If you’re the Las Vegas Aces, how can you possibly top the WNBA championship you won in 2022, the first major-league professional sports championship in the city’s history?

Easy. You add the brightest women’s basketball star on the planet.

Enter Candace Parker, who has as strong a claim to that title as any active player. Her 16-year pro career has seen her earn seven All-Star berths, two MVP awards and a pair of WNBA championship rings. Before all that, she burst into public consciousness by winning two NCAA championships—and two Wooden Award nods as the top player in the nation—while at the University of Tennessee.

As a 6-foot-4 frontcourt force, Parker should team nicely with the Aces’ reigning MVP, A’ja Wilson, to give Las Vegas perhaps the best pivot duo in league history.

It also means that four of the team’s five expected starters will be former No. 1 overall draft picks—Parker (2008), Kelsey Plum (2017), Wilson (2018) and Jackie Young (2019). The exception? Point guard Chelsea Gray, who took home the WNBA Finals’ MVP trophy the last time the Aces were on the floor together.

Put it all together, and there are real superteam vibes, though Parker isn’t ready to go there—yet. “I don’t think you can even say that until the season is underway,” Parker said in a news conference going into the season.

Still, there’s no denying Parker’s megawatt star power. Wilson and Plum have become breakthrough big names during their stints with the Aces—getting work on national television ad campaigns and building massive social-media followings—but they have a ways to go to match their new teammate’s overall impact.

In addition to her raw stats and individual accomplishments, Parker has transcended women’s basketball in a way few ever have. In her off time, Parker moonlights as an NBA analyst for TNT, commentating on the action from the studio with Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith. She also calls NBA games courtside. And last November, ESPN announced it’s producing a documentary about her life.

That is Mount Rushmore-caliber stuff. Parker is as close to a household name as the WNBA has ever had, and her presence will make Aces games must-see experiences this summer.

So, how did a legend like Parker end up in Vegas? The 37-year-old had a decision to make this offseason. She was a free agent, and with all of her off-court interests, she had to figure out whether she wanted to come back to the WNBA for one more season.

The Aces put on the full-court press to convince her to join their title defense. One big factor was Wilson, who has a long history with Parker. Back when Wilson was touring colleges as a recruit, she met Parker during a visit to Tennessee. Wilson eventually ended up at South Carolina, but she and Parker had formed a lasting bond.

As a team captain at last summer’s All-Star game, Wilson wasted no time making Parker her first selection in the player draft. That was an exhibition. Now the two superstars get to team up for real.

“I’m excited to play with her and not have to figure out how we’re going to guard her,” Parker said. “I’m excited to learn from her and grow with her, but I’m also excited to get her the ball.”

Parker signed a one-year deal with Las Vegas but has backed off her retirement talk a bit since. For now, she’s locked in on making the most of her third WBNA stop after 12 years with the Los Angeles Sparks followed by a two-year stint with the Chicago Sky. In 2022, she averaged 13.2 points and 8.6 rebounds per game during a physically demanding but productive season.

A few weeks ago, the Aces opened a 64,000-square-foot practice facility in Henderson, and Parker is already making full use of the new digs. “As a 37-year-old player, as a vet, taking care of my body is first and foremost,” she said. “So to be able to have access to not just a locker, but a facility where you can go and rehab and have the latest machines … I mean, I took a nap the other day in the hyperbaric chamber.”

She knows she needs to rest while she can, because she and the Aces will be in the spotlight all year. With Parker rounding out a stacked squad, the new season should be quite the show.

Meet two other key new Aces

Cayla George 

This Australian native returns to the WNBA after five years in her home country with the WNBL’s Melbourne Boomers. George, 34, helped the Boomers win that league’s 2022 title and was being named the league’s 2023 MVP in March.

George played parts of three seasons in America—two with the Phoenix Mercury (2015, 2017) and another with the Dallas Wings (2018)—before returning home. She was a sparsely used reserve in those seasons, but has since broken out. Last season, she averaged 18.5 points and 11.3 rebounds per game while shooting a league-best 42% from the 3-point line.

The Aces didn’t have much depth in the frontcourt last season behind Wilson, who played all but four minutes in the 2022 semifinal series against the Seattle Storm. George could be a huge help if she can prove capable of relieving Wilson for spurts.

Alysha Clark 

A two-time WNBA champion with the Seattle Storm, Clark, 35, might have been the best under-the-radar acquisition this offseason. Known as a lockdown defender, she earned First Team All Defense honors from the league in 2020 and was a member of the second team in 2019.

But the 10-year veteran guard/forward can also shoot, ranking second all-time in the WNBA record book in two-point field goal percentage (57.9%). Clark averages only 5.3 field goal attempts per game, but she makes the most of them. She has also posted a career 38.4% rate from 3-point range.

Put it all together, and Clark has shown an ability to be a versatile player. At 5-foot-11, she’s tall enough to challenge interior players but also a nuisance when defending some of the league’s elite scoring guards. –Danny Webster

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