When it comes to scoring in the paint, there is no better team in the WNBA currently than the Las Vegas Aces, who are averaging 46 points per game in that statistical category.
This is not out of the ordinary for the Aces to be ranked within the top 10 in scoring around the rim, and in fact they did it in three straight seasons from 2019-21.
This year, however, they are doing it at a much higher clip, even when compared to their championship seasons in 2022, 2023, and most recently in 2025, when the team only averaged 33.1 points per game.
Most recently, in the Aces’ 79-69 victory over the Sparks, they generated an additional 38 points in the paint, which alone would still rank ninth in the league, and a big reason for that has been their rebounding.
Currently, Las Vegas sits tied for second place in the WNBA, averaging 37.3 rebounds per game, alongside the Minnesota Lynx and just behind the Atlanta Dream for the league lead to this point.
The physicality on the glass has largely come by committee this season, despite the combined totals, as only two Aces sit within the top 10 of average rebounds per game.
Aces scoring leader A’ja Wilson sits at No. 7 on the league leaders list, averaging 8.7 rebounds per game, while NaLyssa Smith sits at No. 16, averaging 16.8.
According to Aces guard Chelsea Gray, they have just been executing their passes at a high level in the offensive zone.
“Once we are able to stop and play in transition, we have been able to get some layups,” Gray said. “Once we get in the paint and we don’t have a look, we are moving (the ball) around and then attacking again.
‘We have been playing off of each other pretty well.”
When it comes to maneuvering the ball in the offensive zone, there are few better than the four- time WNBA champion who currently sits third overall in average assists per game, including 11 assists in the team’s win over the Sparks and a behind-the-back pass that led to a basket.
“In certain moments of a game, it is just instinct and feel,” Gray said. “It is things that I’ve done before, it’s not out of nowhere. You create those habits in practice.”
Additionally, another guard who has been with the franchise since 2019, Jackie Young, has averaged 6.4 assists per game and ranks No. 5 in the league in that category.
If the Aces can keep up with the pace, they will average more points in and around the basket than any team in over a decade.
The Aces host the Valkyries at 10 a.m. on Saturday.
