Las Vegas Aces’ WNBA three-peat bid tangled in controversy

LAS VEGAS ACES owner Mark Davis clapped his hands as he stood next to WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert. They both grinned widely as the celebration of the 2023 champions kicked off the 2024 season.

Davis pumped his fists when coach Becky Hammon walked onto the court. He wrapped her in a warm embrace. Hammon looked at Engelbert and unzipped her white hoodie with a laugh. She was wearing the same Alice + Olivia floral blazer sported by Engelbert. The two shared a hug as the celebration rolled on.

A chorus of guttural barks escorted Kelsey Plum’s arrival to the ring ceremony. The embodiment of the Aces’ swagger, «Plum Dawg» once barked at Aces minority owner Tom Brady, who was among the first to take his place on the court. Chelsea Gray, who missed the clinching game of the Finals against the Liberty with a foot injury, walked onto the court holding her 3-month-old son, his ears covered by baby headphones. Davis bowed and fans chanted «MVP» when A’ja Wilson strolled into the spotlight.

The crowd at Michelob Ultra Arena counted down from 10, and the players flung open their jewelry boxes to reveal the grandiose evidence of their stature: Rings featuring the Aces logo, made up of 34 diamonds to represent each of their regular-season victories. The phrase «Back 2 Back,» etched onto the right panel, honored the first WNBA repeat champions since the L.A. Sparks in 2001-02. On the left panel was each player’s name, number and position.

«We’re back,» Davis said. «Not only are we back, we’re back-to-back world champions. All I can say is let’s three-peat.»

As the banner rose to the rafters, the Aces looked carefree and invincible. A month earlier, the WNBA held its annual draft and welcomed Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and the most-hyped rookie class in its history. But the message on this May day was clear: The present belonged to the two-time defending champion Aces.

But just four days later, the celebration started to sour. The league announced an investigation to determine if the Aces were providing impermissible benefits and circumventing the salary cap. Three days after that, the Aces lost their first game of the season, which led to a shocking 4-6 stretch for the preseason favorites, who had lost a total of six games over the entirety of the 2023 regular season. In August, former Aces forward Dearica Hamby filed a federal lawsuit alleging the Aces had discriminated against her for being pregnant when she was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks after the 2022 championship.

Now, despite a historic season from Wilson, who was named the league’s unanimous MVP on Sunday, their hopes of becoming the second team in league history to three-peat seem far more fragile than they did four months ago. The Aces enter the postseason seeded fourth and play the Seattle Storm in a best-of-three first-round series starting Sunday. If they advance, the top-seeded New York Liberty could be waiting in the semifinals. Maybe the Aces knew even back on that celebratory day what was to come.

Inscribed on the inside arch of those 2023 WNBA championship rings: Aces vs. Everybody.

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STEVE HILL VISITED the Aces’ locker room at Michelob Ultra Arena in May to share what he considered to be good news. Hill, the CEO and president of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), was about to announce an unprecedented sponsorship.

«Today we want to do something new,» Hill said as the players sat at their lockers. «We want to recognize you individually. We want to put some money in your pockets.»

Wilson, a two-time MVP, playfully sat up in her chair and scooted across the floor. She was listening. Intently.

The offer, as Hill put it, was for a $100,000 sponsorship from the LVCVA for each Aces player. The conditions of the offer were simple. «We want you to just play,» Hill said. «We want you to keep repping Las Vegas. And if you do get a three-peat, that’ll be icing on the cake.»

According to the salary data from Spotrac, $100,000 is more than the salaries of four players who were on the Aces’ roster at the start of the season: Megan Gustafson, Kierstan Bell, Kate Martin and Sydney Colson. Kiah Stokes reportedly makes $100,000 exactly, and Alysha Clark’s salary is $110,000.

The Las Vegas tourism account on X posted the video of the announcement on May 17. The next day, news outlets reported that the WNBA had opened an investigation into whether or not the sponsorship violated the terms of the collective bargaining agreement and granted impermissible benefits.

The salary cap for the 2024 WNBA season is $1,463,200. According to Spotrac, the Aces’ total team salary is $1,435,261, leaving $27,939 in remaining cap space. An additional $100,000 for each person on the Aces creates another $1.2 million in capital available for Aces players that is not available for players on other teams. While the league has not publicly stated a specific motive for the investigation, the probable concern rests in a possible competitive advantage from salary cap circumvention.

Hill insists the LVCVA did nothing wrong. «[The players] have every right to sign a sponsorship agreement,» he said to The Associated Press. «We’ve taped all the players and broadcast their image, so we owe them for that. That’s the first deliverable in the deal, so we are moving forward.»

The WNBA hired Kobre & Kim to conduct its investigation into the LVCVA sponsorship deal, but has otherwise shared few details.

«I always let the lawyers do the work before we speak about it,» Engelbert said at this year’s All-Star Game in Phoenix. «So that work is ongoing. We hired outside counsel. They’re continuing their work. When there’s something to report, we’ll be back to you.»

