A’ja Wilson is ready to get back on the court.
Over the past year, the Las Vegas Aces center reached new heights. Wilson won her second gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games and earned the WNBA MVP award for the third time, by way of a unanimous vote. Though she’s been enjoying her offseason the past few months, she hasn’t been taking any days off.
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Back in February, Wilson revealed her debut Nike A’One signature shoe, which comes as part of her first-ever signature Footwear and Apparel Collection, dropping in May. The shoe is composed of various shades of pink, a full-length midsole core cushion, a TPU frame bezel, and a lightweight outsole.As she’sbeen hard at work promoting the shoe through pop-ups, she’s met fans from across the country.
Exploring new avenues to connect with fans has been a crucial component of her offseason journey. During the NCAA Women’s Final Four tournament in early April, Wilson partnered with AT&T for their Guarantee campaign, which gave fans unique access to the players and action during the Men’s and Women’s Final Four weekend.
All the while, Wilson has been busy uplifting other women basketball players. The Athlete Lifestyle on SI caught up with her during the NCAA Women’s Final Four tournament, shortly after UConn Huskies point guard Paige Bueckers had led her team to a 34-point victory against the UCLA Bruins, and before the Huskies ultimately beat the South Carolina Gamecocks in the championship.
As Wilson is entering her eighth season in the WNBA, she continues to pave the way for future generations of women athletes.
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A while back, you had mentioned that you didn’t join Unrivaled because you enjoy having time to decompress during your offseason. How have you been spending the past few months?
I’ve just really been connecting with my fans throughout different pop-ups across the country, and it’s just been tons of fun. I’ve obviously been in the gym, but at the same time, I’ve had an opportunity to kick it with my retired parents and just really, just trying to stay out the way and try to connect with my fans as much as possible. But it’s really been a great off-season. But now I’m starting to get bored, I’m starting to get my itch. And now it’s go time.
In terms of decompressing and tapping into mental health and wellness, what would you say has been beneficial?
Having unplugged days — days where take mental breaks in my life, and sometimes that means me deleting on social media, or just not being on my phone as much. Really, just being in tune with my puppies, my family, friends, and human interaction. When people be like, ‘touch grass,’ like that, type of feeling is really been beneficial to me, because it really makes me appreciate how far I’ve come, and how much more I have to go.
I saw you were at the UConn game. What a win by Paige Bueckers! As a lot of WNBA teams have their eyes on her for their first picks. What advice could you give to her, or any of the young women, as they’re about to be selected for the next phase of their basketball careers?
I think the biggest thing that I can share is that life is going to come at you fast. I feel like we have one of the greatest transitions. I mean, you go from Final Four, to the draft, to training camp so quickly. So I would say just take a moment. I pray. So I’d say to take a moment and pray, and just be grateful at where you are, because the best is yet to come. Honestly, [Bueckers] has a great career ahead of her. She’s gonna go to a great team, and she can just really be herself, soak up all the knowledge that she can and before she knows it she’ll be in year eight! So [my advice would be] just really being in the moment and understanding that she deserves to be in our league.Apr 6, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; Connecticut Huskies guard Paige Bueckers (5) looks on during the second half of the national championship of the women’s 2025 NCAA tournament against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Amalie Arena. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
So, you just revealed your A’One Nike Signature shoe. What did the process entail from design to launch?
The process was really long — longer than I think people probably expected — but it was a beautiful process. My Nike team has done a great job of making sure that my vision comes to life in my shoe. And I wanted a shoe for everyone. I wanted to people to feel connected and brought together through my shoe. It may have my fingers on it, but it’s so much deeper than that, and it’s been tons of fun. I’m so glad that people are loving on the pink, because my pink is my favorite color. So it’s a beautiful thing to see just a lot of people coming together from different parts of life, rocking my shoe.
In recent memory, women’s sports have gotten a lot of attention, with the rise in popularity of the WNBA, as well as Unrivaled. What has it been like adjusting to the spotlight?
I’ve just always been who I am, and that’s helped me navigate a lot, because I can just be myself. But it has been a beautiful thing. The biggest thing to me is when you have partners and sponsorships, kind of like AT&T that can be behind you and let you be you, and thrive in that space and connect you with so many different people.
We’re about a month away from the Aces season kick-off. How are you feeling going into this season?
I’m excited! I got a chip on my shoulder. We lost the championships last year. We weren’t able to complete a three-peat. So now we have an opportunity to go after it again. So I’m excited for it. I know my teammates are, and I’m just ready for training camp to start.
What music have you been listening to get pumped up?
I’m a PartyNextDoor girly. PartyNextDoor and Drake just dropped [a joint album called $ome $exy $ongs 4 U].I’ve been listening to the album a little bit, but I can’t ever let go of my R&B — my early 2000s and late 90s R&B.
Do you ever find time to watch television? Are you big into “Severance” or “The White Lotus?”
I just finished “Paradise” — that show has me a chokehold. “How to Get Away with Murder,” I’ve also watched and finished, so those are my shows right now.
This is an exciting time for women in sports. You have so many eyes on y’all. In which areas do you believe are room for improvement for the women in sports landscape?
I think the biggest improvement can always just be people putting their money where their mouth is, for a lot of things. We talk the talk, now it’s time to walk the walk, and we can grow in that space. We’ve always been there, we’ll always be there. We’re growing now. We just need great people to back us up. And I think that is what we’re seeing. In due time, we’re going to have our moment, and then it becomes a movement.Oct 1, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson (22) and New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart (30) during game two of the 2024 WNBA Semi-finals at Barclays Center. / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
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