Las Vegas Aces ring ceremony a reminder that another WNBA championship may be on horizon

In Super Squads, The Athletic follows the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces in their quests to win a WNBA championship. Our reporters will tell the stories of the players on two of the most star-studded teams in league history and examine how their paths shape the future of the WNBA.

LAS VEGAS — A’ja Wilson found the cameras. After the Aces forward, her teammates and coaches all received their championship rings for winning the 2022 WNBA Finals and the banner commemorating their accomplishment was unveiled Saturday night, she turned to the media gathered to capture the ceremony and flashed her ring with her pinky pointed toward her teeth.

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Wilson then flipped her hand forward to put the ring in clearer view, started to stroll closer to the congregation of cameras nestled near half court and struck a few more poses. Satisfied with her solo shots, she waved her teammates over to join in.

The two-time WNBA MVP squatted, rested her chin in her hand and kicked off the group photoshoot as her teammates took their places around her, adjusted their rings and leaned in close to one another. As they let the celebration soak in alongside owner Mark Davis and the championship trophy, music blared in the background and the roaring fans cheered on.

“We blinging!” Wilson shouted into a microphone a few moments earlier. “The champs got their rings.”

The Aces were already two games into their season before their contest against the Sparks in front of a sellout crowd at Michelob Ultra Arena, but this marked their crowning as champions. It was not only a landmark occasion for the franchise, which secured its first championship in team history, but also Las Vegas, which has never been home to a major professional sports champion before the Aces. Davis, who also owns the Raiders, hopes it’s the first of many.

“Just win,” Davis said while standing next to WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert on Saturday. “Today, Las Vegas, we are world champions.”

The unveiling of the first ever banner in Las Vegas professional sports history, the @LVAces 2022 Champions 🏆 pic.twitter.com/xJmtj96EDT

— WNBA (@WNBA) May 28, 2023

Following a lengthy video encapsulating the 2022 campaign, Engelbert and Davis gave remarks before the assistant coaches and head coach Becky Hammon got their rings. Although it was strange for the Aces to start their season with back-to-back road games considering they’re the reigning champions, it was almost fitting that they were awarded their rings on this night.

That’s because, following an investigation, the WNBA determined that the Aces violated league rules on player benefits and workplace policies in their treatment of forward Dearica Hamby before trading her to the Sparks this offseason. In turn, they were stripped of their 2025 first-round pick and Hammon was suspended for the first two games of the season.

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Hamby has already played against the Aces this season — she scored 11 points in the Sparks’ loss to the Aces on Thursday — but Saturday’s contest was both her first time facing off with Hammon and suiting up in Las Vegas. Amid the Aces’ jubilation, the awkwardness that came with recognizing their championship in her presence was palpable.

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After Hammon received her ring, Hamby was the first player who got hers. She hugged Davis, who said something in her ear before handing over her ring, but she didn’t interact with Hammon, stand with the Aces when the banner was presented or join the scrum next to the trophy. While it obviously doesn’t invalidate anything the Aces accomplished last season, the rift that exists between them and one of their former core contributors remains worth acknowledging.

“Whatever that may look like, I feel like it was a great moment for her to have and a great moment for us to share with her,” Wilson said when asked whether having Hamby present gave the team closure. “We don’t win that ring without D — I’m not going to not say that because it’s true — so it’s very great that she could have that and share with her children and her mom and her sister there. It was really good to see her.”

BIG GUARD!!

Welcome back to The House, Champ 💍@dearicamarie pic.twitter.com/Mr9l4SbmXU

— Las Vegas Aces (@LVAces) May 28, 2023

At the same time, the interaction was also indicative of both sides officially moving on. Aisha Shepperd, who’s also no longer on the team, was given her ring after Hamby and showed no shortage of affinity for those still with the franchise. It was all elation from there as the Aces proceeded with their festivities. They were serenaded with a spectacular national anthem from Grammy-winning singer Anita Baker and rolled the Sparks in a convincing win.

“It’s my home space,” Hammon said Saturday about her emotions returning from suspension. “It was definitely nice to get out there and be with my team, but honestly, they’ve been so awesome through this whole thing. I mean, they know how to make me smile, for sure. It was nice to have this moment with them. And it was also nice to be out there in the battle with them.”

Following their addition of superstar forward Candace Parker this offseason, the Aces are an even better team on paper than they were in 2022 and appear primed to contend to become the WNBA’s first back-to-back champion since 2002. It’s obviously too early in the season for bold proclamations, but they’ve looked as good as advertised in a promising 3-0 start. Their win over the short-handed Sparks isn’t anything to brag about, but they’ll be difficult for any opponent to handle.

“I want to get another ring. I want to approach it the same way I approached the first one and I think that goes the same for all of us,” Wilson said. “We know that target on our back has gotten a lot bigger. With that being said, we work a lot harder.”

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The Aces won’t be satisfied if their 2023 season ends with anything other than another championship. They’re aiming to construct a legacy that’ll be remembered for years to come.

“We want to build a dynasty here,” Wilson said. “We want to go down in the books as one of the best teams the WNBA has ever seen. And when I look up there and I see that me and my team were able to hang that banner, especially with it being Becky’s first year coaching, it was crazy. I got all the feels all over again because we worked our ass off last year. We really did. And a lot of people probably didn’t have us in the situation that we were in, and we came out on top. I just remember meeting Becky for the first time at her jersey retirement hanging, so it’s pretty dope just to see the full circle moment with our banner going up there forever.”

And now, with their months-long jubilee finally over, they fully turn their attention toward earning another one.

“They need some neighbors, ” Hammon said when asked about seeing the championship banner raised next to her retired jersey from her time as a player with the San Antonio Stars. “Some other jerseys will be up there eventually, I know. And championship banners, hopefully.”

The Super Squads series is part of a partnership with Google Lens. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.

(Photo of Jackie Young, left, and A’ja Wilson: Steve Marcus / Getty Images)

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