SHOP NOW<\/strong><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nIn a city full of flashing lights and high rollers, they\u2019re the squad shining the brightest right now, with the best record in the WNBA (13-1) as we go to press. The night before our shoot, they had Michelob ULTRA Arena, also known as \u201cThe House,\u201d rockin\u2019 with a 31-point blowout win over the Minnesota Lynx. Afterward, a crowd of fans waited eagerly in the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino lobby, holding posters and jerseys and hoping to take flicks with the reigning champs. Drive down The Strip and you\u2019ll see that the Aces are modern-day rockstars. A poster of the starting five, including Candace Parker, hangs outside the arena. Nearby at the Aria Resort, there\u2019s an entire Aces-themed cake and \u201csugar masterpiece\u201d on display at the Patisserie, with a sign next to it that lists fun facts about the team, including: The Aces lineup boasts five US Olympic gold medalists in A\u2019ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray, Kelsey Plum, Jackie Young and Candace Parker. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEveryone talks about the entertainment side, but you just knew that the sports side was brewing, and to be a part of it is truly amazing,\u201d says Wilson. \u201cIt takes a village to build and grow anything, but when it comes to a sports team, I think Vegas really took us in. Vegas is my second home; I\u2019m not afraid to say that I love it here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vegas is now a certified sports town and has its WNBA franchise to thank for bringing the city its first-ever major professional sports title just last year. Now the other pro teams are catching up\u2014the Golden Knights just won the NHL Stanley Cup last month, while NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has hinted at an NBA team possibly coming to Sin City, saying that Vegas \u201cwill make a great location for a franchise one day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Still, there seems to be some confusion about just how impactful the Aces are. When they started the 2023 season with a seven-game winning streak, the internet compared them to the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors. After the Knights won the Stanley Cup, President Joe Biden congratulated them on Twitter, calling the hockey team the \u201cfirst major professional franchise in such a proud American city.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rather than diminish the Knights\u2019 performance, let\u2019s look at what the girlies have been doing for quite some time now. Plum, who was drafted No. 1 overall in 2017, has been a key piece of the franchise since it was located in San Antonio. She emerged from an Achilles injury in 2020 to become the 2021 Sixth Woman of the Year and is now an All-Star and All-Star Game MVP. Wilson was drafted No. 1 just a year after KP and has gone on to win Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, two MVPs the 2022 FIBA World Cup MVP and has been named an All-Star four times. Oh, and she also has an entire statue dedicated to her at South Carolina, where she won a national championship in 2017. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\nThen there\u2019s Gray, who was drafted in the first round back in 2014 by the Sun and is a four-time All-Star. She won a championship with the Sparks (alongside Parker) in 2016. After signing with the Aces as a free agent in 2021, CG got herself another chip last season and won Finals MVP. And then there\u2019s Young, yet another former No. 1 pick, who won the Most Improved Player award and was named an All-Star last year. Add in the fact that one of the greatest players of all time, Candace Parker, signed with the team this past February, and the squad has reached a whole different level this year. They\u2019re beating opponents by 20, 30 and, as we saw early on in the season against the Storm, sometimes by 40 points. Our four cover stars are all averaging double-figure points per game. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\nWith so much talent, how exactly does a team full of stars work so well together? Look no further than the set of our cover shoot. There\u2019s a confidence to Wilson, Plum, Gray and Young that\u2019s undeniable\u2014the way they\u2019re able to command a room and own the moment. As they pose for the camera, the four All-Stars collectively decide that they want to try a new formation, something no one else has done before on the cover of SLAM, let alone the past two WSLAM issues. In between takes, their chemistry is apparent, even if they might think no one is noticing. They help fix each other\u2019s hair, they have a lot of inside jokes and seem to always be laughing and chatting about something. At one point, Gray starts vlogging and recording on Young\u2019s phone; later, Plum jokingly interrupts Wilson\u2019s interview about the Divine Nine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First impressions are everything, though, and if they\u2019re being honest, it wasn\u2019t all laughs in the beginning for Wilson and Plum. Back when they were both playing on the USA Basketball U18 team, the two were roommates and didn\u2019t exactly vibe. \u201cWe did not speak to each other at all,\u201d Plum admits. \u201cAnd it\u2019s not because we [didn\u2019t] like each other, but you know, it\u2019s like a really awkward age. You\u2019re just kinda like, Hi…<\/em>\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\nFlash forward to today, and their relationship has grown over the years into a \u201cfriendship and a bond,\u201d Wilson says. They\u2019ve watched each other grow from top recruits to stars in college to superstars at the pro level. \u201cA and I, like, we just kind of been through it over the years,\u201d Plum says. \u201cThere\u2019s just a level of, like, what\u2019s understood doesn\u2019t need to be said, and I feel like that\u2019s not just in basketball, but in life. And we relate on a lot of levels like that\u2026I appreciate A\u2019ja because I feel like she just remains true to who she is, regardless of the circumstances. And a lot of things are thrown her way\u2014professionally, personally, things like that\u2014but she just handles it with grace. And I just admire that.