MVP A’ja Wilson, Breanna Stewart lead All-WNBA first team
A’ja Wilson #22 of the Las Vegas Aces high-five teammates, including Kiah Stokes (R) #41, before Game Two of the 2022 WNBA Playoffs finals against the Connecticut Sun at Michelob ULTRA Arena on September 13, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ethan Miller/Getty Images/AFP
WNBA Most Valuable Player A’ja Wilson was joined by Seattle Storm forward Breanna Stewart as the only unanimous selections to the All-WNBA first-team in voting announced on Thursday.
Wilson, a forward for the Aces, racked up 19.5 points per game to go along with 8.4 rebounds per game while helping Las Vegas finish tied for the best record in the league. This was her third selection to the All-WNBA team and her second time making the first team.
Wilson also won the Defensive Player of the Year award, making her just the fifth player in league history to claim that honor and the MVP award in the same season.
Stewart, the MVP runner-up, was selected to her fifth all-league team, and it is her fourth time on the first team. She won the league’s scoring championship at 21.8 points per game and added 7.6 rebounds and 1.59 steals per game.
The other first-team selections were Aces guard Kelsey Plum, Phoenix Mercury guard Skylar Diggins-Smith and Chicago Sky post player Candace Parker.
It’s Parker’s 10th time on the All-WNBA team, her seventh time on the first team. Diggins-Smith was selected for the sixth time, her fourth time on the first team. This is Plum’s first selection.
The second-team honorees were Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas, New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu, Los Angeles Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike, Sun forward Jonquel Jones and Minnesota Lynx center Sylvia Fowles.
Thomas and Ionescu were tabbed All-WNBA for the first time. Fowles is on the team for the eighth time, Ogwumike makes it for the fifth time and Jones has been selected four times.
