A’ja Wilson has won the WNBA MVP crown for the third time in a row. While the basketball community is more or less in unison on Wilson finishing almost as a unanimous MVP, with this 2026 MVP win marking Wilson’s record fifth individual title, the vote breakdown is now a point of debate for the fans, with some left scratching their heads as to how Olivia Miles ranked second behind Wilson, leaving record-breaking Kelsey Mitchell in the dust.

The MVP list breakdown shared by WNBA Communications on X reveals Wilson finished significantly ahead of her rivals, with 65 first-place votes. Only nine people had Wilson as their second choice for MVP, and none had her third or lower on their list.

The award is decided based on a points system: 10 points for a 1st-place vote, seven for second, five for third, three for fourth, and one for fifth. Wilson won with 713 points, way clear of Olivia Miles’ 442.

The Minnesota Lynx’s number one pick from the 2026 draft received only six first-choice votes for MVP, 40 for second choice, and 26 for third or lower. However, she still edged out the Indiana Fever’s Kelsey Mitchell, who broke the WNBA record for most regular-season points, with 1,086, for second-place overall in the MVP ranking.

Mitchell could only manage two first-choice votes and 12 second-choice votes, while 25 ranked her third, 17 ranked her fourth, and seven ranked her fifth.

While both the Indiana Fever and the Minnesota Lynx exited the playoffs in the first round, some fans are not happy to see Mitchell behind Miles, despite her stellar and record-breaking season. Naturally, they were quite eager to express their opinion.

Fans In Disbelief After Seeing Kelsey Mitchell Finish Behind Olivia Miles

There is no denying the fact that both Kelsey Mitchell and Olivia Miles had phenomenal seasons. And maybe both of them deserved to finish as the MVP runner-up in their own right. One fan was quick to point this very fact out under ESPN’s post about the voting breakdown.

“For a rookie to be 2nd should tell you how impressive of a season she had. Now for Mitchell, I hope everyone realizes she’s always been the best player on the fever!,” the fan said online.

However, that was one of the rare balanced outlooks. Many other fans couldn’t fathom why Mitchell was ranked below Miles.

“Understatement for the woman in 3rd place… KM 🫶🏾@Kelz_Hoop ♥️💙🏀🦋,” one fan wrote.

The MVP race is all about individual performances. So it’s hard to see Mitchell in third place. Mitchell finished the regular season with 24.7 PPG, while adding 1.7 REB and 2.8 AST per game. She was only second in the league in points per game, behind only A’ja Wilson.

“Olivia Miles belongs below Breanna Stewart, Caitlin Clark, and Kelsey Mitchell,” another fan said.

Mitchell broke Wilson’s 2024 single-season scoring record, finishing with a WNBA record high of 1,086 points. Mitchell also set a new Indiana Fever franchise record with 135 made 3-pointers, surpassing Caitlin Clark’s previous mark of 122. She also extended her streak of scoring at least 20 points in 27 consecutive games.

“The fact that Miles got more 1st-place votes than Mitchell and Clark combined is a joke. But that’s what the @WNBA is quickly becoming. Caitlin Clark wasn’t even on 19 of the ballots? The whole thing is a complete fraud. 3rd in scoring and 2nd in assists, and Miles is 9th and 7th??,” another fan wrote on X, while pointing out that even Caitlin Clark finished lower than Olivia Miles.

Miles ranked eighth in PPG on 49.2% shooting, better than Clark’s 44.6% but not as good as Mitchell’s 50.9%. Mitchell even ranked third in the league in three-pointers made per game, and first when it came to 3P%.

“Dilusional. I’m okay with A’ja, but no way Miles should be ahead of Caitlin,” one fan said.

In a season where Clark broke the all-time WNBA record for scoring by a point guard, by amassing 891 total points, surpassing Diana Taurasi’s previous record of 860 points set in 2006, it’s hard for some fans to see her fourth on the MVP list.

This debate also takes us down memory lane, where fans were upset about Caitlin Clark’s position on the MVP list in Clark’s rookie 2024 season, when she broke the record for most assists (337 total assists, averaging 8.4 per game) and most three-pointers made by a rookie in WNBA history.

Opinions and sentiments aside, there is still a long way to go for Olivia Miles. Being only the sixth rookie to win Rookie of the Year by unanimous vote is good, but it is nowhere close to getting the Lynx deep in the postseason, as reflected by Cheryl Reeve.

“Clearly, she is not a complete player yet,” said Reeve after the game 2 loss against the NY Liberty.

The season may be over for Miles, Mitchell, and Clark, but the reigning and continuing MVP A’ja Wilson has a huge task in front of her as they face a must-win Game 3 against the Golden State Valkyries on Friday.