LOS ANGELES -- Getting to the top is difficult. Staying on top may be even harder.
The Aces' all-WNBA everything A'ja Wilson has been on the mountaintop for quite a while now. She's led the Aces to three championships in the last four seasons. Wilson has won four WNBA Most Valuable Player awards. She's won three Defensive Player of the Year awards. She's been the league's scoring champion the last two seasons. She's led the league in blocks five times. She was Rookie of the Year in 2018. Wilson has done it all in the W.
It's hard to stay motivated. What keeps her going?
"A bunch of things. I would say my family but also the youth," Wilson said before their game against the Sparks on Tuesday. "I think those are two big keys in my life that make me want to continue to be who I am for people who look up to me."
It's easy to get complacent at the top. Wilson won't let herself do that.
"Challenges staying on top? Having to consistently be great on days that you may not feel the best," Wilson said. "You have to really take on a lot. But it's nothing more than the Lord has put on me. He knows what I'm in. I know exactly what He's put on me to understand and tackle that. So I think just staying on top is being consistently great on days that you may not always feel the best."
Last season, the Aces won their last 16 regular season games and rode that wave to the 2025 WNBA Championship. Some would say they turned on a switch but Wilson doesn't think she has to flip one.
"A switch? I don't necessarily think I have a switch," Wilson stated. "Because I prep for moments. I prep to be in moments so they're very familiar to me. So it doesn't necessarily go off for me to be like, oh, this is the moment. I think I'm always pretty much trying to be in the moment as much as I can. And I prep myself to be ready."
Sparks/Aces tonight! So here’s pregame with A’ja Wilson. pic.twitter.com/cVmtpUhatS
— Rey-Rey (@TheNoLookPass) June 2, 2026
And ready she was. The Aces defeated the Sparks on Tuesday, 79-69. Wilson had herself a game with 25 points, 15 rebounds, five blocks, and three steals to help bring the Aces' record to a 6-3 slate. That 25-15-5 line is the third such game for the four-time MVP in the regular season and it set a record for most games with that line. Sometimes, it's easy to take for granted what Wilson has done because she seems to do it so easily and constantly but make no mistake that what we're all seeing from Wilson is consistent greatness. And A'ja has been doing it ever since she got into the league.
There was a shoe ad last year that had a rhyme that started with A'ja Wilson's on top top top, can't take her spot spot spot. It's very true right now. Wilson intends to stay on top for a long time and she's going to make sure no one can take her spot.
With that continued high motivation and preparation, A'ja Wilson is not going anywhere for a while.