Aces host potential WNBA Finals foe in lone preseason game
A’ja Wilson isn’t bored anymore. In fact, the Aces forward thinks she’s barely left the team’s new practice facility since training camp started.
The two-time MVP and reigning defensive player of the year joked during the Aces’ Headquarters unveiling April 28 that she’d been looking for some new hobbies to fill her time. But now, with training camp in full swing and the start of the team’s season just a week away, Wilson said she pretty much only goes home to feed her dogs before returning to the facility to keep working.
“It’s been a lot of fun,” Wilson said.
The Aces are preparing for their only preseason game, when they host the New York Liberty at 2 p.m. Saturday at Michelob Ultra Arena. Season ticket holders and community groups are the only ones who can attend the game, which will not be broadcast on TV or radio.
The matchup might be an early preview of the WNBA Finals, as the Aces and Liberty are the front-runners after stocking up on talent during the offseason. However, coach Becky Hammon simply expects her players to get some good, competitive minutes in, just like they would in any other preseason game.
“It’s not like we’re going to whip out our bag of tricks or anything,” Hammon said.
New York made significant moves during the past few months to emerge as the biggest threat to an Aces repeat on paper. The Liberty added former MVP Jonquel Jones in a trade from the Connecticut Sun, then landed another former MVP, Breanna Stewart, in free agency. New York also signed All-Star point guard and 2021 champion Courtney Vandersloot.
Stewart, Jones and Vandersloot join 2022 second-team All-WNBA selection and former No. 1 overall pick Sabrina Ionescu and former All-Star Betnijah Laney, who missed most of the past season with a knee injury.
The Liberty have already played one preseason game, losing 63-57 to the Sun, but Stewart, Jones and Vandersloot didn’t play. The trio could make their unofficial Liberty debuts Saturday.
New York wasn’t the only team to upgrade its roster during the offseason. New Aces signings Candace Parker and Alysha Clark may also take the court in red and black for the first time against the Liberty.
“Everybody’s getting back into their groove,” Wilson said, “getting back into the swing of playing with one another.”
The superstars may be the draw for many season ticket holders, but the battle for the Aces’ final roster spots might also be decided Saturday.
The Aces announced three roster moves Tuesday, waiving 2022 second-round draft pick and WNBA champion Aisha Sheppard, 2023 third-round draft pick Brittany Davis — the team’s only selection during this year’s draft — and training camp invitee Courtney Range.
Hammon has 12 players on her roster, but sources familiar with the situation told the Review-Journal the team will only carry 11 players this season because of the salary cap, meaning one more cut is coming.
Guard Alexis Peterson, a former second-round draft pick and experienced overseas veteran; wing Kierstan Bell, the team’s first-round selection in 2022; and guard Sydney Colson, a key veteran locker room voice, are likely competing for the final two spots. Bell is the only member of the Aces’ 2022 draft class, which included five players, still on the roster as of Friday.
“Obviously the preseason game is a chance to get everybody some decent run,” Hammon said. “See what we have.”
Contact reporter Andy Yamashita at ayamashita@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ANYamashita on Twitter.