# 2023 Las Vegas Aces season

The 2023 Las Vegas Aces season was the franchise's 27th season in the Women's National Basketball Association and the sixth year the franchise is based in Las Vegas - after relocating from San Antonio and Utah. This was also the second season under head coach Becky Hammon. They were the defending WNBA champions, after defeating the Connecticut Sun in the 2022 WNBA Finals.
The Aces largely kept their team intact after their championship season, only trading away Dearica Hamby, but signing former WNBA Champions Candace Parker and Alysha Clark in the offseason. This continuity proved positive in the first month of the season as the Aces went 4–0 in May. Their winning streak continued and went to seven games before they lost their first game of the season on June 8 to the Connecticut Sun. After the loss, they went on another seven game winning streak, and finished June 10–1. The winning streak continued into July, but ended on the third game of the month with a loss to Dallas. After the nine game winning streak, the Aces again won out in the month, finishing on a seven game winning streak, and finishing July with a 10–1 record. They managed to get their winning streak to eleven before losing to the New York Liberty on August 6. Their next loss would again come at the hands of New York, but this time it was in the Commissioner's Cup Final. The Aces defeated New York in the next regular season game, but would then lose to Los Angeles to end a four game regular season winning streak. The Aces won three of their next five games to finish August with an 8–4 record. During the month, they secured their playoff berth on August 2. They entered the final month of the season fighting with New York for the first seed. The Aces won all three games in September to secure the top seed on the last day of the season.
The Aces finished with a 34–6 regular season record, which was a franchise and WNBA record for number of wins. This was also the first season where the WNBA played 40 games. Their .850 winning percentage was a franchise record but not a WNBA record. The Aces finished as the first seed for the playoffs.
As the first seed, the Aces faced off against the eighth seed Chicago Sky and would host the first two games of the three game series. The Aces didn't lose a quarter in Game One and took the game 87–59. The Aces dominated Game Two in similar fashion, not losing a quarter, and winning the game 92–70 to move on to the Semifinals. In the Semifinals, the Aces faced off against the Dallas Wings. The Aces would host the first two games of the five game series, and game five, if necessary. The Aces dominated Game One, only losing the fourth quarter, but winning the game 97–83. Dallas managed to win two quarters in Game Two, but the Aces won the game 91–84. Game Three, was much closer in Dallas, but the Aces used a strong second half to win the game 64–61 and moved on to the 2023 WNBA Finals.
In the Finals, the Aces faced off against the second seed, New York Liberty. The teams faced each other five times during the regular season, going 2–2 against each other, but the Aces lost the Commissioner's Cup. The Aces used a strong second half to win Game One 99–82. In Game Two, they dominated the first quarter, and again dominated the second half to win 104–76. The Aces only needed to win one of the last three games to retain their title. The Liberty clawed one game back in New York, winning Game Three 87–73. In Game Four, the Aces, as they often had in the playoffs, had a strong second half, and won the game 70–69. The Aces became the first team since the Los Angeles Sparks in 2002 to win back to back WNBA Championships, taking the Finals three games to one.

## Transactions
### WNBA draft

| Round | Pick | Player | Nationality | School/Team/Country |
| 3 | 36 | Brittney Davis | United States | Alabama |

