The 2026 WNBA regular season was historic.
Olivia Miles scored more points than any rookie ever. A’ja Wilson has continued her dominance, leading the league in scoring and blocks for the third-consecutive year. And offense raged like never before, with 14 of the 15 teams having an offensive rating of over 100.
These phenomenal team efforts and individual performances made award voting even harder than normal, but that was the task I was given by the WNBA. It’s always an honor and a privilege to be
an official voter for end-of-season awards. Sharing my process can hopefully illuminate things for fans and spark dialogue and conversation around the game we all love.
Okay, let’s dig into the rationale and reasoning for my award ballot.
Most Valuable Player: A’ja Wilson (Las Vegas Aces)
Excellence can get boring. Such consistency can neutralize joy and appreciation. Let’s not have that happen with A’ja Wilson.
When the defending champs need a bucket or a stop, they still look at No. 22 for the answer—and she responds every time.
In a season with unprecedented scoring, no one put the ball in the basket more than Wilson. She averaged a league-best 26.2 points per game. Defensively, she averaged 1.9 blocks per game, which was No.1 in the WNBA, and 1.4 steals, which was 13th in the league.
Wilson has the WNBA’s best plus-minus at +368. You might feel someone else is more valuable, but the numbers don’t support it. Wilson is the best offensive player, and she is on a short list of the best defensive players. Her team just scores more when she is on the court than any other person.
When you add all of that up, the only conclusion one can come to is that Wilson is the WNBA MVP for the fifth time.
Defensive Player of the Year: Angel Reese (Atlanta Dream)
Angel Reese has always been a disruptor of offenses, but she took things to another level in 2026.
At the rim, she was a black hole, devouring everything that even attempts to enter the paint. Every offensive possession against the Dream becomes a game of “Where is Angel Reese?,” with the opponents’ goal being to avoid her while still scoring as the clock winds down.
Statistically, Reese is high on virtually every advanced defensive metric. She led the WNBA in defensive win shares at 3.39. Reese also had the best defensive rating differential at -15.5. Opponents scored 51.8 percent on 2-pointers when she was on the court. When she was off the floor, the Dream allowed 59.4 percent shooting on 2-pointers. Teams shot 7.5 percent worse on non-3-point shots when she was playing—the biggest negative differential in the WNBA.
In traditional stats, Reese also reigned. She was third in steals with 1.8 per game and fourth in defensive rebounds with 7.3 per game.
The scary part is it feels like Reese isn’t even in her prime and she’ll only improve. Even as she begins to enter her best years, she is already the league’s top defender and not only worthy of the award and my vote, but a shoo-in to win it.
Rookie of the Year: Olivia Miles (Minnesota Lynx)
I thought Olivia Miles could enter the WNBA and be one of the best guards in the league immediately. Somehow, she exceeded even my most optimistic projections.
Miles averaged 19.8 points per game, good for ninth in the WNBA and the best among rookies.
Offensively, Miles is a tyrant, a soul snatcher, an ankle breaker and a heart taker.
Not only is she scoring in bunches, but she is at the fulcrum of everything the Lynx did on the offensive end. And with her running the offense and dishing out six assists per game, players like Kayla McBride, Natasha Howard, and Nia Coffey benefited, and Minnesota ended up with the best record in all of basketball.
Many votes on my ballot were tough. This one wasn’t. Miles should be the unanimous Rookie of the Year.
Coach of the Year: Sydney Johnson (Washington Mystics)
When it comes to Coach of the Year, the top three candidates were Sydney Johnson of the Mystics, Cheryl Reeve of the Lynx and Natalie Nakase of the Golden State Valkyries. This trio all had their teams overachieve this year. However, when thinking of who has exceeded expectations the most, I thought that was Johnson, and that’s why he is my winner.
He has taken a young team that seemed destined to be a tanking squad jockeying for a lottery position and turned them into the No. 5 seed. An above .600 record makes this the fourth-best Mystics regular season ever.
Not only did the team collectively outperform projections, but players took huge leaps. Shakira Austin had a career year, averaging 17 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game. Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen both made their second All-Star appearance and have continued to improve.
Now, the Mystics are a rising franchise and have accelerated their rebuild to the point where they are flirting with being legitimate title contenders.