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are moments when even those closest to you have to keep it a buck, and KP and A have been there, too. In Game 2 of the Finals last year, it was Wilson who told Plum to \u201cget her shit together\u201d amidst a rough shooting night. Real always recognizes real. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m gonna always push KP\u2019s buttons, I don\u2019t care how she\u2019s feeling. I don\u2019t care what\u2019s going on, I want her to be the best,\u201d Wilson says when asked about that game. \u201cAnd if that means setting a bar so high that I know she probably can\u2019t get to it, just like not missing a shot in a playoff game, I\u2019m going to [hold] her to that standard. I want her to be that, even if I see her dipping down or feeling like she\u2019s getting into her head, I\u2019m gonna always be the first person to let her know, I\u2019m not going for that shit.<\/em> Like, Wake up. We\u2019re in this together, and you\u2019re not by yourself. You\u2019re not alone.\u201d<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\nPlum lets out a laugh and dishes it right back. \u201cI mean, that\u2019s nothing new. I be yelling at her, too! Y\u2019all don\u2019t hear it in the press conference, but it\u2019s OK.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cKP always circles back,\u201d Wilson adds. <\/p>\n\n\n\nPlum, who was the second leading scorer in the League last season, has also figured out how to respond this year\u2014even when opponents are trapping her on ball screens, she delivers with elite reads and assists to her open teammates. As their former competitor, Gray knows that firsthand. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMaaaaaaaan, it was just a lot of moving targets,\u201d Gray says, when asked about the scouting report on the Aces. \u201cYou had to stay in front of Jack[ie]. KP was just, like, she\u2019s a bullet down the court. A\u2019ja can score in a bunch of different ways. If you have to just foul her, just foul her. I was just like, I just don\u2019t want to switch. Let me have my matchup, let me just lock in on that. <\/em>They just have so many weapons. They were really rebuilding, but at any given moment, they could just take off.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\nAnd they did. By 2020, the Aces finished with the best record in the League and made it all the way to the Finals. \u201cI was just excited to join some great athletes. I\u2019m here with people that are going to be in the Hall of Fame,\u201d says Gray. \u201cAnd I could confidently say that [about] everybody that I look to [on] my left or right, for sure.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The feeling is mutual when it comes to how they feel about Gray. \u201cBeing young in the League and having to guard somebody like [Gray], it was just tough every night,\u201d says Young. \u201cThe only thing I could do was try to get up and pressure her. But, yeah, it didn\u2019t really matter. It didn\u2019t matter because, I mean, she\u2019s gonna throw a behind-the-back pass, no-look pass.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adds Plum: \u201cPretty much you don\u2019t want to get caught on the wrong side of the highlight. I would just foul. Or when she turns her head, put your hands the other way.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\nPlum also spent most of the offseason with Young and saw firsthand how hard she works. While the guard out of Notre Dame might come off as being on the quieter side, her teammates admit that she\u2019ll just be in her own world, for real\u2014she stayed dedicated to putting in hours in the gym and conditioning. \u201cPeople don\u2019t realize the amount of time and work that she has put into her game, and I don\u2019t think that she gets a lot of credit for that. People don\u2019t really talk about that. I don\u2019t know why,\u201d says Plum. \u201cBecause there\u2019s a reason that people hit her and bounce off.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Young went from averaging just 6.6 points as a rookie to leading the team in scoring so far this year with 20.2 ppg (she\u2019s also currently ranked sixth in the W). Gray used to call her \u201cSilent Assassin,\u201d and it makes sense why: she\u2019s so lethal with the rock, whether that\u2019s from three or beating defenders off the dribble. \u201cShe\u2019s even talking and getting a little spicy a little bit more now,\u201d Gray says. \u201cShe\u2019s veering away from Silent Assassin, now she\u2019s \u201830-point Nugget.\u2019\u201d New nickname alert. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe all had vital parts to the championship run last year, and then now where we are today…Jackie is a huge piece of that,\u201d Wilson adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\nAnd then there\u2019s Wilson, who has been an undeniable force on the Aces from the moment she arrived. Whereas most rookies need time to develop, She\u2019s made an impact immediately by starting every game and averaging 20.7 points that season. Now in Year 6, Wilson is still bringing the heat to everything she does, all while ranking second in blocks this season with 2.2 per game. \u201cA\u2019ja [is a] whole bucket with personality on 10, but still hasn\u2019t reached her potential either. I think I can say the same about all of them, like not reaching their ceiling,\u201d Gray says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Individual talents aside, when asked what\u2019s been the biggest factor in the team\u2019s success\u2014which includes leading the W in almost every major statistical category, from points to blocks to both field goal and three-point percentage\u2014they each attribute it to something different. Ask Wilson and she\u2019ll say it\u2019s about accountability. Gray adds that they just don\u2019t take things personally. KP feels like it\u2019s two things, the first being that they each have that hunger within: \u201cIt just kind of permeates,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s just kind of like, Oh, Chelsea is on one today<\/em>. I need to raise my level. You know what I mean? Or like Jackie\u2014one day in practice, I\u2019m like, Oh, you want to be Michael Jordan today?