### Transactions

| Date | Details |
| January 21, 2023 | Traded Dearica Hamby and a 2024 First-Round Pick to the Los Angeles Sparks in exchange for the negotiating rights to Amanda Zahui B and a 2024 Second-Round Pick |
| February 1, 2023 | Signed Candace Parker to a 1-Year Deal |
| February 1, 2023 | Signed Alysha Clark to a 2-Year Deal |
| February 1, 2023 | Signed Cayla George to a 1-Year Deal |
| February 1, 2023 | Signed Alexis Peterson and Courtney Range to Training Camp Contracts |
| February 5, 2023 | Traded the negotiating rights to Amanda Zahui B to the Washington Mystics for 2024 and 2025 Second-Round Picks |
| February 6, 2023 | Waived Iliana Rupert |
| February 6, 2023 | Signed Sydney Colson to a Training Camp Contract |
| February 7. 2023 | Signed Kiah Stokes to a 1-Year Deal |
| April 12, 2023 | Signed Elizabeth Balogun to a Training Camp Contract |
| April 14, 2023 | Signed Brittany Davis to a Rookie Scale Contract |
| April 24, 2023 | Waived Elizabeth Balogun |
| May 9, 2023 | Waived Aisha Sheppard, Courtney Range, and Brittany Davis |
| May 15, 2023 | Waived Alexis Peterson |
| June 30, 2023 | Signed A'ja Wilson to a Contract Extension |
| July 19, 2023 | Signed Ashley Joens to a 7-Day Contract |
| July 26, 2023 | Signed Ashley Joens to a 2nd 7-Day Contract |
| August 6, 2023 | Signed Alaina Coates to a 7-Day Contract |
| August 10, 2023 | Signed Alaina Coates to a 2nd 7-Day Contract |
| August 16, 2023 | Signed Alaina Coates to a 3rd 7-Day Contract |
| August 23, 2023 | Signed Alaina Coates to a Hardship Contract |

### Roster Changes
## Roster
### Depth Chart

| Pos. | Starter | Bench |
| PG | Chelsea Gray | Sydney Colson |
| SG | Kelsey Plum | Riquna Williams |
| SF | Jackie Young | Alysha Clark Kierstan Bell |
| PF | Candace Parker | Cayla George |
| C | A'ja Wilson | Kiah Stokes |

## Schedule
### Preseason

2023 pre-season game log Total: 1–0 (Home: 1–0; Road: 0–0) :
May: 1–0 (Home: 1–0; Road: 0–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
May 13
New York
W 84–77
Kelsey Plum (22)
Chelsea Gray (8)
Peterson Plum (3)
Michelob Ultra Arena 4,460
1–0 :
2023 pre-season schedule :

