Why A’Ja Wilson Is The Face Of The WNBA’s Million Dollar Era

The WNBA successfully collectively bargained this past fall, and we will have a 2026-27 WNBA season. With the success of the league’s new CBA, the players in the WNBA are finally signing million-dollar contracts for the first time. Of the WNBA stars that have begun signing these landmark deals, A’Ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces has signed the first super max contract in WNBA history, according to ESPN.

Wilson signed a three-year contract that totals around $5 million. The significance of Wilson being the first player in the WNBA to sign such a deal is that she has been a standard of excellence for the league for the better part of the last five seasons.

A’Ja Wilson is not new to this

The Aces’ living legend already has four WNBA league MVP titles to her name from 2020, 2022, 2024 and 2025. In that span of time, she has also won three WNBA championships in 2022, 2023 and 2025. Of those three titles, Wilson has been the MVP in two of those finals as well. Her career is becoming synonymous with the all-time greats of the league.

The ladies who have some of the most decorated resumes in the game. Think Candace Parker, Lisa Leslie, Maya Moore and Tina Thompson. Aside from being champions themselves, there’s something else all of those women have in common. They all helped lay the ground that made it possible for the WNBA to be able to dole out million-dollar deals.

A’Ja Wilson is the perfect example

With Wilson becoming the first woman to sign such a deal, it sets a precedent. If you are a player who aspires to be a super max player, then your drive has to be reminiscent of hers. As a player who plays both ends of the floor and takes accountability in the pressers, she is a shining example of what it means to be a pro. What’s even more astonishing is that as the league has improved, she continues to be a premier talent in it.