WBB: A'ja Wilson press conference recap

After winning her first WNBA MVP award, A’ja Wilson and Aces coach Bill Laimbeer held a zoom meeting Thursday evening.

The interview had to be cut short because the team dinner was being delivered (I can relate), but Wilson and Laimbeer talked about what the award meant to Wilson, who became the fifth-youngest MVP in league history, and her teammates.

Gamecock Twitter was often up in arms this season over a perceived lack of attention Wilson was getting. There was some truth to it, as Laimbeer banned all external promotion of players for individual awards. Laimbeer was the only member of the Aces who knew the announcement was coming. He employed a bit of gamesmanship, scheduling a long meeting for the afternoon.

Q: Can you walk us through what the announcement was like?

I had to do an ESPN interview, and the interview was going a little long but I wasn’t thinking anything of it. Bill said that we had a refs’ meeting, so I knew we had to do that in the players’ lounge. I was getting ready for the refs’ meeting because I’ve been meaning to say some things, ask some questions because at this point I’m getting fouled in some ways. I know Bill was getting aggravated by the league not being there.

Then I saw Cathy (WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert), and she started talking about the semifinals, so I’m thinking this is something all semifinal teams go through. Then she started reading off my stats, and that’s when it hit me what was going on. I wish I could tell you the rest but I couldn’t hear anything because I was bawling my eyes out. I was crying because I’m so grateful for this moment. They really got me. I don’t get surprised a lot, but they got me with that one.

I feel like my whole life is a lie. I asked a few people “When did you know?” I was glad to know my teammates didn’t know.

Q: Bill, what has A’ja meant to this franchise?

(Laimbeer) I’ve had a lot of great players and a lot of all-stars, but no one with the individual performance that carried a team like A’ja has this year. It’s great for her, it’s great for our players, it’s great for our franchise. She’s grown up. Every year you see more of her ability and more of who she is as a person and a basketball player. There’s still more there, and she knows it and we all know it as teammates and coaches.

Today was a very well-kept secret. I didn’t tell my assistants. I didn’t tell our COO. Only three people knew. I had to put on my best angry face today for how long it was taking.

Q: (From a child)You told me winning the national championship was like getting a giant bowl of ice cream. What is winning MVP like?

I think it’s like four giant bowls of ice cream. I can’t even put into words how happy and grateful I am.

Q: (from an adult) What flavor is the ice cream and what made you cry when you won?

I would have to go with strawberry.

The biggest thing was the feeling of being counted out. I was the underdog coming into the season, we were the underdog. For us to play the way that we’ve been playing and prove a lot of people wrong, it’s not like we did it, because our job’s not done, but it was a moment where it was like wow, you’ve changed people’s outlook and how they may think now. I’m already a very emotional person, but it was a special moment that I was glad I could share with everyone around me.

Q: Does playing in the bubble make this feel different?

I think so. We should have two asterisks by this year as a whole because of the way things are in the bubble and the things around us. It’s tough. I wouldn’t say it’s easy playing in the bubble. It may be easier because we don’t have to travel, but playing every other day, and we didn't necessarily get to have a beach day, but we found ways to bond in different ways. It has been tough. I have been emotionally, mentally drained, physically drained. Just to win this right now in this climate makes it that much more special. Nothing is easy in this league, but it’s been tough in this bubble for sure.

Q: What does it mean for Las Vegas?

Vegas is my home away from home, so I’m glad to bring this back there and have everyone around experience it the way we did.

Q: It’s been a big year for athletes from South Carolina. What does it mean to add this?

I’m super proud. I’m South Carolina through and through. We kind of get overlooked because we aren’t the biggest state or the biggest city that dominates football or basketball or sports in general. It’s pretty special to be alongside other South Carolinians that are getting the job done. We all have our different paths, but they all crossed in South Carolina so it’s pretty cool to have that.

Q: What did it mean to see your teammates campaigning for you? (The team recently wore A’ja Wilson for MVP shirts.)

That’s them. That’s the Aces right there. We kid and joke all the time, but we also know what we need to do to get the job done. It wasn’t a surprise at all. It was pretty cool to get on the bus and everyone had on their shirts. It’s just truly special, and you can see it on the court, that’s the bond that we’ve had. We’re all meshing and we’re clicking at the right time.

Q: Who was the first person you called?

I called my mom first and she didn’t answer, so then I called my dad because he always answers. Turns out my mom was on her way to get her phone. So I called my parents and when I told them I could hear my mom screaming in the background, and my dad’s like, What!? My mom couldn’t stop screaming and then my dad was imitating her. It was pretty cool to have that moment with them, and then my dad told me to make my free throws. So it was still kind of a humbling moment.

Q: Bill, what makes A’ja so special?

(Laimbeer) Her willingness to be a leader now. When she first got here it was unclear what her path held as far as leading the team. Last year she went through a lot of emotional struggles and it affected her play. This year she came with that mindset of this is my basketball team, I have a responsibility. She will tell you any day you listen to her, she understands what being a professional basketball player means, especially in this environment we’re in. She will tell you she is a professional basketball player. She will only get better. She will work on her game and improve her game. There’s more to do. She wants to win championships and she wants to win lots of championships. My job is to surround her with players that can do that, but she has become a leader that I saw in her from the start and I’m very proud of her.

Q: Did you already know how to be a professional basketball player?

I had to grow into it and figure it out. I don’t know what I was figuring out, but I had to figure it out. Knowing not only that my team needs me, but every time. That’s the biggest thing. Not getting caught up in (what just happened), no, they need me every possession, every time, and I have to be there no matter what. That’s something that I had to learn.

There were times when I might have doubted myself because I felt like I should have done a certain thing, but that’s not the case. I had to let the game come to me and trust myself and trust others around me. At South Carolina it was a completely different level, so I had to figure it out at this level. Hopefully it wasn’t too late.

Q: How mad will you get if your teammates start calling you MVP A’ja?

I don’t know if I’ll get mad. I think they know not to call me that. It’s them. It’s really all of us. Without them I wouldn’t be MVP. I wouldn’t be in this situation.

We’re not done. We haven’t won anything yet. The job is still out there. We really have other things to focus on.

Q: When you were little did you imagine winning MVP?

Helllll no. I was nowhere near even thinking I could compete in the WNBA let alone be the MVP.

I knew I wanted to make a profession of mine, I wanted it to be my job. I never really had, this is what I’m dreaming of. It was a goal of mine once I knew I could compete at this level. But growing up, if you had told little 13-year old A’ja she would be MVP, she would have laughed in your face.