“I want to be great for my team, I want to be great for my franchise.” A’ja Wilson couldn’t contain her emotions after one of the losses against New York Liberty earlier this season. Her words reveal just how crucial it is for her not only to contribute but to take the reins and lead her team to victory. Now, the 3x MVP finds herself facing the same opponents once again in the semifinals, a matchup that echoes her previous experience after suffering a tough defeat in their first encounter of this season.

With Game 1 of the semifinals against the Liberty already in the books, it’s clear that this isn’t the start Wilson had hoped for. But with four games still on the cards, the 28-year-old has a chance to bring her team back to their three-peat mission pursuit. However, she definitely needs to change the gear as the recent figures reflect her performance taking a dip against Breanna Stewart and Co.

A’ja Wilson hasn’t been at her best against New York Liberty this season

The first game of the semi-final clash didn’t turn out to be the best one for Wilson as she added 21 points, which was the second-best from the Aces side with Kelsey Plum atop, notching 24 points. Wilson was not outstanding on boards either, as she only recorded 6 rebounds. While these numbers can be deemed as respectable, it’s certainly not in the 3x MVP’s case as she has averaged 26.9 points along with 11.9 rebounds per game in this regular season.

What is even more alarming after this performance is that now, New York is the only team against which the 2x WNBA champion has played at least three games and is yet to cross the 25-point mark. The Aces locked horns with Liberty thrice in the regular season, but Wilson featured only in the first two fixtures and was sidelined with an injury for the last one.

Wilson took the court in June for the season’s first encounter against the Liberty after averaging 31.2 points in her last five games, delivering a 30-plus point performance three times during that stretch. However, the Aces forward’s performance dwindled against Liberty as she could only notch 21 points. It was again Plum who finished with a point more and was the team’s top scorer in that game.

The good takeaway was that she maintained her defensive prowess, recording nine rebounds and blocking a shot. The next time the two teams clashed was after the Olympic break when Wilson led Team USA to its historic eighth consecutive gold. She was selected as the MVP of the tournament. Riding high on emotions, she must have hoped for a better result this time.

Well, her performance slightly elevated as she notched 24 points and also had 11 rebounds, but that was still not enough to take Becky Hammon’s unit over the line. Overall, Wilson has notched up 66 points, 26 rebounds, and 6 blocks while facing her semi-final foes this season including her playoff performance from Game 1. This brings her averages against Liberty to 22 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 2 blocks—each statistic falling short of her impressive regular season averages.

However, it’s important to highlight that the South Carolina alumna has had just three opportunities this year. The brighter side of the picture is when she played eight games against the Liberty last year, despite having ordinary stats in regular season games, she eventually led her team to victory in the Finals, which also earned her the Final MVP award.

A’ja Wilson’s Finals MVP-winning performance to her rookie year against the New York Liberty

Last year’s Finals memories will still be fresh for both teams when the Aces clinched their second consecutive title defeating the Liberty 3-1. However, that would not have been possible without Wilson’s efforts, as it was she who got the well-deserving Finals MVP award. This was definitely a dose of encouragement for Wilson, who finished third in regular season MVP race, behind New York’s Breanna Stewart.

The 28-year-old forward was the highest scorer for Aces in Game 2 and Game 4. She hit a double-double in both those games, recording 26 points and 15 boards in Game 2, and 24 points with 16 rebounds in Game 4. Wilson finished the series with 85 points which was 16 more than what she totaled in the four regular season fixtures (69).

However, these were some recent figures. Wilson’s debut season was also nothing short of memorable against the Liberty. Wilson scored 52 points in her rookie season facing Liberty in three games. She was the second top scorer of the Aces with Kayla McBride, atop with 58 points. Since then, Wilson has played seven seasons in W and has amassed a total of 488 points along with 204 rebounds in 25 games played against the New York franchise.

All of these set an exciting picture to unfold in the remaining games of the semi-finals. It would be interesting to see if Wilson can have a redemption like the 2023 playoffs. As Game 2 approaches, all eyes will be on the ‘Unanimous MVP’. Can she channel last year’s successes against the Liberty to spark a triumphant return and send Aces through to the Finals once more?