### Regular Season

2023 game log Total: 34–6 (Home: 19–1; Road: 15–5) :
May: 4–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 2–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
May 20
@ Seattle
W 105–64
Plum Young (23)
A'ja Wilson (13)
Chelsea Gray (6)
Climate Pledge Arena 11,229
1–0
2
May 25
@ Los Angeles
W 94–85
Jackie Young (30)
A'ja Wilson (13)
Chelsea Gray (8)
Crypto.com Arena 7,314
2–0
3
May 27
Los Angeles
W 93–65
A'ja Wilson (23)
Kiah Stokes (9)
Chelsea Gray (7)
Michelob Ultra Arena 10,191
3–0
4
May 28
Minnesota
W 94–73
Jackie Young (23)
Candace Parker (8)
Chelsea Gray (10)
Michelob Ultra Arena 7,970
4–0 :
June
: 10–1 (Home: 6–0; Road: 4–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
5
June 2
@ Atlanta
W 92–87
A'ja Wilson (21)
Kiah Stokes (7)
Chelsea Gray (4)
Gateway Center Arena 3,209
5–0
6
June 4
@ Indiana
W 84–80
A'ja Wilson (27)
A'ja Wilson (10)
Chelsea Gray (7)
Gainbridge Fieldhouse 6,131
6–0
7
June 6
@ Connecticut
W 90–84
A'ja Wilson (23)
A'ja Wilson (10)
Chelsea Gray (7)
Mohegan Sun Arena 4,368
7–0
8
June 8
@ Connecticut
L 77–94
Kelsey Plum (16)
Bell Stokes (5)
A'ja Wilson (4)
Mohegan Sun Arena 5,147
7–1
9
June 11
Chicago
W 93–80
A'ja Wilson (21)
A'ja Wilson (10)
Candace Parker (7)
Michelob Ultra Arena 9,786
8–1
10
June 15
Seattle
W 96–63
Jackie Young (28)
A'ja Wilson (12)
Chelsea Gray (9)
Michelob Ultra Arena 8,518
9–1
11
June 18
Minnesota
W 93–62
Jackie Young (24)
A'ja Wilson (14)
Gray Parker (5)
Michelob Ultra Arena 8,036
10–1
12
June 21
@ Phoenix
W 99–79
Jackie Young (23)
A'ja Wilson (12)
Chelsea Gray (8)
Footprint Center 11,580
11–1
13
June 24
Indiana
W 101–88
A'ja Wilson (28)
A'ja Wilson (10)
Chelsea Gray (12)
Michelob Ultra Arena 8,310
12–1
14
June 26
Indiana
W 88–80
Chelsea Gray (25)
Candace Parker (12)
Chelsea Gray (5)
Michelob Ultra Arena 8,143
13–1
15
June 29
New York
W 98–81
Kelsey Plum (18)
Candace Parker (6)
Kelsey Plum (8)
Michelob Ultra Arena 9,587
14–1 :
July
: 10–1 (Home: 4–0; Road: 6–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
16
July 1
Connecticut
W 102–84
Kelsey Plum (25)
A'ja Wilson (13)
Candace Parker (8)
Michelob Ultra Arena 8,596
15–1
17
July 5
Dallas
W 89–82
Jackie Young (28)
A'ja Wilson (13)
Chelsea Gray (6)
Michelob Ultra Arena 10,177
16–1
18
July 7
@ Dallas
L 78–80
Kelsey Plum (21)
Parker Stokes (6)
Kelsey Plum (6)
College Park Center 6,251
16–2
19
July 9
@ Minnesota
W 113–89
Kelsey Plum (40)
A'ja Wilson (10)
Chelsea Gray (10)
Target Center 7,701
17–2
20
July 11
Phoenix
W 98–72
Jackie Young (23)
A'ja Wilson (8)
Chelsea Gray (11)
Michelob Ultra Arena 10,281
18–2
21
July 12
@ Los Angeles
W 97–78
A'ja Wilson (25)
A'ja Wilson (12)
Gray Young (5)
Crypto.com Arena 8,085
19–2
22
July 20
@ Seattle
W 79–63
A'ja Wilson (23)
A'ja Wilson (15)
Chelsea Gray (8)
Climate Pledge Arena 7,873
20–2
23
July 22
@ Minnesota
W 98–81
A'ja Wilson (35)
A'ja Wilson (14)
Chelsea Gray (11)
Target Center 7,801
21–2
24
July 25
@ Chicago
W 107–95
Kelsey Plum (27)
Kiah Stokes (17)
Chelsea Gray (9)
Wintrust Arena 9,025
22–2
25
July 30
Dallas
W 104–91
Kelsey Plum (28)
A'ja Wilson (7)
Chelsea Gray (8)
Michelob Ultra Arena 10,213
23–2 :
August
: 8–4 (Home: 5–1; Road: 3–3)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
26
August 1
Atlanta
W 93–72
Jackie Young (24)
A'ja Wilson (11)
Chelsea Gray (7)
Michelob Ultra Arena 8,366
24–2
27
August 6
@ New York
L 61–99
Jackie Young (16)
A'ja Wilson (7)
Chelsea Gray (6)
Barclays Center 11,418
24–3
28
August 8
@ Dallas
W 104–84
A'ja Wilson (28)
A'ja Wilson (14)
Kelsey Plum (8)
College Park Center 5,193
25–3
29
August 11
Washington
W 113–89
A'ja Wilson (40)
A'ja Wilson (12)
Gray Plum (10)
Michelob Ultra Arena 9,364
26–3
30
August 13
Atlanta
W 86–65
A'ja Wilson (21)
Kiah Stokes (12)
Chelsea Gray (6)
Michelob Ultra Arena 8,564
27–3
Commissioner's Cup Final
August 15
New York
L 63–82
Jackie Young (16)
Gray Stokes (6)
Kelsey Plum (6)
Michelob Ultra Arena 8,967
31
August 17
New York
W 88–75
Chelsea Gray (22)
Chelsea Gray (11)
Chelsea Gray (11)
Michelob Ultra Arena 9,230
28–3
32
August 19
Los Angeles
L 72–78
A'ja Wilson (25)
A'ja Wilson (9)
Chelsea Gray (7)
Michelob Ultra Arena 10,348
28–4
33
August 22
@ Atlanta
W 112–100
A'ja Wilson (53)
Chelsea Gray (9)
Chelsea Gray (12)
Gateway Center Arena 3,209
29–4
34
August 24
@ Chicago
W 94–87
Jackie Young (24)
Wilson Young (10)
Chelsea Gray (10)
Wintrust Arena 8,084
30–4
35
August 26
@ Washington
L 62–78
Kelsey Plum (21)
A'ja Wilson (11)
Chelsea Gray (4)
Entertainment and Sports Arena 4,200
30–5
36
August 28
@ New York
L 85–94
Jackie Young (24)
A'ja Wilson (8)
Chelsea Gray (9)
Barclays Center 11,615
30–6
37
August 31
Washington
W 84–75
A'ja Wilson (26)
A'ja Wilson (11)
Kelsey Plum (10)
Michelob Ultra Arena 8,619
31–6 :
September
: 3–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 1–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
38
September 2
Seattle
W 103–77
A'ja Wilson (30)
Kiah Stokes (11)
Chelsea Gray (9)
Michelob Ultra Arena 9,319
32–6
39
September 8
@ Phoenix
W 94–73
A'ja Wilson (30)
A'ja Wilson (9)
Chelsea Gray (12)
Footprint Center 13,206
33–6
40
September 10
Phoenix
W 100–85
A'ja Wilson (36)
A'ja Wilson (8)
Chelsea Gray (8)
T-Mobile Arena 17,406
34–6 :
2023 season schedule :

