A'ja Wilson

A’ja Riyadh Wilson (born August 8, 1996)[1] is an American professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Wilson played for the South Carolina Gamecocks in college, and helped lead the Gamecocks to their first NCAA Women's Basketball Championship in 2017, and won the NCAA Basketball Tournament Most Outstanding Player award. In the 2018 WNBA Draft, she was drafted first overall by the Aces. That same year, she won a record 3rd straight SEC Player of the Year award, led South Carolina to a record 4th straight SEC Tournament Championship, became the all-time leading scorer in South Carolina women's basketball history, and was a consensus first-team All-American for the 3rd consecutive season. Wilson swept all National Player of the Year awards (Wade, AP, Honda, USBWA, Wooden, and Naismith) as the best player in Women's College basketball for 2018.

A'ja Wilson
Wilson with Las Vegas in 2019
No. 22 – Las Vegas Aces
PositionPower forward
LeagueWNBA
Personal information
Born (1996-08-08) August 8, 1996
Hopkins, South Carolina
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High schoolHeathwood Hall Episcopal
(Columbia, South Carolina)
CollegeSouth Carolina (2014–2018)
WNBA draft2018 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1st overall
Selected by the Las Vegas Aces
Playing career2018–present
Career history
2018–presentLas Vegas Aces
2018–2019Shaanxi Red Wolves
Career highlights and awards
Stats at WNBA.com
Medals
World Cup
2018 Spain

Personal life

Wilson was born to Roscoe, Jr. and Eva Wilson.[2] She said on NPR's Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! that she was named for her father's favorite song, "Aja" by Steely Dan.[3]

Her father played basketball professionally in Europe for 10 seasons. She graduated from Heathwood Hall Episcopal School in 2014. She attended the University of South Carolina, majoring in Mass Communications. She represented the Gamecocks as a forward in basketball.[2] She completed her Senior year at South Carolina. Wilson is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.

In 2019, Wilson played for the "Home" roster during the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game at the Bojangles' Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina. The roster was made up of celebrities with Carolina roots.[4]

High school

Throughout Wilson's high school career she played a total of 119 games. She averaged 24.7 points, 13.9 rebounds, and 4.3 blocks a game throughout her high school career. She was number 22 and played as a forward.[5] After finishing as a runner-up in her junior year, Wilson led Heathwood Hall to the 2014 state championship as a senior. She won the National High School player of the year in 2014, was a Parade and McDonald's All-American, and was the #1 rated ESPN HoopGurlz prospect in 2014.[6] Wilson committed to play for Dawn Staley at the University of South Carolina.

College career
Wilson at South Carolina

Wilson played in 37 games her freshmen year, leading to 4 single game freshmen records in the SEC and 3 single season freshmen records in the SEC, and won the SEC Freshman of the year award.[7] In 2016 as a Sophomore she would win her first SEC Player of the year award and was a consensus All-American, Wilson led the Gamecocks to a SEC regular season and Tournament Championship. In 2017 Wilson once again led the Gamecocks to a SEC regular season and Tournament championship, and went on to win the schools first National Championship with a stirring victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the championship game. She was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.[8] In 2018, Wilson had her best season statistically, and won all of the National player of the year awards. She won a record 3rd straight SEC Player of the Year award, and was also a Consensus All-American for the 3rd straight year. Wilson finished her college career at South Carolina as the all-time leading scorer for the school.

On Jannuary 18, 2021, as part of the university's observance of Martin Luther King Day, a statue of Wilson was dedicated near the main entrance to Carolina's basketball home of Colonial Life Arena. In a Zoom call during the ceremony, Wilson noted:[9]

My grandmother couldn't even walk on this campus; she had to walk around [it]. If she was here today to see her granddaughter has a statue where she once could not walk ... it goes to show how you just plant seeds, and that's what it's all about.

Professional career

WNBA

In 2018, Wilson was drafted first overall by the Las Vegas Aces. On May 20, 2018, in her career debut, Wilson scored 14 points along with 10 rebounds in a 101–65 loss to the Connecticut Sun.[10][11] On June 12, 2018, Wilson scored a career-high of 35 points along with 13 rebounds in a 101–92 overtime victory against the Indiana Fever, becoming the second rookie in league history to score 35 points and grab 10 rebounds.[12] Wilson would be voted into the 2018 WNBA All-Star Game. Later on in the season, Wilson would be named the WNBA Rookie of the Year. She was tied for third in scoring. Her season performance almost led the Aces to the playoffs as they finished 9th place with a 14–20 record.

On June 29, 2019, Wilson scored a new career-high 39 points in a 102–97 overtime victory against the Indiana Fever.[13] In July, Wilson suffered an ankle injury that kept her out for 4 weeks, causing her to miss the 2019 WNBA All-Star Game. She made her return in mid-August. By the end of the season, the Aces finished with a 21–13 record and the number 4 seed, receiving a bye to the second round, helping the franchise get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2014. In the second round elimination game, the Aces defeated the Chicago Sky 93–92 in a thriller game, where teammate Dearica Hamby came up with a steal and nailed the game-winning three from half-court with 4 second left. However, in the semi-finals, the Aces would lose in four games to the Washington Mystics would go on to win the 2019 WNBA championship.

