Aces rule out A'ja Wilson for Commissioner Cup final vs New York after ankle tweak

NEW YORK (AP) — Las Vegas star Aja Wilson has been ruled out of the Commissioner Cup final against New York on Tuesday night because of a right leg injury.

The four-time MVP rolled her ankle in the fourth quarter of the Aces' win over the Chicago Sky on Sunday. She came back into the game after a quick trip to the locker room.

"It's when you get off the court that you realize you probably tweaked it a little worse than you originally thought," Aces coach Becky Hammon said at shootaround Tuesday.

Hammon said that it's just a tweak and that Wilson should need "a few days to move."

Wilson, who leads the league in scoring at 25.7 points a game, has been remarkably durable in her career. She's now only missed seven games since the 2020 season.

Besides her scoring, defense and rebounding are two areas that Hammon said the Aces will need to focus on against the Liberty, who beat Las Vegas on the road last week.

"Everybody's got to be that much better," Aces guard Chelsea Gray said. "It's no secret, she's a big, huge part of our team. She's the best player in the world. Let's, let's lock in for this one game and do what we have to do."

The Aces are no stranger to having to play the Liberty short-handed in big games. Gray and Kiah Stokes were hurt in the 2023 WNBA Finals and the Aces beat New York without them.

"Focusing on ourselves, that's really the thing," said New York star Breanna Stewart. "This is one game, winner takes all and you never know what's going to happen in one game. We need to make sure that we're our best tonight."

New York will be missing Satou Sabally, who is in concussion protocol after unintentionally getting hit in the face by an elbow against the Aces.