In Super Squads, The Athletic follows the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces in their quests to win a WNBA championship. Our reporters will tell the stories of the players on two of the most star-studded teams in league history and examine how their paths shape the future of the WNBA.
The WNBA season was only a few games young, and reigning defensive player of the year A’ja Wilson had just added a highlight that was sure to make the reel for her encore campaign.
The Sparks were in Las Vegas for the Aces’ ring night, and Zia Cooke was trying to get ahead of the defense for a transition layup. Unfortunately for the rookie, Wilson kept pace with her down the court and swatted the attempt out of bounds when it had barely left Cooke’s hands.
SC on SC ‼️@_ajawilson22 gets the best of this one with the big time block 🚫
📺 @NBATV pic.twitter.com/kZhWEHMaWi
— WNBA (@WNBA) May 28, 2023
Cooke eventually would refer to this play as her welcome-to-the-league moment, but it was more than just that: This was fodder for the South Carolina group chat. Wilson was adamant that the rejection was clean, while Cooke appealed for a foul — but not from the referee. Cooke’s arbiter wasn’t actually at the game. It was South Carolina coach Dawn Staley.
Staley elected not to take a…
