Home

NBA

Can Aja Wilson’s Aces Live Up to Stephen Curry’s Warriors Like Dynasty?

Published 10/21/2023, 4:19 AM EDT

Follow Us

Seven years after celebrating its platinum jubilee, NBA takes pride in some great dynasties spanning over multiple decades. Chicago Bulls led by Michael Jordan was one such dynasty winning 6 NBA Finals within 8 years. The MJ franchise created a lineage in the form of the 1999-2004 LA Lakers and the 1998-2014 San Antonio Spurs. While the Bulls helped ignite newer dynasties, the Boston Celtics back in the day created the concept of a dynasty with their 12 NBA Finals appearances in 12 years. And now, the baton has been passed to Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors that broke the regular season win record and appeared in six NBA Finals.

But unlike the dynasty-driven NBA, the WNBA has had only one with the Houston Comets between 1998-2001. The team won the first 4 editions of the WNBA and were a force to reckoned with until they were dissolved in 2008 due to financial difficulties. Despite no other team coming close to the Houston Comets, defending WNBA champions the Las Vegas Aces look primed to break that record as A’ja Wilson & Co. look to live up to the GSW like dynasty.

A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces’ dynasty

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

The Las Vegas Aces recently made a piece of history as they won their first back-to-back title. This achievement saw them join a select group in the WNBA as they became only the third side to win a double after the Houston Comets and the Los Angeles Sparks.

A’ja Wilson who was awarded the Finals MVP for her exploits against the NY Liberty has become the face of the Aces and looks to have a Curry like impact in the coming years.

Trending

Get instantly notified of the hottest NBA stories via Google! Click on Follow Us and Tap the Blue Star.

Follow Us

USA Today via Reuters

While the star forward shares more similarities with LeBron James due to her defensive prowess and a knack to dominate the paint, her recent showings have borne much similarity to the GSW star as she leads her franchise to a new horizon.

The Aces’ have been the team to beat for the past two seasons and they look likely to continue this dominant run as they build around stars like A’ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum much like GSW did with the Splash brothers in the late 2010’s.

The rise of the Warriors dynasty

Prior to Steve Kerr’s appointment in early 2014, the Golden State Warriors were a bottom side in their division and had only qualified for the playoffs thrice in over 20 years. What came next left the entire NBA world in shock as the Warriors became one of the most feared teams in the entire league.

Led by the meteoric rise of Stephen Curry, the Dubs soon became a household name and erased any thought of the LeBron James’s Miami Heat as the Bay Area team surpassed every record set by the Big 3 in South Beach.

USA Today via Reuters

During the 2014-15 season the Warriors broke their franchise record of most wins during a regular season and started the 2015 season in similar fashion as they won their first 25 games in a row. The 2016 season was another huge year in the GSW calendar as they surpassed their regular season winning record set in 2014 and created an NBA record of 73 wins and 9 losses.

The feat cemented their dynasty in NBA history books with their resurgence setting the tone for what was to come in the following years.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Can A’ja Wilson’s Aces live up to Curry’s Warriors like dynasty

Although A’ja and the Aces are yet to win as many titles as Curry and the Warriors, the two teams share many similarities that points towards the Aces following the Warriors’ footsteps. Both Steve Kerr and Becky Hammon were rookie coaches in their divisions when leading their teams to their first championship and not many had expected a turnaround in such a short span given that both GSW and the Aces were bottom of their respective divisions the year prior.

Additionally, the Aces just like the Warriors have built their teams around their draft picks with Kelsey Plum and A’ja Wilson having been a part of the Aces setup a long time before their current successes. The addition of Candace Parker this season is similar to KD joining the Warriors in 2016 and can point to another similarity between the two sides.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Watch This Story: NBA Legend, a 13x All-Star With a $170M Fortune, Partners Millionaire Alex Rodriguez in WNBA Investment

While the Aces are yet to reach three finals in a row, the team can live up to the Warriors like dynasty hype as they have all the necessary pieces around them. While Breanna Stewart and NBA 3-point contest record breaker Sabrina Ionescu can serve as a nemesis to the Aces like James and Kyrie once did to the Warriors, the everchanging nature of the WNBA and the incredible depth that the Aces have will surely neutralize any threat that is thrown at them by any opposition.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Arian Kashyap

265Articles

One take at a time

Arian Kashyap is an NBA Writer at EssentiallySports. He has college degrees in Physical Education and Sport Sciences and has been writing since 2019. He actively follows the NBA, and though he is a Miami Heat fan, Arian likes to provide all NBA lovers with captivating content that also helps educate his readers.
Show More>

Edited by:

Bilal Handoo