A’ja Wilson has added another milestone to her already historic career, becoming a five-time WNBA MVP. But while Wilson winning the award for a third straight year was widely expected, the voting results have sparked a debate of its own.
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As the MVP voting breakdown shared by WNBA Communications on X shows, Wilson was the clear favorite among voters. She picked up 65 first-place votes, with just nine voters placing her second. No one placed her third or lower.
She finished with 713 points under the MVP voting system, which awards 10 points for a first-place vote, seven for second, five for third, three for fourth, and one for fifth. But that’s where the real story begins.
Despite setting a WNBA record with 1,086 regular-season points, Indiana Fever star Kelsey Mitchell finished third in the MVP race with 287 points. She received just two first-place votes and 12 second-place votes, while 25 voters ranked her third, 17 placed her fourth, and seven had her fifth. The player who edged Mitchell out for second place was Minnesota Lynx rookie Olivia Miles.
She finished with 442 points, earning six first-place votes and 40 second-place votes, while 26 voters ranked her third or lower. However, her second-place finish ahead of Mitchell didn’t go down well with some fans. And they didn’t hold back in sharing their reactions.
Fans In Disbelief After Seeing Kelsey Mitchell Finish Behind Olivia Miles
There is no denying the fact that both Kelsey Mitchell and Olivia Miles had phenomenal seasons. And maybe both of them deserved to finish as the MVP runner-up in their own right. One fan was quick to point this very fact out under ESPN’s post about the voting breakdown.
“For a rookie to be 2nd should tell you how impressive of a season she had. Now for Mitchell, I hope everyone realizes she’s always been the best player on the fever!,” the fan said online.
However, that was one of the rare balanced outlooks. Many other fans couldn’t fathom why Mitchell was ranked below Miles.
“Understatement for the woman in 3rd place… KM 🫶🏾@Kelz_Hoop ♥️💙🏀🦋,” one fan wrote.
The MVP race is all about individual performances. So it’s hard to see Mitchell in third place. Mitchell finished the regular season with 24.7 PPG, while adding 1.7 REB and 2.8 AST per game. She was only second in the league in points per game, behind only A’ja Wilson.
“Olivia Miles belongs below Breanna Stewart, Caitlin Clark, and Kelsey Mitchell,” another fan said.
Mitchell broke Wilson’s 2024 single-season scoring record, finishing with a WNBA record high of 1,086 points. Mitchell also set a new Indiana Fever franchise record with 135 made 3-pointers, surpassing Caitlin Clark’s previous mark of 122. She also extended her streak of scoring at least 20 points in 27 consecutive games.
“The fact that Miles got more 1st-place votes than Mitchell and Clark combined is a joke. But that’s what the @WNBA is quickly becoming. Caitlin Clark wasn’t even on 19 of the ballots? The whole thing is a complete fraud. 3rd in scoring and 2nd in assists, and Miles is 9th and 7th??,” another fan wrote on X, while pointing out that even Caitlin Clark finished lower than Olivia Miles.
Miles ranked eighth in PPG on 49.2% shooting, better than Clark’s 44.6% but not as good as Mitchell’s 50.9%. Mitchell even ranked third in the league in three-pointers made per game, and first when it came to 3P%.
“Delusional. I’m okay with A’ja, but no way Miles should be ahead of Caitlin,” one fan said.
In a season where Clark broke the all-time WNBA record for scoring by a point guard, by amassing 891 total points, surpassing Diana Taurasi’s previous record of 860 points set in 2006, it’s hard for some fans to see her fourth on the MVP list.
This debate also takes us down memory lane, where fans were upset about Caitlin Clark’s position on the MVP list in her rookie season, when she broke the record for most assists (337 total assists, averaging 8.4 per game) and most three-pointers made by a rookie in WNBA history.
Opinions and sentiments aside, there are some valid reasons to put Miles at No. 2 in the MVP rankings. Not many expected the Lynx to remain contenders heading into the season, especially after losing key players like Jessica Shepard, Alanna Smith, Bridget Carleton, and DiJonai Carrington.
They were also without Napheesa Collier during the opening stretch as she recovered from her injury. But Miles helped ensure the team’s level didn’t drop despite all those setbacks.
She finished with 790 points, breaking Caitlin Clark’s rookie scoring record of 769 points set in 2024. In doing so, Miles became just the sixth rookie in WNBA history to win Rookie of the Year unanimously, capping off a debut season in which she also helped the Lynx secure the No. 1 seed.
But despite these achievements, there’s still a long way to go for the former Notre Dame guard.
Miles averaged just eight points per game in the postseason, as the Lynx made unwanted history by becoming the first No. 1 seed to lose in the first round of the playoffs. Even head coach Cheryl Reeve knows there is still plenty of room for Miles to grow.
“Clearly, she is not a complete player yet,” said Reeve after the game 2 loss against the NY Liberty.
The season may be over for Miles, Mitchell, and Clark, but the reigning and continuing MVP A’ja Wilson has a huge task in front of her as they face a must-win Game 3 against the Golden State Valkyries on Friday.