5 WNBA veterans who deserve the same spotlight as Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese
Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark have brought new eyes to the WNBA, but there are a long list of stars who deserve the same spotlight they've received.
Women’s basketball has experienced a meteoric rise in popularity. Former college basketball superstars Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese played a massive role in that development, with their rivalry providing tremendous marketing material and even better on-court play.
Clark and Reese have now emerged as frontrunners for the WNBA Rookie of the Year award for the 2024 season, further solidifying their mainstream notoriety.
For as deserving as Clark and Reese are of the hype they’ve received, it’s important not to lose sight of the players who paved the way for them. That not only includes the legends of yesteryear, but the stars of today who are at the top of the WNBA hierarchy.
This does nothing to take away from what Clark and Reese have already contributed to the league and sport, but instead is meant to highlight the stars who deserve just as much recognition for what they’ve provided, as well.
That all begins with a player who is continuing a great tradition of players performing at a Hall of Fame level in the Midwest.
Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx
Napheesa Collier is continuing the longstanding tradition of the Minnesota Lynx playing home to superstar talent. Following in the footsteps of Seimone Augustus, Rebekkah Brunson, Sylvia Fowles, Maya Moore, and Lindsay Whalen, Collier is an MVP-caliber player looking to deliver a title.
Fresh off of leading Minnesota to the 2024 Commissioner’s Cup, during which she won the in-season tournament MVP award, Collier should be a household name.
Collier won the Rookie of the Year award in 2019 and hasn’t slowed down in the accumulation of accolades. She’s now a four-time All-Star, two-time All-WNBA honoree, and two-time All-Defense selection—as well as a 2016 NCAA Champion and 2024 Euroleague Champion.
Successful at every level, the 27-year-old Collier is looking to add a WNBA championship to her résumé in 2024—and could very well do so.
Collier is currently battling an injury that could keep her out until the Olympic break, but she’s been nothing short of sensational when on the court. Thus far in 2024, she’s averaging 20.0 points, 10.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 2.2 steals, and 1.5 blocks in yet another All-WNBA and All-Defense level season.
With Minnesota near the top of the WNBA standings, Collier should soon return and give her team a legitimate opportunity to win it all in 2024.
Nneka Ogwumike, Seattle Storm
In terms of staying power, few rival that of Nneka Ogwumike. Selected at No. 1 overall in the 2012 WNBA Draft, Ogwumike has spent the past 12 seasons racking up awards and sustaining a remarkable level of star-caliber play.
That’s continued in 2024, as the 34-year-old earned her ninth All-Star Game selection and is arguably on her way to a seventh career All-WNBA nod.
Ogwumike won Rookie of the Year in 2012 and captured both a WNBA Championship and a regular season MVP award in 2016. Overall, she’s become a six-time All-WNBA, six-time All-Defense, and nine-time All-Star Game selectee, and was named to the WNBA’s 25th Anniversary Team.
Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in WNBA history, Ogwumike is well on her way to the Hall of Fame—and she continues to play at a superstar level.
In 2024, Ogwumike is averaging 17.5 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.8 steals while shooting the lights out from all over the court. With a slash line of .540/.464/.852, and a career-best trajectory in terms of three-point field goals made, she’s impeccably adapting to the changes in the game.
An all-time great who just won’t slow down, the Los Angeles Sparks legend has the Seattle Storm in a contending position in her first season with the team.
Breanna Stewart, New York Liberty
One of the primary candidates for the title of, “Best player in the WNBA,” Breanna Stewart offers a bit of everything on the court. The epitome of a champion, Stewart makes winning plays, produces all-time statistics, and has the collegiate and professional accolades to rival anyone in history.
As decorated as anyone in basketball, Stewart is the face of one of the marquee franchises in the WNBA—and should be known and revered in all sports circles.
Prior to being drafted, Stewart produced a collegiate career that rivals the all but incomparable Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton. She won four consecutive National Championships, earning the NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player award in each of those runs.
Stewart was also a three-time Naismith National College Player of the Year, a two-time Wooden Award winner, and a three-time AAC Player of the Year.
In the WNBA, she’s continued her dominance with two WNBA championships, two Finals MVP awards, and two regular season MVP honors. She won Rookie of the Year in 2016, the scoring title in 2022, and has earned five All-Defense nods.
Throw in two wins of the Commissioner’s Cup and a Commissioner’s Cup MVP award, and it’s impossible to describe Stewart with any word below the threshold of all-time greatness.
Alyssa Thomas, Connecticut Sun
Selected at No. 4 overall in the 2014 WNBA Draft, Alysa Thomas has spent the past decade establishing herself as one of the best defensive players in the Association. Over the last two seasons, she’s emerged as a walking triple-double threat.
A veteran whose résumé is growing stronger every season, Thomas is the type of player who any viewer would become a fan of after watching just one game.
Thomas, 32, earned her first two All-WNBA accolades during the 2022 and 2023 seasons. The University of Maryland’s all-time leading scorer is now well on her way to a third as she averages 11.9 points, 9.4 rebounds, 7.9 assists, and 1.6 steals per game.
With 49 double-doubles and 10 triple-doubles over the past three seasons, Thomas is a stat-sheet-stuffer who provides the substance to support the style.
Thomas is widely regarded as one of the best defensive players in the WNBA. She’s earned All-Defense honors in five of the past seven seasons, and was even named the EuroLeague Defensive Player of the Year following her stint with USK Praha in 2023.
A former three-time ACC Player of the Year, Thomas is one of the best-kept secrets in the WNBA—and it’s past time the secret gets out.
A’ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces
There’s a strong case to be made that A’ja Wilson is the best player in the WNBA—and there’s a weaker case that she isn’t. Selected at No. 1 overall in the 2018 WNBA Draft, Wilson has been a force of nature on both ends of the floor over six seasons with the Las Vegas Aces.
Well on her way to yet another MVP award, Wilson should be nationally recognized as the face of the WNBA—and for those who watch it even remotely closely, that’s exactly what she is.
In 2024, Wilson is running away with yet another accolade, as her 27.0 points per game put her a massive average of 3.9 points ahead of the No. 2 player in the race for the scoring title.
Barring an unforeseen development, Wilson will likely win her third MVP award—yet another opportunity to etch her name in WNBA history. She would become the fourth player ever to win three MVP awards, joining fellow all-time greats Lauren Jackson, Lisa Leslie, and Sheryl Swoopes.
Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese are justifying the hype, but conversations about the best player in the WNBA should begin and end with Wilson.
