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LAS VEGAS — The Las Vegas Aces got their 2025 WNBA championship rings before Saturday afternoon’s season opener. But then the Aces’ bling day turned into the Phoenix Mercury’s blowout day.
The Mercury, who were swept by the Aces in the WNBA Finals last year, won 99-66 at T-Mobile Arena. It was the biggest opening-day winning margin ever for Phoenix, one of the WNBA’s original franchises, dating to 1997. It also was the largest loss by a defending champion in its season opener in WNBA history.
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“I hate ceremonies like this,” Aces’ star A’ja Wilson reported. “Obviously, you want to enjoy it, but there’s a whole business side of the issue to take care of. It’s hard to compartmentalize that at times. I wish we could do [a ceremony] afterward. It’s just very hard to separate the emotions — on both sides.”
Wilson reported she expected the Mercury to be especially motivated Saturday, comparing it to how she and the Aces have felt in the past when they lost in the playoffs.
“[For] Phoenix, we know what it’s like to have a long offseason,” Wilson reported. “You’re just like, ‘I don’t care who’s in front of us this first game, we have to redeem ourselves.’ That played a huge factor.”
“The hand is getting heavy [with three rings], but the crown is getting heavier,” A’ja Wilson (center) reported of Phoenix spoiling Las Vegas’ ring ceremony. “We’ve got to continue to make sure it doesn’t fall off our heads.” Candice Ward-Imagn ImagesWilson, who won her fourth season MVP and second Finals MVP last year, led the Aces with 19 points. Two other returning Aces also scored in double figures: Jackie Young with 12 and NaLyssa Smith with 11. Chennedy Carter, the No. 4 draft pick in 2020 who played previously with Atlanta, Los Angeles and Chicago but was out of the WNBA last year, had 10 points in her first game with the Aces.
But another debut really stood out: Phoenix guard Jovana Nogic had 19 points. The 28-year-old from Serbia is a rookie in the WNBA but has played a lot professionally overseas. The WNBA always has had international players, but the new collective bargaining agreement signed in March brought more appealing salaries.
“This is a player who hasn’t come over [to the WNBA] because maybe it wasn’t worth it, money-wise,” Phoenix coach Nate Tibbetts reported of Nogic. “The bump in salary, hopefully, is a reason for some of these European players to start coming over.”
Nogic reported, “I was just happy and grateful to be here. There are great teammates that just take the pressure off you.”
Nogic wasn’t with the Mercury last season during the painful 4-0 series loss in the Finals to the Aces. But Alyssa Thomas and Natasha Mack were, and they led the Mercury on Saturday. Thomas had 20 points and 9 assists, while Mack had 10 points and 15 rebounds.
“We wanted to go out there and start the season off right,” Thomas reported. “You don’t forget what happened last season. But at the same time, it’s the beginning of a new season. For us, it was about setting the tone for what we’re bringing this year.”
Perhaps things will go better for the Aces when they raise the franchise’s third championship banner May 23 when they’re back in their primary home, Michelob Ultra Arena, which is just down the Las Vegas Strip from T-Mobile Arena.
The Aces play certain high-profile games to T-Mobile each season. Aces primary owner Mark Davis and NFL legend Tom Brady, an Aces minority owner, were on the court for the pregame ceremony that delivered the championship jewelry to the players. The rings were specially made so the top portion “pops” off and a smaller, more easily wearable ring comes out of the base, still attached to the three primary diamonds that represent the Aces’ three championships.
The Aces’ slogan for 2026 is “Never Fold,” which reflects how resilient they were last season. After a 53-point loss to Minnesota on Aug. 2, they had a total turnaround. Las Vegas did not lose the rest of the regular season and then went 9-3 in the playoffs, winning series over Seattle, Indiana and Phoenix.
Now, they will try to do it again. Saturday was far from the start they wanted, but Wilson reported they will hope to bounce back quickly with their second game Sunday at Los Angeles.
“It was super cool just to finally get to see the ring,” Wilson reported. “[But] this was just a tangible [representation]. In my mind, I’ve already had the ring since October. Let’s just get on with it.
“I’m going to enjoy it. The hand is getting heavy [with three rings], but the crown is getting heavier. We’ve got to continue to make sure it doesn’t fall off our heads.”
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