The Lynx had a great year and are the top seed, but they reached the WNBA Finals in 2024. Yes, this result was unexpected with Napheesa Collier missing the majority of the year, but they also gained an MVP candidate and generational talent in Miles. So, did Reeve truly have the best coaching job in the WNBA, or did she have one of the best, plus an MVP-level rookie that did a ton of the heavy lifting, to get Minnesota there? The Valkyries are an impressive team, but they were good last year. Sure, they’ve taken another step forward, but it just isn’t as much of a shock to me as what Johnson and the Mystics accomplished.
All three candidates are worthy, and there is no clear easy choice. I’m guessing the ballots will reflect that.
Most Improved Player: Jessica Shepard (Dallas Wings)
I don’t know if other players can produce more if given a larger role, but I know Jessica Shepard can and did.
This year she averaged 14.5 points, 11.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game, all career-high marks. She also shot 57.5 percent from the field, her second-best shooting percentage. What makes this most impressive is that she did it while taking 10.3 shots per game. That’s nearly double the number of shots she took last year, which was 5.2.
Thanks to her efforts, Shepard made the All-Star team for the first time in her career.
Other solid candidates for this award include Marina Mabrey of the Toronto Tempo and the Mystics’ Austin. Both had impressive seasons, but based on their years in the league, how much they improved and how expected those leaps were, I felt Shepard demonstrated the most significant improvement.
Sixth Player of the Year: Janelle Salaün (Golden State Valkyries)
Janelle Salaün’s been the best reserve all season and ran away with this award.
She led all reserves in scoring, averaging 12.7 points per game with plus-minus at +160. Salaün also averaged four rebounds per game and shot 39.2 percent from 3-point range.
Add all of that up, along with the fact that Salaün is coming off the bench for a Valkyries team that ended the season with the second-best record, and it’s clear she is the best super sub in the league.
All-Rookie Team
- Olivia Miles (Minnesota Lynx)
- Azzi Fudd (Dallas Wings)
- Flau’jae Johnson (Seattle Storm)
- Kiki Rice (Toronto Tempo)
- Sydney Taylor (Chicago Sky)
This was another impressive rookie class. Again, this level of greatness should not be scoffed at. Having rookies this good is a rarity and a luxury that won’t always happen.
While Miles was ahead of the pack, Sky guard Sydney Taylor had a strong season. She averaged 13.6 points per game. The No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft, Azzi Fudd, lived up to the hype. Fudd averaged 13.1 points per game and was a laser from deep, knocking down 39.7 percent of her shots. She is also quickly becoming one of the best perimeter defenders in basketball. Flau’jae Johnson was a bucket, scoring 14.9 points per game, and Kiki Rice was elite at finishing near the basket, averaging 13.4 points per game.
All-WNBA First and Second Team
First Team
- A’ja Wilson (Las Vegas Aces)
- Kelsey Mitchell (Indiana Fever)
- Caitlin Clark (Indiana Fever)
- Breanna Stewart (New York Liberty)
- Olivia Miles (Minnesota Lynx)
Second Team
- Jackie Young (Las Vegas Aces)
- Rhyne Howard (Atlanta Dream)
- Paige Bueckers (Dallas Wings)
- Aliyah Boston (Indiana Fever)
- Angel Reese (Atlanta Dream)
Figuring out who the best 10 players in the WNBA are is always an agonizing process.
This league is oozing with talent, and it always feels like players who are worthy are omitted. This year, Kahleah Copper, Sonia Citron, Veronica Burton and Shakira Austin are some of the players who will undoubtedly make other people’s All-WNBA list, even if they couldn’t be on mine.
All-Defensive First and Second Team
First Team
- Angel Reese (Atlanta Dream)
- A’ja Wilson (Las Vegas Aces)
- Gabby Williams (Seattle Storm)
- Rhyne Howard (Atlanta Dream)
- Breanna Stewart (New York Liberty)
Second Team
- Shakira Austin (Washington Mystics)
- Kayla McBride (Minnesota Lynx)
- Sonia Citron (Washington Mystics)
- Aaliyah Boston (Indiana Fever)
- Kiah Stokes (Golden State Valkyries)
Offense reigned supreme this year, but these players reminded us of defense’s impact and importance. They were all impressive, elevated their team’s defensive floors and were a joy to watch night in and night out.
That’s all folks! Leave a comment below, sharing where you agreed and disagreed, along with any other thoughts.
