The WNBA All-Defensive team is out and the two players who tied for Defensive Player of the Year are on it. Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson and Minnesota Lynx forward Alanna Smith were both announced as part of the All-Defensive first team Wednesday.
They were joined by Lynx forward Napheesa Collier, whose critical comments of WNBA leadership have caused a firestorm for the league in recent weeks.
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Alyssa Thomas of the Phoenix Mercury and Gabby Wilson of the Seattle Storm rounded out the first team.
The league also announced the All-Defensive second team, which featured names like Aliyah Boston from the Indiana Fever, Breanna Stewart of the New York Liberty and Veronica Burton of the Golden State Valkyries. Burton was previously honored during WNBA award season, taking home the league’s Most Improved Player award.
The All-Defensive team was originally set to be announced Oct. 1, but the league held off on making the announcement on that date. A day later, it was reported the league would again delay the All-Defensive team announcement. That report came after multiple players publicly criticized WNBA leadership and commissioner Cathy Engelbert. It’s unclear whether those comments played a role in the league holding off on announcing the All-Defensive team.
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Engelbert addressed that criticism Friday, admitting she needs “to do better.” That statement wasn’t good enough for Collier, who canceled a meeting with the commissioner due to Engelbert’s “lack of accountability.”
With the All-Defensive team announcement finally out, the WNBA can turn its attention to the All-WNBA teams. Those were initially scheduled to be announced Oct. 7. The league has not said when that announcement will happen.
