja Wilson / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Winning in the WNBA is an incredibly difficult task, even for a team that has won each of the last two league titles. The Las Vegas Aces have struggled early in the 2024 season and star A'ja Wilson is putting a lot of it on her shoulders.

Saturday, the Aces dropped a 90-82 decision to the New York Liberty, falling to 6-6 on the season. It was the fourth loss in five games for Las Vegas, dropping to fourth in the Western Conference standings.

After the game, Wilson was emotional. Even though she's averaging an impressive 28.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 1.7 steals per game, she knows she can do more from a leadership standpoint.

"I'm gonna go out there and I'm gonna try to be the best — I get y'all saying best player in the world, that's great, it looks great, but I wanna be the best person. I wanna be the best teammate. Because that's how I get the best out of my team," Wilson said.

"So, when it comes to wins, losses, when I tell you I break this game down piece by piece. I don't want to be great for you guys, no offense, but I wanna be great for my team. I wanna be great for this franchise. It is hard as shit. It is hard as shit. Because there are tons of people that want to break you down, great teams in this league that are gonna try and come after you every single night. When it comes to taking accountability, I have no problem in that, because I wanna be great. I wanna be great for my teammates."

A’Ja Wilson is quickly becoming my favorite athlete. This post game speech, just wow.

“I get yall saying ‘best player in the world,’ that’s great… but I want to be the best person, I want to be the best teammate.”

A’Ja Wilson with tear filled eyes

pic.twitter.com/z6IF6bGsAn

— Emmanuel Acho (@EmmanuelAcho) June 16, 2024

Wilson is in her seventh season in the WNBA and has been one of the league's top players. She's a five-time All-Star, a two-time league MVP and has twice been named the WNBA's Defensive Player of the Year. Wilson has helped guide the Aces to league championships each of the last two years.

But because of the early-season struggles in Las Vegas, Wilson is determined to get her team back at the top. Not because she wants to be remembered as an all-time great, but because she wants to help her teammates and franchise.

"I'm not gonna stop. I'm gonna continue to challenge myself and my teammates every single day," she said. "When you're talking about greatness, it starts with consistency. Everybody can be good here and there, but who can be great every single game, every possession. And that's what I'm striving for.

"It starts with me and it's gonna always be with me, because I have 11 other women in that locker room that I need to pull greatness out of."