### Playoffs

2023 playoff game log :
First Round vs. Chicago Won Series: 2–0
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
September 13
Chicago
W 87–59
Chelsea Gray (20)
Kiah Stokes (15)
Chelsea Gray (7)
T-Mobile Arena 12,927
1–0
2
September 17
Chicago
W 92–70
A'ja Wilson (38)
A'ja Wilson (16)
Chelsea Gray (9)
Michelob Ultra Arena 9,000
2–0 :
Semifinals vs. Dallas Won Series: 3–0
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
September 24
Dallas
W 97–83
A'ja Wilson (34)
Jackie Young (10)
Jackie Young (7)
Michelob Ultra Arena 9,784
1–0
2
September 26
Dallas
W 91–84
A'ja Wilson (30)
A'ja Wilson (11)
Chelsea Gray (8)
Michelob Ultra Arena 9,286
2–0
3
September 29
@ Dallas
W 64–61
Chelsea Gray (15)
A'ja Wilson (13)
Kelsey Plum (7)
College Park Center 6,251
3–0 :
Finals vs. New York Liberty Won Series: 3–1
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
October 8
New York
W 99–82
Plum Young (26)
A'ja Wilson (8)
Chelsea Gray (9)
Michelob Ultra Arena 10,300
1–0
2
October 11
New York
W 104–76
A'ja Wilson (26)
A'ja Wilson (15)
Chelsea Gray (11)
Michelob Ultra Arena 10,232
2–0
3
October 15
@ New York
L 73–87
Kelsey Plum (29)
A'ja Wilson (11)
Jackie Young (5)
Barclays Center 17,143
2–1
4
October 18
@ New York
W 70–69
A'ja Wilson (24)
A'ja Wilson (16)
Jackie Young (7)
Barclays Center 16,851
3–1 :
2023 playoff schedule :

