The WNBA MVP race has been more competitive than ever this season, with Caitlin Clark, Paige Bueckers, A’ja Wilson and Olivia Miles all making strong cases. And for the first time since Candace Parker won the award as a rookie in 2008, another first-year player is firmly in the MVP conversation, with Olivia Miles making history of her own. But according to WNBA analyst Ben Daniels, the race is not nearly as wide open as it appears. In his view, it has come down to just two players.
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“Caitlin Clark, another player of the week. That is three player of the weeks in the last four weeks… Caitlin Clark has the most player of the week honors in the entire WNBA season of A’ja Wilson and ahead of five other players tied for number two. Do you know who you don’t see on this list? Paige Bueckers.”
“You know who else you don’t see on this list? Olivia Miles. And you know who else you don’t see on this list? Kelsey Mitchell. I’ve said it. The MVP race really comes down to two people. Caitlin Clark and A’ja Wilson. That’s it,” Daniels said on his podcast.
Clark certainly gave her case another boost with her latest Player of the Week performance. She averaged 25.7 points on 50.9% shooting, along with 3.3 rebounds and 9.7 assists over the three-game stretch. The performance earned her another Eastern Conference Player of the Week honor. However, even when looking at the season as a whole, Clark’s numbers compare favorably with two of the other names in the conversation.
Clark is averaging 22.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 8.3 assists per game, while Paige Bueckers averages 20.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 5.8 assists. As for Olivia Miles, the Lynx rookie is averaging 19.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 6.1 assists per game. That gives Daniels plenty of reason to keep Clark ahead of both players.
“It’s fun, I guess, for people to entertain Olivia Miles… Fun to entertain Paige Bueckers… It’s fun to entertain Kelsey… But if they don’t have more player of the week honors than Caitlin Clark, well then how are they going to be a better choice for player of the year, aka MVP, over Caitlin Clark? Easy answer: They’re not,” Daniels added.
Now, there is no denying that Kelsey Mitchell does have a slight edge over Clark in scoring, but Clark’s advantage in rebounding and, especially, playmaking makes the overall comparison much tougher for Mitchell.
Then there is A’ja Wilson—and that is where the conversation gets much more difficult.
Wilson is averaging 26.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game. Her defensive production also gives her a major advantage, with 1.5 steals and 2.1 blocks per game. Clark, however, has the edge in Player of the Week honors, giving her another piece of ammunition in the MVP debate and that is ultimately where Daniels lands.
In his view, the MVP race has really become a two-player battle: Caitlin Clark vs. A’ja Wilson. For everyone else, Daniels believes the gap is simply too wide to close with less than 10 games left for each team in the regular season.