It’s late December and another year of women’s basketball is coming to a close. The past 12 months have seen continued growth in women’s college basketball and the WNBA, with new teams launching, historic franchises and players winning titles and new talent entering the scene.
But it also included boardroom tensions, significant injuries and uncertainty heading into 2026. Before looking ahead and to mark the holiday season, Athletics‘s Sabreena Merchant and Ben Pickman reflect on their giveaways (winners) and smut (losers) for 2025.
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Gift: A’ja Wilson
Let’s start here: Wilson became the first player in WNBA or NBA history to win a championship, score a title and earn Finals MVP, league MVP and defensive player of the year honors in the same season. That alone would make her a big winner of the past calendar year. But considering it was his third title in four seasons, his league-record fourth MVP, and the Aces’ 17 straight wins, it’s all the more impressive. These are just a few of his accomplishments on the field. Off the court, Wilson debuted his signature Nike sneaker, the A’One. She was named Time Magazine Athlete of the Year and will be part of the Met Gala organizing committee. She has every reason to continue to vibrate the pink tambourine she took out after the Ace title. —Ben Pickman
Smut: Injuries to Caitlin Clark, JuJu Watkins and more
It’s hard to forget all the female basketball players who suffered serious injuries and were sidelined for long periods of time. In the WNBA, Napheesa Collier, Caitlin Clark, Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and Courtney Vandersloot missed part of last season. Satou Sabally is still dealing with lingering concussion symptoms after suffering a head injury in Game 3 of the WNBA Finals and is out indefinitely as Unrivaled nears notification.
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USC star JuJu Watkins’ torn ACL in the second round of the NCAA tournament spoiled the event and was the most significant injury of the college season. South Carolina’s Chloe Kitts tore her ACL before the start of the 2025-26 season, the latest in a string of high-profile knee injuries.
The NCAA Tournament and WNBA seasons have always crowned deserving champions, in UConn and the Las Vegas Aces, but Watkins’ injury was one of the two dominant stories of March Madness. Clark’s absence put a damper on All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, and his returns provided jolts of excitement that many fans wished could last the entire season.
–Pickman
Gift: Geno Auriemma and Paige Bueckers
Most programs would celebrate a seven-game NCAA Tournament series that includes six Final Fours and a trip to the national title game. At UConn, it was almost catastrophic to go this long without adding another national championship, especially since South Carolina won three titles during that span to establish itself as the new powerhouse in women’s college basketball. As the 2024-25 season began, the pressure on Paige Bueckers — already the national player of the year and a multiple-time All-American — was mounting to end the drought and solidify her Huskies’ legacy with the ultimate crown.
The regular season had some hiccups, but looking back, UConn was just biding its time. Coach Geno Auriemma paced UConn perfectly, so he was ready to peak in March for a dominant postseason run that left no doubt who was the best team in the country. Bueckers dazzled as she won more national honors and was the obvious No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft. She finished the season as an All-Star starter, second team All-WNBA and Rookie of the Year, then she was invited to Team USA as one of the future faces of the senior national team. Auriemma’s Huskies continued their dominance in the second half of the season, and they are undefeated since February as they pursue title No. 13. — Merchant Sabreena
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Coal: threats of work stoppage
It’s been a tense few months within the WNBA as the league and players’ union become entrenched in collective bargaining negotiations. As the calendar soon turns to 2026, they still seem far from reaching a new agreement. Both sides want a deal that increases player compensation, but they don’t seem to agree on anything else. Many details still need to be ironed out, and a crack in trust – or distrust, really – might not be repairable. The contempt on each side for the other is often apparent.
Both sides are surely hoping to avoid missing a season — or even games — in 2026, but it’s unclear when a new deal will be reached. In the short term, both parties seem to be waiting for the other to blink. The players recently approved their executive committee to authorize a strike if they deemed it necessary. The lack of clarity has brought a cloud of anxiety over the sport, and questions are being asked about the impact a work stoppage could have on the sport’s positive momentum. -Pickman
Gift: Napheesa Necklace
Few athletes across the country have had as much impact on their sport as Collier has in 2025. In January, she launched Unrivaled, a three-on-three winter league she co-founded with a focus on player experience, paying record salaries and providing equity to early participants. Collier won the league’s individual tournament and led his team, the Lunar Owls, to first place in the playoffs.
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During the WNBA season, Collier’s performance for the Minnesota Lynx made her an MVP favorite until an ankle injury in August. She left the third game of the semifinals with ankle and shin injuries as part of a chaotic final sequence.
But even after defeat, she still made her presence felt. On the eve of the WNBA Finals, Collier delivered one of the most memorable press conferences in league history: Cathy Engelbert, reviews curator and the WNBA league office, saying the WNBA had “the worst leadership in the world.” Collier’s statement, which also included criticism of officiating, solidified her stature as one of the most influential voices in the league — and women’s sports. — Pickman
Coal: predestined champions
UConn’s dominance in the NCAA and the Aces’ dominance in the WNBA meant a lack of drama at the end of each sport’s season. UConn led by double digits for the final three quarters of the Final Four demolition of UCLA and for the entire second half of the championship against South Carolina, making the final weekend of the season a coronation rather than a contest. The first seven-game series of the WNBA Finals ended in a sweep, with just two games left in the final minutes. The regular seasons of these sports had been defined by parity but were far from competitive when it came to selecting a champion, with audiences having fallen compared to 2024. – Merchant
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Gift: Dominique Malonga and a wave of young international talents
Americans have dominated women’s basketball for nearly 30 years, with Team USA having lost only one major international competition (the 2006 FIBA World Championship) since the inception of the WNBA. The 2024 Olympic gold medal game showed some chinks in the armor, and the next wave of international talent is on the way.
Dominique Malonga exploded in the second half of the WNBA season, averaging 11.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocks while helping the Seattle Storm nearly defeat the Aces in the playoffs. Her French compatriots Janelle Salaün (Golden State), Carla Leite (Golden State) and Leïla Lacan (Connecticut) impressed as rookies. Spain’s Awa Fam has burst onto the scene and could be the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft. In the NCAA, Michigan’s Syla Swords is leading a new generation of Canadian talent, and UConn has brought in Ecuadorian phenom Blanca Quiñonez. More international stars continue to flock to the NCAA now that schools can pay players, potentially creating a foreign pipeline that challenges the supremacy of American basketball. – Merchant
Coal: diversity of WNBA coaches
Over the past two WNBA offseasons, 13 head coaches have been hired. None were black women. After the Storm parted ways with Noelle Quinn, no Black women are head coaches in the WNBA, even though the majority of players are Black women. Only three former players are head coaches – two (Becky Hammon and Sandy Brondello) are among the three active coaches who have won a WNBA championship. The growing popularity of the WNBA has led to more investment in the coaching ranks, but more of those opportunities are going to coaches who weren’t involved in the growth of the league itself. – Merchant
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This article was originally published in Athletics.
Minnesota Lynx, Las Vegas Aces, Connecticut Huskies, WNBA
2025 The Athletic Media Society
