2023 WNBA Finals: Ranking the 10 starters for the Aces and Liberty

The 2023 WNBA Finals are now just a few days away, and, as expected, it will be a superteam showdown between the defending champion Las Vegas Aces and the New York Liberty. While the Aces are looking to become the first team since the 2001-2002 Los Angeles Sparks to repeat as champions, the Liberty are in search of their first title in franchise history. 

Both teams are, of course, filled with high-end talent. The 10 expected starters have a combined five MVPs, three Finals MVPs, two Defensive Player of the Year awards, two Rookie of the Year awards, three Most Improved Player awards, two Sixth Player of the Year awards, 31 All-Star appearances, 22 All-WNBA appearances and 14 All-Defensive appearances. And that doesn’t even include future Hall of Famer Candace Parker, who is out with a broken foot. 

Ahead of the action, here’s a look at where the players stand amongst themselves. Note: Players are listed alphabetically inside their tiers. 

Tier 1: Best in the world

Breanna Stewart: Forward, New York Liberty

The first few games of the playoffs were an offensive struggle for Stewart, who could not buy a shot, particularly from the 3-point line, and struggled to adjust to some extremely physical defense. She was still making a serious impact on the defensive end throughout that time, though, and started to find her offensive game towards the end of the semifinals. In Games 3 and 4 on the road in Connecticut, she averaged 26 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks to close out the series. 

Stewart was the MVP for a reason, and the Liberty will need her to play like it in the Finals. If she does, they have a great chance to win the first title in franchise history. 

A’ja Wilson: Forward, Las Vegas Aces

Stewart may have won the regular season MVP award, but Wilson has been the best player in the postseason so far. She became the first player ever with three consecutive 30-point playoff games and is averaging 25.8 points, 11.2 rebounds and 3.2 blocks on 59.5% shooting from the field. She’s one of three players in the postseason averaging a double-double and those marks are good for second, third, first and fourth, respectively. 

Simply put, she is one of the two best players in the world and a dominant force on both ends of the court. She can single-handedly swing this series, and the title, in the Aces’ favor. 

Tier 2: Former MVP

Jonquel Jones: Center, New York Liberty

Five of the past six MVP winners are in this series; Stewart has two, Wilson has two and Jones has the other. Though she isn’t quite on the same level as the other two, she’s not far behind at all when she’s at her best. Few players in the league can deal with Jones’ combination of size and skill, and she just might be the X-factor in this series. If she’s active and engaged on both ends of the floor, she presents a real match-up problem for the Aces.

To her credit, she has been stellar so far in the playoffs, averaging 16.5 points, 12.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks on 53.1% shooting. 

Tier 3: All-Stars

Chelsea Gray: Guard, Las Vegas Aces

There are few players you would want on your team in a playoff series more than the reigning Finals MVP. The two-time champion, who will move into fifth place on the all-time playoff assists leaderboard, is never afraid of the moment and has grown into one of the league’s premier big-game players since her arrival in Las Vegas. Gray hasn’t been able to match her historic performance in last season’s playoffs, but how could she? Still, she’s averaging 16 points, 4.6 rebounds and 6.4 assists. 

Sabrina Ionescu: Guard, New York Liberty

Ionescu is one of the league’s most versatile guards and premier 3-point shooters. When she gets going from downtown, especially at Barclays Center, it’s as electric as it gets. We saw one of those moments in Game 1 of the first round, when her barrage of triples swung the game in the Liberty’s favor. Her shooting has been inconsistent in the playoffs so far, though, and the Liberty will need her to find a rhythm in the Finals. The encouraging note on that front is that Ionescu averaged 21.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists on 52.9% from 3-point land against the Aces in the regular season. 

Betnijah Laney: Guard, New York Liberty

The Liberty might not be in the Finals if it wasn’t for Laney, who has been their most consistent performer in the playoffs so far. She scored 20-plus points in three consecutive games to close out the semifinals, and is averaging 17 points, 5.2 rebounds and three assists on 48.2% shooting. But as crucial as her offensive production has been thus far, her defense may be more important in this series. She made her first All-Defensive appearance this season, and is the team’s best perimeter defender against the Aces’ elite backcourt trio. 

Kelsey Plum: Guard, Las Vegas Aces

Plum is a terrific perimeter scorer and has had stretches this season where she’s been unstoppable. There just aren’t many players who can shoot like her, especially off the dribble, and she’s improved as a playmaker in recent seasons. She has not been at her best so far in the playoffs, however, as she’s averaged 16 points on 40% shooting and 3.6 assists. The Aces will need her to find her shot in the Finals if they want to keep up with a Liberty team that can score at a high level. 

Courtney Vandersloot: Guard, New York Liberty

Vandersloot has been the best point guard around for a number of years now, and while she may be past her prime, she once again led the league in assists during the regular season. Her ability to orchestrate an offense and take care of the ball is going to be vital in this series against the Aces’ league-best defense. A defense that loves to get out and run and thrives off turnovers. While playmaking is her primary responsibility, it would be a big boost to the Liberty’s offense if she shoots the ball better than she has in the first two series. 

Jackie Young: Guard, Las Vegas Aces

Young has blossomed into a bonafide All-WNBA caliber player in recent years. Her size and physicality on the perimeter make her a matchup nightmare for opponents, especially now that she’s a strong 3-point shooter. While she’s provided her usual all-around production in the playoffs, averaging 15.2 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists, she’s been super inefficient in doing so, shooting just 34.9% from the field. It goes without saying that the Aces would prefer if she starts making those shots in the Finals. 

Tier 4: Role player

Kiah Stokes: Center, Las Vegas Aces

Stokes moved into the Aces’ starting lineup in the middle of the season after Candace Parker went down with a broken foot, and, with all due respect, she is not on the same level as the other nine starters in this series. That’s no secret. She’s a very solid role player who rebounds well and can protect the rim, but isn’t much of a threat on offense. Most often she will not be on the floor to close games, though it’s possible that could change in this series given the Liberty’s frontcourt.