Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson is in the midst of the best individual scoring season the WNBA has ever seen, and she reached a new height on Sunday in her team's 84-71 win over Connecticut Sun when she became the first player to score 1,000 points in a season.
Wilson needed 29 points against the Sun to get there, and she got there late in the fourth quarter with a mid-range jumper. The Aces crowd erupted with the bucket and her teammates mobbed her at the ensuing timeout. As she sat on the bench in the closing seconds, an emotional Wilson appeared to wipe tears from her eyes.
Point number 1,000 for A'ja Wilson. 👏
— WNBA (@WNBA) September 15, 2024
The only player to ever score 1k in a single WNBA szn pic.twitter.com/aQhJ2k0zht
The MVP favorite finished with 29 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocks as the Aces won for the seventh time in eight games.
For the season, Wilson is averaging 27 points per game, which would be the highest single-season scoring average by a wide margin, besting Diana Taurasi's 25.3 points per game in 2006. Furthermore, Wilson has surpassed Jewell Loyd for the single-season scoring record.
Single-season total points record
| Player | Team | Season | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
A'ja Wilson | Aces | 2024 | 1,000 |
Jewell Loyd | 2023 | 939 | |
2023 | 919 | ||
A'ja Wilson | Aces | 2023 | 912 |
2006 | 860 |
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Wilson's dominant scoring campaign is that she's remained highly efficient. She's shooting 51.9% from the field, which is the second-best mark of her career and good for seventh in the league. That's while taking 19.6 shots per game, which would be the third-most ever. Of the six other seasons where a player has averaged at least 19 shots, the next best field goal percentage is Diana Taurasi at 45.2.
Thanks to Wilson's individual brilliance, the defending champions are back on track. After a disappointing start to the season, they've won seven of their last eight to improve to 25-13 and are closing in on the No. 4 seed in the playoffs. That would set up a potential Finals rematch against the New York Liberty in the semifinals.