## Standings

| # | Team vte | W | L | PCT | GB | Conf. | Home | Road | Cup |
| 1 | x – Las Vegas Aces | 34 | 6 | .850 | – | 18–2 | 19–1 | 15–5 | 9–1 |
| 2 | x – New York Liberty | 32 | 8 | .800 | 2 | 16–4 | 15–5 | 17–3 | 7–3 |
| 3 | x – Connecticut Sun | 27 | 13 | .675 | 7 | 14–6 | 13–7 | 14–6 | 7–3 |
| 4 | x – Dallas Wings | 22 | 18 | .550 | 12 | 11–9 | 11–9 | 11–9 | 6–4 |
| 5 | x – Atlanta Dream | 19 | 21 | .475 | 15 | 11–9 | 11–9 | 8–12 | 6–4 |
| 6 | x – Minnesota Lynx | 19 | 21 | .475 | 15 | 12–8 | 9–11 | 10–10 | 5–5 |
| 7 | x – Washington Mystics | 19 | 21 | .475 | 15 | 9–11 | 12–8 | 7–13 | 5–5 |
| 8 | x – Chicago Sky | 18 | 22 | .450 | 16 | 5–15 | 7–13 | 11–9 | 3–7 |
| 9 | e – Los Angeles Sparks | 17 | 23 | .425 | 17 | 9–11 | 10–10 | 7–13 | 5–5 |
| 10 | e – Indiana Fever | 13 | 27 | .325 | 21 | 5–15 | 6–14 | 7–13 | 2–8 |
| 11 | e – Seattle Storm | 11 | 29 | .275 | 23 | 8–12 | 4–16 | 7–13 | 4–6 |
| 12 | e – Phoenix Mercury | 9 | 31 | .225 | 25 | 2–18 | 8–12 | 1–19 | 1–9 |
Notes
    (#) – League Standing
    x – Clinched playoff berth
    e – Eliminated from postseason contention
    Source: Overall standings and Commissioner's Cup Standings

## Playoffs

| Round One: Best-of-3 | Round One: Best-of-3 | Round One: Best-of-3 | Semifinals: Best-of-5 | Semifinals: Best-of-5 | Semifinals: Best-of-5 | Finals: Best-of-5 | Finals: Best-of-5 | Finals: Best-of-5 |
| 1 | Las Vegas Aces | 2 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Chicago Sky | 0 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Chicago Sky | 0 | 1 | Las Vegas Aces | 3 | | | |
| | | | 4 | Dallas Wings | 0 | | | |
| 4 | Dallas Wings | 2 | 4 | Dallas Wings | 0 | | | |
| 5 | Atlanta Dream | 0 | | | | | | |
| 5 | Atlanta Dream | 0 | | | | 1 | Las Vegas Aces | 3 |
| | | | | | | 2 | New York Liberty | 1 |
| 2 | New York Liberty | 2 | | | | | | | 2 | New York Liberty | 1 |
| 7 | Washington Mystics | 0 | | | | | | |
| 7 | Washington Mystics | 0 | 2 | New York Liberty | 3 | | | |
| | | | 3 | Connecticut Sun | 1 | | | |
| 3 | Connecticut Sun | 2 | 3 | Connecticut Sun | 1 | | | |
| 6 | Minnesota Lynx | 1 | | | | | | |
Bold Series winner