As of Sept. 17, the WNBA had no further comment on the status of the investigation. Neither did Plum.

Instead, she smiled wide when asked by an ESPN reporter if the investigation felt targeted. «Is that your last question?» she asked after a long pause.

«I have one more,» the reporter told her.

«Ask me that one,» she said, deftly changing the subject.

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IT’S HARD TO PINPOINT exactly what has gone wrong for Las Vegas on the court. There have been injuries; the backcourt is sputtering. The off-court issues have become a distraction; four of its starters played for Team USA in the Olympics; winning three championships in a row is just difficult. The list goes on.

The Aces played 12 games to start the season without Gray, who fractured her foot in Game 3 of the 2023 WNBA Finals. Her points per game (8.6), assists (4.9), and shooting percentage (40.8%) are all down from a season ago.

It’s not just Gray. Guard Jackie Young is averaging 15.8 points, shooting 33.7% from beyond the arc and shooting just 43.0% overall. Last year, those numbers were 17.6 points, 44.9% and 52.3%. Plum hasn’t fared much better. She averaged 18.7 points while shooting 47.5% from the field and 38.9% on 3-point attempts last season. But this year her 3-point percentage is 36.8%, and she’s shooting 42.3% from the field to average 17.8 points.

«Chelsea, Jackie and Kelsey Plum are our separation factors,» Hammon said. «When those three are clicking, we become a whole problem to try to guard.»

Three-peats are elusive for a reason. In WNBA history, only the Houston Comets have done it — when they won the first four titles from 1997 to 2000. It has happened five times in the NBA, five times in the NHL and four times in MLB. No team has been able to win three consecutive Super Bowls. The Green Bay Packers, who won an NFL title in 1966 and then the first two Super Bowls in 1967 and 1968, are the closest.

Sustaining greatness to win multiple championships takes hard work and commitment to do the small things. The Aces have admittedly struggled to do the small things for much of the season.

«When you’ve won, you don’t have that same chip on your shoulder that other people have who haven’t won,» Colson said. «They’re coming for their first title or whatever it might be.»

«We have some people on our team that literally those two championships can solidify their whole career,» Wilson said. «They’ve done amazing things in our league, but they’re like, ‘OK, we’ve done what we really wanted to do,’ which was win. I can also say so for myself. I feel like if I didn’t get that fourth-place [2023 MVP] vote, who knows where my mind would be? So, it’s finding that will, that grit, that hunger that you want to be greedy in it.»

This is all happening while Wilson is breaking records. She is averaging a league and career high of 26.9 points. Her 1,021 season point total is the highest in WNBA history and she’s the first player to break the 1,000-point barrier in a single season. If that’s not enough, she also set the single-season rebound record (451). And that’s with missing two games.

As the saying goes, offense wins games, but defense wins championships. Hammon has routinely maligned the Aces’ lack of defensive focus. They rank fifth in defensive rating, which measures the amount of points a team allows per 100 possessions. In 2023, they were the best in the league.

«We are the scariest average team in the W,» Hammon said in August. «We’re still trying to hammer home discipline, habits. And we still have time. You know? I’m looking at these last 10 games as the fourth quarter. It’s the fourth quarter. It’s crunch time.»

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THE BOOING STARTED in earnest when Hamby fouled Wilson in the lane on Aug. 18. When the announcer at Michelob Ultra Arena identified Hamby as the culprit, the Aces’ fans took the boos to another level. Six days earlier, Hamby had filed a federal lawsuit against the league and the Aces alleging the Aces and Hammon discriminated against her for being pregnant and the league neither investigated appropriately nor issued adequate punishment.

The booing continued. When Hamby dribbled the ball up the court after a rebound, a smattering of fans booed her. When she dribbled into the lane to attack the basket, fans booed and then cheered when she was fouled. When she hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key near the end of the first quarter, the crowd booed that too.

«I fought back tears the entire game,» Hamby said of the experience on the «Good Game with Sarah Spain» podcast. «It was heartbreaking. People don’t fully know or understand, they’re just going off the sport aspect of it, so I understand that. Leading up to it, I had severe overwhelmness and anxiety in my stomach.»

Hamby won a championship with the Aces in 2022. She is a two-time WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year winner and a three-time WNBA All-Star. She won a bronze medal at the Paris Olympics as a member of the United States 3×3 team. Until she was traded, Hamby spent her entire career with the Aces organization and its previous iteration, the San Antonio Stars.

Hamby announced her pregnancy during the 2022 championship parade. She was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks in January 2023 along with the Aces’ 2024 first-round pick. In return, the Aces received a 2024 second-round pick and the negotiating rights to forward Amanda Zahui B. With Hamby’s salary off the books, Las Vegas was able to sign Candace Parker during free agency.

