The Las Vegas Aces have won three titles in four seasons, a dynasty that should guarantee a White House visit. It hasn’t. Being the most dominant team in the league, the Aces won last season’s championship, but, as per reports, they have not received an invitation to the White House. While this development has already sparked conversation across the league, one analyst believes the situation is more complicated than it looks.

Speaking on No Offseason, Sabreena Merchant offered a broader context on why WNBA championship teams might not always receive or complete a White House visit in the same way as other leagues.

“One thing we should say about WNBA visits to the White House is that – they can’t really do it during the offseason because players aren’t all there,” she said. “For most of the time, they’ve been like in Europe or Asia or some overseas league.”

“So you had to wait until the next season when you went to go play the Mystics, and that’s why you don’t always get the whole team there,” she added. “Because not everyone returns to play for the same team. So they do the best they can, but it is still a regular practice that we saw for much of the WNBA’s history.”

Here’s the thing: for much of the WNBA’s history, players have looked to play overseas during the offseason to supplement their relatively low league salaries. That meant that within weeks of a championship run, a team’s roster would scatter across the globe as players joined teams in places like Turkey, Russia, China, and Italy. So by the time a White House visit could be scheduled, assembling a full championship roster in one place was often impossible.

As a result, the next possibility to host the champions would be whenever that team played in D.C. for their game, i.e., in the next season. But that would make it much more complicated because in that span of months, the league would already go through trades, free agency, and offseason cuts. So by the time a game in D.C. would arrive, a team might not even look the same.

In the case of the Aces, several players have parted ways with the team since last season. Notably, Kelsey Plum was sent to the Sparks in a major offseason trade, Aaliyah Nye departed in the expansion draft, and Megan Gustafson signed with the Portland Fire in free agency.

Now, to give credit where it’s due, women’s basketball has made progress in recent years; players are now getting improved salaries that have reduced their need for year-round overseas play. Also, there is Unrivaled, a 3×3 basketball league that offers players the opportunity to earn in the offseason while staying in the States. However, these changes have yet to fully solve the broader scheduling issues tied to White House visits.

Not receiving an invitation has raised eyebrows, especially considering their prior White House visits during the Biden administration after their 2022 and 2023 title runs.

Still, while this discussion continues, attention has now shifted to how the Las Vegas Aces might celebrate their championship elsewhere.

Las Vegas Aces Plan Their Own Championship Celebration

No invitation for a tradition that has been followed for more than 2 decades won’t stop the Aces from celebrating their success.

Rapper Flavor Flav has announced plans to host a “SHE Weekend” in Las Vegas from July 16–19, featuring a parade and events celebrating women’s sports champions.

The idea, which gained momentum following the broader political conversations around championship visits, has quickly turned into an alternative spotlight moment for the Las Vegas Aces. MGM Resorts is also expected to be involved in building out the multi-day celebration, adding another layer to what Flav has described as a city-wide tribute.

So the franchise will still get a public celebration, just not in Washington.