Seattle Storm rookie Flau’jae Johnson swatted away a shot by four-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson during the Storm’s 98-77 loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Sunday night. And as expected, she was quite excited about it. In the moment, however, she made an apology gesture to A’ja Wilson.
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Speaking in the post-game press conference, a video of which TSN reshared, Johnson was asked about the apology gesture, and she confirmed she was indeed apologizing, giving a hilarious account of how the moment unfolded. According to her, it all happened in the heat of the moment before realizing she had blocked the reigning WNBA MVP.
“That was an ‘I’m sorry’ because I had said, ‘Give me that s—.’ But that’s off of just pure hooping. Like, ‘Give me that.’ You know what I’m saying? That’s all,” Flau’jae Johnson said when asked about the gesture.
“But I saw who I blocked, and I was like, ‘I’m so sorry. I would never disrespect the GOAT. Like, I love A’ja Wilson. If y’all see this, tag her. Like, I love A’ja Wilson. I love the Aces. I would never disrespect her.”
“But I was just like, in the moment, I was like, ‘Oh my God.’ Like, I’ll be putting that on the wall or something like that. Like, I’m framing that. That was a moment in my career that I’ll never forget. Like, I blocked a GOAT. So it was great,” she added.
The said block happened with five and a half minutes on the clock in the second quarter of the game. A’ja Wilson drove to the basket and attempted a shot, but Johnson met her at the rim with an emphatic, clean rejection that sent the Aces star crashing to the floor. And in the heat of the moment, Johnson instinctively celebrated, but as soon as she looked down and realized she had just rejected one of her basketball idols, her demeanor completely shifted to remorse.
While that was a moment she’s going to remember and cherish for a while, that was definitely not her most worthwhile performance in the game. Johnson ended the game with a season-high 29 points, six rebounds, six assists, four steals, and that one block.
She also shot 47.6% from the field (10-of-21) and an elite 62.5% from beyond the arc, sinking five of her eight three-point attempts. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to prevent the Seattle Storm from suffering what became their fourth consecutive loss.
Two of those four losses have come against the A’ja Wilson-led Aces. And, of course, she inflicted the greatest damage on the Storm team across those two games.
The first one, which ended in a 114-77 loss on Thursday, saw A’ja Wilson deliver 29 points, seven rebounds, five assists, a steal, and two blocks. And in the latest encounter, in which Johnson had her viral block, A’ja Wilson went on to register 30 points, eight rebounds, four assists, three steals, and a block.
It’s now two games to the playoffs for the Aces, with matchups against the Los Angeles Sparks and Phoenix Mercury remaining. It’s definitely going to be another important stretch for A’ja Wilson and the Aces as they aim to enter the playoffs with momentum.
For Flau’jae Johnson and the Seattle Storm, however, they are now almost at the end of the road with one regular-season game left against the Dallas Wings and having crashed out of the playoffs, being last in the league standings. For Johnson, though, the block against the four-time MVP will remain one of those unforgettable moments from her rookie season. And judging by her hilarious reaction, it is one she will be framing in her memory for a long time.