<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\nThen there\u2019s how selfless they all are. \u201cIt\u2019s really easy to have an ego,\u201d Plum adds. \u201cBecause everyone is valid, like everyone could argue for why they should be able to get more, etc. And I just feel like people are just like, No, we want to win.<\/em> And we understand that that little bit of sacrifice is probably the most important part to keeping this together.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\nAs for Young, it\u2019s also their \u201ccontagious\u201d energy and the way everyone competes day in and day out. \u201cI think that\u2019s what makes us so great in general.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If there\u2019s one thing about the Aces that might surprise you, it\u2019s their take on the whole narrative that they\u2019re a superteam. \u201cWe were talking about it earlier, like people say superteam, super this, super that\u2026I\u2019ve never said that before,\u201d says Plum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI feel like it\u2019s more of the media and other people saying that, and [they\u2019re] more worried about that than us,\u201d adds Wilson. \u201cBecause our locker room, we \u2019gon keep it tight, we\u2019re gonna be us [and] who we are every single time we step foot on that court. So when it comes to superteams and all this big rah rah rah, I don\u2019t think we pay any attention to it, because at the end of the day, we have to perform at a high, high level, and we\u2019re gonna do whatever it takes to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe were picked fifth last year,\u201d Plum also points out, to which Gray adds, \u201cI don\u2019t [remember] what it was, but it wasn\u2019t top three.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Plum continues: \u201cNo one was saying superteam then, and we had the same exact roster, and we won. And then this year, you know, we add[ed] some pieces, but like\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur core is still our core,\u201d A\u2019ja agrees.<\/p>\n\n\n\nMaybe that\u2019s it, though. The sugar, the spice and everything that\u2019s nice about the Aces is within them. All of them, from 2022 WNBA Coach of the Year Becky Hammon to every single person on the roster. There\u2019s no secret formula to their success. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s also why people [are] always trying to figure out what\u2019s going on in Vegas, because we just really have fun,\u201d Wilson continues. \u201cAnd it\u2019s not for the cameras. It\u2019s not\u2014it\u2019s just who we are. We make it fun because it\u2019s our job, and we love what we do. But I think that\u2019s a huge factor [for] people like, What\u2019s going on over there? What y\u2019all got going on?<\/em> And it\u2019s like, we have fun, but then on top of that, we win games. So it\u2019s kind of like, what\u2019s the secret sauce<\/em>? We are.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\nWilson\u2019s words couldn\u2019t describe the Aces\u2019 momentum any better, especially as they look to capture another title and continue their reign as a dynasty in the making. Meanwhile, Vegas is hosting WNBA All-Star Weekend this year, and by the time you\u2019re reading this, many of you will be there, holding this very magazine in your hands as the excitement and energy buzzes all around you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After all, women\u2019s basketball and the Las Vegas Aces are the greatest show on earth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
We\u2019re tuned in, are you? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rise of a Dynasty. Exclusive WSLAM 3 Cover Tees are available now.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\nPortraits by Atiba Jefferson<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s late June and a windy 98 degrees, but that hasn\u2019t stopped anyone\u2014not the locals, the tourists or the Las Vegas Aces\u2014from turning things up. While others are hitting the slot machines, A\u2019ja Wilson, Kelsey Plum, Chelsea Gray and Jackie Young are inside the team\u2019s locker room, getting glammed up for their first WSLAM cover […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":424,"featured_media":782133,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49435],"tags":[11149,3912,62525,64372,18164,49801,65001],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-781487","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-magazine","tag-aja-wilson","tag-chelsea-gray","tag-feature-1","tag-jackie-young","tag-kelsey-plum","tag-las-vegas-aces","tag-wslam-3"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/781487","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/424"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=781487"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/781487\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":782241,"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/781487\/revisions\/782241"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/782133"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=781487"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=781487"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=781487"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slamonline.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=781487"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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