The Aces Got Blown Out on Ring Night. Is the Defending Champion Already in Trouble?
The Las Vegas Aces opened their title defense on ring night. They got run off the floor by the Phoenix Mercury. That is not where the defending WNBA champions wanted to start the season.
The loss was bad. The score was uglier. Phoenix shot the ball, ran the Aces off their actions, and got real production from their offseason additions. Las Vegas looked old and out of sync from the opening tip.
The good news for the Aces is they bounced back. They have rattled off four straight wins since opening night. A’ja Wilson is averaging close to her career-best numbers. Chelsea Gray hit a game-winner over the Atlanta Dream on Sunday. The roster is showing its trophy-pedigree response.
The bad news is what the opening night told us about the league. Phoenix has gotten serious. The Mercury added shooting and length in the offseason. They look like a top-three team in the West already, which is a problem for an Aces team that built its identity on being the bully of the conference.
The bigger problem is the New York Liberty. Breanna Stewart is averaging 23 a game. The Liberty are putting up a league-best 100 points a contest. They look like the team that should be the title favorite based on the first two weeks. The Aces are no longer the obvious No. 1 in the league.
The roster math is part of the issue. The Aces let Kelsey Plum walk last offseason. The internal replacements have not stepped up. Tiffany Hayes is solid but she is not Plum. Becky Hammon is trying to rebuild the offensive ceiling around Wilson and Gray, and the early returns are mixed.
Wilson is still the best player in the league. That has not changed. She has won three MVPs. She is going to win a fourth. The Aces’ floor is high because of her. The ceiling is what is uncertain.
The Mercury matchup matters. Phoenix is going to be a problem for Vegas all year. Las Vegas has historically struggled when teams are physical with Wilson and athletic on the perimeter. The Mercury have both, and they got their first taste of running the Aces off the floor on the loudest possible night.
The Aces have ten days to make the next adjustment. The schedule eases. The opportunities to build back the offensive rhythm are there. Hammon has been here before. She knows what this team can be in June and July, not in May.
For the rest of the league, the message is clear. The Aces are still the champion. They are not bulletproof. The road to the Finals just got more crowded. Phoenix is in the mix. New York is in the mix. Connecticut, before they pack up for Houston, has been better than expected.
The WNBA is in its most competitive era in years. The Aces being the favorite was a given for three seasons. It is not anymore. That is the real story coming out of opening night, and the bounce-back wins do not change it.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
