Las Vegas is no stranger to spectacle, but the city took its celebrations to another level as the Las Vegas Aces paraded down the Strip, basking in the glow of their 2025 WNBA championship. Fans packed Las Vegas Boulevard from Tropicana Avenue all the way to Toshiba Plaza, eager to salute a team that’s fast becoming one of the most dominant dynasties in professional sports. The Aces’ third title in four seasons—clinched with a resounding 4-0 sweep of the Phoenix Mercury—felt like the crowning moment of a rollercoaster campaign that saw dramatic turnarounds, clutch performances, and a star in A’ja Wilson who continues to rewrite the league’s history books.
The parade, which closed Las Vegas Boulevard from 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on October 17, 2025, was followed by a raucous fan rally at Toshiba Plaza, near T-Mobile Arena. Free parking was snapped up quickly at the ARIA Events garage and the Excalibur garage as supporters flooded the area. For those who couldn’t make it in person, live coverage was available on The CW Las Vegas and the News 3 YouTube page, ensuring that every Aces fan could join in the festivities.
But how did this team, which started the season with an uninspiring 14-14 record and suffered a demoralizing 50-plus point loss to the Minnesota Lynx, end up on top of the basketball world? The answer, as it so often is in Las Vegas, came down to a little bit of luck and a whole lot of talent—anchored by the unstoppable A’ja Wilson.
After that crushing defeat to the Lynx, something clicked for the Aces. Wilson, already a two-time league MVP at the season’s start, led her squad on a remarkable 16-game winning streak, propelling them from mediocrity to playoff contention. The turnaround was so dramatic that it felt almost scripted—could anyone have seen it coming?
The Aces’ playoff run was anything but a cakewalk. In the First Round, they faced elimination against the Seattle Storm. Game 3 was a nail-biter, with Jackie Young swooping in for a clutch putback layup off an A’ja Wilson missed midrange shot with just 12.4 seconds remaining. The Storm couldn’t answer, and the Aces survived, winning the best-of-three series 2-1.
The Semifinals brought even more drama. Facing the Indiana Fever, who were missing their superstar guard Caitlin Clark, the Aces once again stared down elimination. The decisive Game 5 went to overtime after Odyssey Sims tied it up with a running floater and 22.4 seconds left in regulation. But Vegas’ cool heads and hot shooting prevailed, with Wilson and Young combining for a staggering 67 points in a 107-98 victory that sent the Aces to the Finals.
The Finals themselves were a showcase of grit, skill, and—above all—clutch performances. Game 1 saw Jackie Young hit two ice-cold free throws with 13.5 seconds left to put the Aces up 89-86, while bench players Dana Evans and Jewell Lloyd chipped in with 21 and 18 points, respectively. Game 2 was less dramatic, a comfortable 91-78 win for Vegas.
Game 3, though, will go down in WNBA lore. The Mercury erased a 17-point deficit to tie the game at 88, but with just 5 seconds left, A’ja Wilson took matters into her own hands. She received the ball on the left elbow, dribbled right, spun off her defender, and watched her jumper bounce around the rim before dropping through with 0.1 seconds left. The Aces snatched a 90-88 victory, and Wilson finished with a Finals career-high 34 points, 14 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Game 4 was the exclamation point: a 97-86 win behind 31 more points from Wilson, who averaged 28.5 points, 11.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 2.0 blocks per game in the series—earning her a second career Finals MVP trophy.
Wilson’s resume is now, frankly, staggering: three WNBA championships, two Finals MVPs, three Defensive Player of the Year awards, and four league MVPs. She’s also the fastest player in WNBA history to reach 5,000 career points. That’s the kind of record that sparks the greatest-of-all-time debate—and the chatter is getting louder.
Yet, not everyone is ready to hand Wilson the GOAT crown just yet. On a recent podcast, WNBA legend Lisa Leslie weighed in: “Well, here’s my thing. I never really talked about this whole GOAT thing, and I know that it’s tough because there’s different eras. Like Cheryl Miller was amazing and she may be somebody’s GOAT, right? Because she did so much great things in women’s basketball and getting us to the platform where we were before the WNBA ever began. Then you have, I guess you have Cheryl, you have myself, you have Cynthia Cooper, all different positions, amazing players.” Leslie continued, “Lauren Jackson, amazing players. Then you have Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird, amazing players. Then you have Maya Moore come in, an amazing player. And I just feel like it’s so tough. And then you have A’ja. And I feel like A’ja is like taking home everything. I feel like A’ja doesn’t have the competition to be really honest. Like the competition. I don’t know. I just feel like when you look at centers and forwards across the board in the league, that position is starting to go away at a fast rate.”
Leslie’s comments have sparked plenty of debate in the basketball world. Is Wilson’s dominance a product of her singular talent, or a sign of shifting dynamics in the league? Whatever the answer, there’s no denying the Aces’ place in history. As ESPN commentator Ryan Ruocco put it, Las Vegas has achieved “a three-of-a-kind!”—a nod to their three titles in four years, and a fitting tribute to a team that continues to raise the bar.
Beyond the on-court heroics, the 2025 season was a landmark for the WNBA itself. The league introduced new expansion teams, launched its inaugural Commissioner’s Cup, and shattered its single-season attendance record. The Aces’ championship parade and rally felt like a celebration not just for Las Vegas, but for women’s basketball as a whole—a testament to how far the game has come and the dazzling heights it can still reach.
As confetti rained down on Toshiba Plaza and fans cheered their champions, the message was clear: the Aces are here to stay, and so is their superstar. With A’ja Wilson at the helm, Las Vegas is already looking forward to the next roll of the dice—because in this city, anything feels possible.
