A'ja Wilson is no stranger to October basketball. Ahead of the 2025 WNBA Finals and her fourth career appearance, the Las Vegas Aces star took time to reflect on her first-ever trip to the Finals and how much her mentality has grown in the years since. During pregame media availability, according to USAToday's Meghan L. Hall, Wilson revealed how she's learned to approach the series after experiencing various levels of success on the big stage.

“We had, obviously, a different roster. Liz [Cambage] wasn't playing, [Kelsey Plum] got hurt. So it was really kind of like, alright, we're really happy to be here,” Wilson said about her first Finals squad taking on the Seattle Storm in 2020. “But then we got into the moment of it, and I was like, ‘Woah, this is what it feels like to be here.'

“[We] just got a certain feel of the Finals. But then I got my a–swept, and I was just like, ‘I don't like this feeling anymore.' Like, why would I put myself through this?” she continued.

“My second time, I was just like, alright, let's not get swept,” Wilson said with a laugh. “That was my next [goal], and it's been my mindset ever since.

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“Now I'm here, I'm not really happy to be here since I don't have that ‘oh I'm just so grateful to be here [feeling],” Wilson explained. “I am grateful to be here, but work still has to be done.”

Wilson was the major key in the Aces' push for a return to the WNBA Finals this season. After struggling to a 14-14 record just over midway through the campaign and ending up with a record-setting 53-point loss to the Minnesota Lynx, Wilson and Chelsea Gray helped to reignite the team's fire and guide them to a dominant second-seed finish.

Now, as favorites and the team with the home court advantage, Las Vegas has a chance to clinch its third franchise championship in four years behind its four-time MVP. Wilson and the Aces are gearing up for what's sure to be an entertaining showdown with the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA's first seven-game series in history.