A'ja Wilson wins AP Female Athlete of the Year following historic 4th WNBA MVP

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.

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 honoured in 2024.

"It's an honour 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 honoured 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.

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.

"The things she's done on the court have never been done. To me, she's in a category all her own," Aces coach Becky Hammon said of Wilson. "People always ask who's on your Mount Rushmore? I'm saying she's on Everest — there's nobody up there with her."

Shohei Ohtani won the AP Male Athlete of the Year on Tuesday for the fourth time.

Hammon has been impressed with everything about Wilson in her four years coaching in Las Vegas.

"Her relatability, her being down to earth makes her a great superstar," Hammon said. "Her skill set is unmatched, but she's also the easiest player to coach. To have that mixture of humility, grace and skill, there's a reason why she's doing things that have never been done."

This season was different for Wilson and the Aces, who had cruised to their previous two titles