In the 2020 season, the Aces were championship contenders. The season was shortened to 22 games in a bubble at IMG Academy due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With her all-star sidekick Liz Cambage sitting out the season due to health concerns, Wilson carried the team by putting up peak numbers, the Aces finished the season 18-4 with the number 1 seed, receiving a double bye to the semi-finals. In the semi-finals, the Aces would defeat the Connecticut Sun in a hard-fought five-game series, advancing to the Finals for the second time in franchise history (first time since relocating to Las Vegas), however with a shorthanded roster against a fully loaded Seattle Storm team, the Aces would be defeated in a three-game sweep. Wilson would end up winning the WNBA MVP award for the 2020 season.

Overseas

In August 2018, Wilson signed with the Shaanxi Red Wolves of the Women's Chinese Basketball Association for the 2018–19 off-season.[14]

Career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game  RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game  BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
 TO  Turnovers per game  FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 Bold  Career high ° League leader

Regular season
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2018 Las Vegas 333330.6.462.000.7748.02.20.81.61.320.7
2019 Las Vegas 262528.4.479.000.7926.41.80.51.72.116.5
2020 Las Vegas 222231.7.480.000.7818.52.01.22.0°1.620.5
Career 3 years, 1 team 818030.2.472.000.7817.62.00.81.81.719.3

Playoffs
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2019 Las Vegas 5533.7.436.000.9507.81.60.62.0°1.613.4
2020 Las Vegas 8835.4.473.000.8578.92.41.02.32.020.8
Career 2 year, 1 team 131334.7.462.000.8848.52.10.92.21.917.9

College
Year Team GP Points FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2014–15 South Carolina 37 486 .538 .333 .662 6.6 1.0 0.9 1.8 13.1
2015–16 South Carolina 33 530 .531 .000 .723 8.7 1.4 0.8 3.1 16.1
2016–17 South Carolina 35 626 .588 .000 .737 7.8 1.4 1.2 2.6 17.9
2017–18 South Carolina 33 747 .542 .417 .732 11.8 1.7 1.0 3.2 22.6
Career 138 2,389 .550 .375 .715 8.7 1.4 1.0 2.6 17.3

Source: College statistics courtesy of NCAA Statistics[15]

Awards and honors

WNBA
  • WNBA All-Star (2018) (2019)
  • WNBA Rookie of the Year (2018)
  • WNBA Most Valuable Player (2020)

College

High school
  • National High School Player of the Year (WBCA, Naismith, Parade) (2014)
  • McDonald's All-America (2013–14)
  • Parade All-America (2013–14)
  • Gatorade South Carolina Girls Basketball Player of the Year (2013–2014)

References
  1. "South Carolina Gamecock". South Carolina Gamecocks. University of South Carolina. Archived from the original on May 22, 2018. Retrieved November 3, 2015.
  2. "A'ja Wilson Bio University of South Carolina Official Athletic Site". www.gamecocksonline.com. Archived from the original on May 22, 2018. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  3. "A'ja Wilson". Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!. November 7, 2020. Event occurs at 23:24. Retrieved November 7, 2020.
  4. release, Official. "ESPN and NBA announce celebrity rosters and coaches for 2019 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game presented by Ruffles exclusively on ESPN". NBA.com. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
  5. "A'ja Wilson's High School Girls Basketball Stats". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  6. "HoopGurlz – South Carolina Gamecocks get commitment from A'ja Wilson, No. 1 prospect in espnW HoopGurlz Top 100 for 2014 recruiting class". espnW. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  7. "SEC women's basketball awards announced". SECsports.com. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  8. "Women's Final Four: South Carolina beats Mississippi State to win first national title". CBSSports.com. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
  9. Voepel, Mechelle (January 18, 2021). "A'ja Wilson says unveiling of statue at South Carolina on MLK Day shows 'how you just plant seeds' for change". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  10. "Mohegan Sun Arena Sunday, May 20, 2018". wnba.com.
  11. "A'ja Wilson delivers double-double in WNBA debut". thestate.com.
  12. "A'ja Wilson hits historic mark a few games in to WNBA rookie season". thestate.com.
  13. "A'ja Wilson scores career-high 39, Aces beat Fever in OT". apnews.com.
  14. "A'ja Wilson signs with China's Team Shanxi, source confirms". spursandfeathers.com.
  15. "NCAA Statistics". web1.ncaa.org. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  16. "A'ja Wilson - Women's Basketball". University of South Carolina Athletics. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
  17. "A'ja Wilson picks up Honda Sport Award for basketball". ABC Columbia. April 12, 2018. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
  18. "A'ja Wilson of South Carolina Named Honda Sport Award Winner for Basketball". CWSA. April 12, 2018. Retrieved March 29, 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.