A'ja Wilson named AP Female Athlete of Year

A’ja Wilson stood atop the WNBA again in 2025, winning an unprecedented fourth MVP as her Las Vegas Aces earned a third championship in four seasons.

She led the league with 23.4 points and 2.3 blocks per game.

For that, she earned The Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year on Wednesday for the first time in her career. It’s the second consecutive year a basketball player won the award after Caitlin Clark was honored in 2024.

“It’s an honor when you think about the group of women who have won before,” Wilson said in a phone interview. “Just to have my name be a part of it, I’m blessed.”

Wilson is only the fifth basketball player to be honored as the Female Athlete of the Year since it was first presented in 1931, joining Sheryl Swoopes (1993), Rebecca Lobo (1995), Candace Parker (2008, 2021) and Clark.

Wilson became the first player in either the WNBA or NBA to win the MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, Finals MVP and lead the league in scoring in the same season.

A group of 47 sports journalists from the AP and its members voted. Wilson received 17 votes, tennis star Aryna Sabalenka was second with nine and Paige Bueckers was third with five.



(AP file photo)