After she was traded, Hamby alleged on social media that she was mistreated and was promised benefits — which she later revealed to be her daughter’s private school tuition — that she did not receive. Women’s National Basketball Players Association executive director Terri Jackson said Hamby consulted with union leadership prior to the trade. The union later asked the WNBA to investigate Hamby’s allegations. On May 16, 2023, the WNBA announced that Hammon was suspended for two games without pay for violating league and team workplace policies and stripped the Aces of their 2025 first-round draft pick for impermissible player benefits.

In her lawsuit, Hamby alleged that Hammon told her she «was not taking proper precautions not to get pregnant,» and questioned her commitment to the team. Hamby stated that when she asked Hammon if she was being traded because of her pregnancy, Hammon responded, «What do you want me to do?»

Hammon has denied the allegations.

«Do you want some facts?» Hammon said during a news conference following the Aces’ win over the Sparks on Aug. 18. «Here are some facts. I’ve been in either the WNBA or the NBA for now 25 years. I’ve never had an HR complaint. Never, not once. I still didn’t actually because Dearica didn’t file any. She didn’t file with the players’ union. She didn’t file with the WNBA. Those are facts. It’s also factual that nobody made a call about trading her until Atlanta called us in January.»

Hamby filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in September 2023 and received a notice of right to sue on May 23, 2024. The Aces and WNBA filed motions for dismissal on Sept. 11.

The lawsuit remains ongoing and is unresolved. Hamby did not respond to requests for comment.

«When I signed up to be a head coach, I knew exactly what I was getting into,» Hammon said on Aug. 30. «And it’s called being scrutinized. That’s part of the job. And that’s OK. You stick with your values. You treat people the right way. And you leave it there.»

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THE ACES WEREN’T PLANNING to go on stage during Wild ‘N Out’s visit to Las Vegas. They were content to sit in the audience, supporting Colson as she joined the cast for their stop in Vegas. Wild ‘N Out is part improv, part hip-hop and all comedy.

After some cajoling from Colson, the Aces dutifully filed onto the stage at MGM Grand Garden Arena. They had just returned from Phoenix after beating the Mercury that afternoon. Colson thanked her teammates for joining her by promptly roasting them.

«This is my team,» she said in a sing-song tone. «We’re the Las Vegas Aces. But if we keep losing games, we’re gonna be in last place…es.»

Wilson’s mouth dropped open in surprise as she turned to the side, laughing. Clark let out a guffaw and Gray lost it next to Wilson. «We got to tighten up,» Colson added over the cheers and laughter from the crowd and her teammates alike.

For long stretches of the season, the Aces didn’t look like themselves. This — playful roasting rooted in a serious push to be better — was more on brand.

«We’re going to find a little piece of joy because we know that there’s people out in this world that are doing far more worse than what we’re doing,» Wilson said. «We’re just losing a couple games and it looks bad. But there are people out here that are struggling to find places to eat, to sleep, clothes on their back. That’s the real struggle. We don’t take moments for granted and we try to find joy in everything. And I think that’s what makes us who we are.»

Part of focusing on that joy is leaving the other stuff — the pressure, the social media posts, the controversies — at the arena door. Sometimes, though, the noise leaks through.

«At the end of the day, we’re human, so there are things that we feel, that we see and hear that have an effect,» Clark said. «But to be able to have a group of people to be vulnerable with, to sit down and talk with and that internal support. … We don’t need everybody in our business knowing what we’re doing and talking about. We’re about it behind closed doors.»

The Aces (27-13) are a league-best 9-1 over their past 10 games. Their five-game winning streak is the longest active winning streak in the league.

But a key moment came in a loss. Wilson tweaked her ankle near the end of the Sept. 6 game against the Sun and sat out the following game against the Liberty. Without her, Las Vegas cut a 20-point deficit and lost 75-71.

«People talk s—,» Wilson said. «People, mostly social, talk s— about this team all the time. It seems like everyone has something to say. Everybody’s a coach. Everyone knows what’s going on. And that’s draining. That’s exhausting to hear that every single day. So now, to have a showing like that, it’s kind of like, ‘Now what?’ And I think sometimes we need that.»

After one practice in Indianapolis, Gray highlighted the vibe shift on the team. Members of the Aces were in and out of the practice gym at Gainbridge Fieldhouse ahead of the team’s first of two games in Indiana that week.

«Syd,» Gray called out to Colson. «What kind of alcohol do I drink?»

«Tequila,» Colson answered with a shrug and a laugh.

Gray, tickled by the face Colson made, started laughing so hard she wheezed. She implored Colson to say the type of tequila specifically. When Colson couldn’t do it, she passed the task to Clark. After a couple of guesses, Clark got it.

«There we go,» Gray shouted with a clap.

The lively and lighthearted mood that was missing for much of the season was back. The quality of play has elevated, too.

Gray averaged 10.6 points and shot 44.9% in September. Plum scored 25 points or more twice this month. Young had a career-best 14 assists on Sept. 1. Wilson remained otherworldly.

As Davis said 131 days ago, maybe the Aces are back.

«It was Aces vs. Aces vs. Everybody,» Colson says. «But now I think it’s Aces vs. Everybody.»