Four weeks have gone by in the W and the MVP race is getting more interesting each week. New faces keep coming in, and some of the same faces you usually see aren’t there. Who are your top 5 candidates so far?
1. Jonquel Jones, F/C, Connecticut Sun
Season averages: 21.6 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1.5 steals, 1.2 blocks
Team record: 8-2
Jonquel Jones has firmly solidified herself as the leading MVP candidate. She has been playing the best basketball of her career, and is the most important player on their roster. She’s having an extremely efficient year this year as well, with 57/49/81 splits. Whether it’s scoring, playmaking, or defending, she truly is doing it all for the Sun this year. JJ truly has the rest of the league fighting for second place in the MVP battle this year. It will be interesting to see if the field can close the gap as Jonquel heads to Europe for a bit.
https://twitter.com/WNBA/status/1401346519261925378?s=20
2. A’ja Wilson, F, Las Vegas Aces
Season averages: 18.6 points, 8 rebounds, 3.5 assists 1.3 blocks
Team record: 7-3
A’Ja Wilson is arguably playing the best basketball of the year right now. Offensively she’s scoring at an incredible rate and efficiency while defending at an extremely high level as well. A’ja has taken a step up this year as a leader and a closer as well. She arguably would be going back to back this year if it wasn’t for Jonquel and her amazing year this season.
3. Betnijah Laney, G, New York Liberty
Season averages: 20.8 points, 4.9 assists, 3.9 rebounds
Team record: 5-4
A new addition to the MVP power ranking is Betnijah Laney. I foolishly left her off the rankings last time around, and she absolutely proved me wrong. Laney has proven to be everything for this team this year in Sabrina’s slump. She’s scoring 20 points per game every night while also taking the task of guarding the other teams opposing best player. Laney has been outstanding for the liberty when Sabrina has struggled to adjust to WNBA defenses this season.
https://twitter.com/WNBA/status/1394006310853791748?s=20
4. Jewell Loyd, G, Seattle Storm
Season averages: 20.4 points, 5.1 assists, 4.1 rebounds
Team record: 8-2
Jewell Loyd has long been an unsung hero for this Seattle team. Well, this year, everything has started to change. Loyd has become the most important player to their team with a top-two player on their team and arguably the best point guard in WNBA history. The Gold Mamba has just been that good this year though. She’s posting career-high shooting splits and has been the Storm’s primary defender for the other team’s best guard or wing.
https://twitter.com/espn/status/1401033608501071872?s=20
5. Brittney Griner, C, Phoenix Mercury
Season averages: 17 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.6 blocks
Team record: 5-4
Brittney Griner has helped keep this Mercury team afloat in the wake of Diana Taurasi‘s absence. She has been a monster offensively, and also has been the best rim protector this year by far. Griner has been more efficient this year despite a large increase in usage.
https://twitter.com/WNBA/status/1400655081180180487?s=20
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