A’ja Wilson got her flowers from teammate Alysha Clark during a tearful Aces postgame presser

“The crown is heavy, but she shows up daily and pours into those around her.”

On Wednesday, after A’ja Wilson broke the WNBA single-season scoring record, her teammate, Alysha Clark, could barely keep it together as she spoke about who Wilson is as a person.

Wilson’s ginormous night got the attention of some pretty incredible people, including Tom Brady and LeBron James. Brady, James, and even Bam Adebayo tweeted about how special A’ja is and how she deserves to be WNBA MVP. But Clark’s comments during an Aces postgame presser were probably the best of the night.

Alysha was asked what makes A’ja such a great teammate off the court, and in a very touching moment, she held back tears as she answered. Here’s part of what she shared with the media (See the tweet and the 4:09 mark of the clip below):

Kelsey [Plum] said it the other night, she’s a phenomenal human being…I’ve been around a lot of amazing players, and the one thing that sticks out when I look at…the post players…that one piece — that selflessness — like, yeah, she is a superstar…Don’t get it twisted. She is a superstar. But you would never know it being in her presence.”

“She makes you feel welcome. She makes you feel seen and heard…But what I think what isn’t talked about enough is her humility. The way that people play on her name night in and night out — she shows up every day with a smile on her face…”

“The crown is heavy, but she shows up daily and pours into those around her. And I don’t think people understand how special that is for a person, for your franchise player, for your superstar — for your leader — to be able to do on a consistent basis…”

https://twitter.com/LVAces/status/1834077862770376993

After her heartfelt and vulnerable comments about A’ja, Alysha tweeted that the MVP frontrunner deserved to have her flowers now.

https://twitter.com/Alysha_Clark/status/1834068822958952500

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Alysha Clark is getting cooked by her teammates after hilariously bouncing the ball to the wrong team

This Alysha Clark play has to be a TOP nominee for Shaqtin’ A Fool.

Las Vegas Aces forward Alysha Clark accidentally inbounded a basketball to the wrong team, and the decision was so comically bad that she’s getting cooked by her teammates.

The Aces and the Dallas Wings played a fantastic game on Wednesday. A’ja Wilson cooked the Wings for a historic stat line, and Arike Ogunbowale added an impressive 30-burger for Dallas. So, it’s not entirely shocking that Alysha Clark might have been distracted by all that great basketball.

During the second quarter, Clark mystifyingly inbounded the ball to Arike Ogunbowale of the Wings and started walking to the other end of the court. Arike seemed momentarily shocked by that decision before she smartly heaved the ball up for a shot.

Thankfully, Clark has a great sense of humor because her teammates are giving her all sorts of grief about it. (Warning: NSFW language.)

UPDATE: Even the Aces’ social media team is in on it.

Feature image courtesy of NBA TV.

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Aces’ Alysha Clark beautifully dedicated 2023 WNBA title to her late father in emotional interview

Be right back. Crying our eyes out.

In an emotional post-game interview after the Las Vegas Aces became back-to-back WNBA champions Wednesday night, forward Alysha Clark dedicated the monumental win to her late father.

Per The Athletic, Clark’s father, Duane Clark, was a musician and an athlete who played football. He heavily supported the Denver native and loved that his daughter played sports like him. Sadly, he passed away in September of 2022.

Earlier this year, Clark reflected on their relationship. “He was everything. He was my biggest supporter,” Clark explained. “I mean, everything from high school through college. He was there for all the championships, pro. He was my No. 1 fan.”

Tonight, with emotions flowing, Clark explained to ESPN’s Holly Rowe why the Aces’s title-clinching win was in honor of her father.

Via the ESPN broadcast, Clark poured out her thoughts:

“He’s been with me all season. He’s been my sixth man. And I know he would be so happy right now, and I’m just so happy. I know he’s with me, and I wish he could be here. I wish I could call him. But this is for him. This entire season, I showed up every day because I know he loved watching me play.

“And I said, you know what, every day, every game, before the game, ‘My parents, Pops, I hope I make you proud. I hope you’re sitting there, joyous watching me play.’ That’s my prayer every day. So that’s how I show up on the floor.“

WNBA fans couldn’t help but notice such a heartfelt and soul-baring moment.

Here are the best reactions to Clark’s powerful dedication:

Feature image courtesy of ESPN.

Las Vegas Aces forward Alysha Clark named WNBA Sixth Player of the Year

Aces forward Alysha Clark received 35 of the 60 votes from a national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters to win.

The WNBA Sixth Player of the Year award went to yet another Las Vegas player this year. Aces forward Alysha Clark received 35 of the 60 votes from a national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters to win the award.

This is her 11th season, but first with the Aces. The award is presented to a player who has played more games as a reserve than as a starter. Clark played in all 39 of Las Vegas’ regular-season games, coming off the bench 38 times and starting once.

Clark will receive $5,150 and a trophy to commemorate the achievement.

Guard-forward DiJonai Carrington of the Connecticut Sun finished second with 13 votes and guard Dana Evans of the Chicago Sky was third with nine votes. Center Kalani Brown of the Dallas Wings, guard Marine Johannès of the New York Liberty and guard Sami Whitcomb of the Seattle Storm each received one vote.

The rest of the season awards will be announced in the coming days:

  • Sept. 21: Most Improved Player
  • Sept. 26: Most Valuable Player
  • Oct. 2: Rookie of the Year and All-Rookie team
  • Oct. 5: Defensive Player of the Year and All-Defensive teams
  • Oct. 13: All-WNBA first and second teams
  • Oct. 24: Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award

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