## Statistics
### Regular Season

| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| A'ja Wilson | 40 | 40 | 30.7 | .557 | .310 | .812 | 9.5 | 1.6 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 22.8 |
| Kelsey Plum | 39 | 39 | 32.4 | .475 | .389 | .912 | 2.4 | 4.5 | 1.1 | 0.0 | 18.7 |
| Jackie Young | 40 | 40 | 31.5 | .523 | .449 | .867 | 4.0 | 3.8 | 1.3 | 0.1 | 17.6 |
| Chelsea Gray | 40 | 40 | 32.2 | .490 | .421 | .897 | 4.0 | 7.3 | 1.4 | 0.6 | 15.3 |
| Candace Parker | 18 | 18 | 23.6 | .465 | .333 | .893 | 5.4 | 3.7 | 1.5 | 0.9 | 9.0 |
| Alysha Clark | 39 | 1 | 22.5 | .444 | .386 | .818 | 3.4 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 6.7 |
| Kierstan Bell | 36 | 0 | 11.8 | .346 | .244 | .600 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 3.7 |
| Cayla George | 32 | 0 | 8.5 | .288 | .234 | .000 | 1.8 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 2.3 |
| Kiah Stokes | 40 | 22 | 19.8 | .434 | .185 | .500 | 5.9 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 1.0 | 2.2 |
| Sydney Colson | 28 | 0 | 4.8 | .444 | .375 | .833 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 1.3 |
| Alaina Coates$^≠$ | 10 | 0 | 3.0 | .800 | .000 | .250 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.9 |
| Ashley Joens$^‡$ | 2 | 0 | 3.0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
$^‡$Waived/Released during the season $^†$Traded during the season $^≠$Acquired during the season

### Playoffs

| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| A'ja Wilson | 9 | 9 | 33.2 | .554 | .500 | .831 | 11.8 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 2.3 | 23.8 |
| Kelsey Plum | 9 | 9 | 36.8 | .417 | .403 | .875 | 3.2 | 3.8 | 1.3 | 0.0 | 18.3 |
| Jackie Young | 9 | 9 | 34.8 | .421 | .415 | .914 | 5.6 | 5.0 | 1.6 | 0.1 | 16.7 |
| Chelsea Gray | 8 | 8 | 35.9 | .436 | .355 | 1.00 | 4.8 | 6.8 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 15.6 |
| Alysha Clark | 9 | 1 | 24.1 | .529 | .318 | .929 | 4.4 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 8.2 |
| Kiah Stokes | 8 | 8 | 26.1 | .563 | .500 | 1.00 | 7.9 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 2.8 |
| Cayla George | 8 | 1 | 6.0 | .200 | .250 | 1.00 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 1.6 |
| Kierstan Bell | 8 | 0 | 6.3 | .167 | .000 | 1.00 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 1.3 |
| Sydney Colson | 7 | 0 | 4.9 | .250 | .000 | .000 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
| Alaina Coates | 6 | 0 | 1.8 | 1.00 | .000 | .000 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.3 |

## Awards and honors

| Recipient | Award | Date awarded |
| A'ja Wilson | WNBA All-Star Starter & Captain | June 25 |
| A'ja Wilson | Western Conference Player of the Week | June 27 |
| A'ja Wilson | Western Conference Player of the Week | July 25 |
| A'ja Wilson | Western Conference Player of the Week | August 15 |
| A'ja Wilson | Western Conference Player of the Week | August 29 |
| A'ja Wilson | Player of the Month - June | July 5 |
| A'ja Wilson | Player of the Month - July | August 2 |
| A'ja Wilson | Player of the Month - August | September 6 |
| A'ja Wilson | Defensive Player of the Year | September 22 |
| A'ja Wilson | All-Defensive First Team | September 22 |
| A'ja Wilson | All-WNBA First Team | October 15 |
| A'ja Wilson | WNBA Finals MVP | October 18 |
| Jackie Young | WNBA All-Star Starter | June 25 |
| Jackie Young | All-WNBA Second Team | October 15 |
| Chelsea Gray | WNBA All-Star Starter | June 25 |
| Chelsea Gray | Western Conference Player of the Week | August 2 |
| Chelsea Gray | All-WNBA Second Team | October 15 |
| Kelsey Plum | WNBA All-Star | July 1 |
| Becky Hammon | Coach of the Month - June | July 5 |
| Alysha Clark | Sixth Player of the Year | September 18 |