The Las Vegas Aces are in full crisis mode. Their backcourt is struggling, coach Becky Hammon is at their players’ necks, and they are headed back to Vegas trailing the New York Liberty 0-2 in the WNBA semifinals. The last thing they needed was more drama, and then this video resurfaced of star forward A’Ja Wilson giving her honest opinion about white players, and it’s all anybody can talk about.

A’Ja Wilson video goes viral talking about white players

The video has surpassed 20 million views on X, formerly Twitter, where it was posted after the Aces’ Game 1 loss to the Liberty. New York’s star players Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu, who are both white, combined for 55 points in the win.

In the video, the 2024 WNBA MVP talks to her teammate Kelsey Plum about how white privilege propelled players like Plum and Paige Bueckers. They were sitting courtside watching the UConn star take on Caitlin Clark and Iowa, which sparked the racial conversation.

Wilson was trying to make the point that Bueckers reminded her of Plum in a good way, but that’s not how it was received by many people who saw the video on social media, including the Caitlin Clark fan account that posted it. One line in particular looked bad in hindsight, making it seem like Wilson was dismissing the talent of transcendent white players while giving a backhanded compliment to her teammate.

“And also, like, she’s good at basketball, obviously,” Wilson said of Bueckers to her Las Vegas teammate Plum. “She understands her privilege is what pushes her over the top in a sense. It reminds me a lot of you.”

“if you hear “and thats a compliment” its NEVER a compliment,” pointed out a popular reply to the video.

“damn A’ja I was rooting for you,” said another critical comment on X. “what kinda loser mindset is this? Kelsey Plum and Paige Bueckers are some of the best female hoopers and we’re talking about privilege?”

End of Aces era?

The off-court controversy comes at a bad time for the Aces. Head coach Becky Hammon was seen airing out Plum during their Game 2 loss in New York. The meltdown continued in the post-game press conference, when she took a shot at her players for lacking motivation.

“The whole league has been pissed off for the last 8 months, and my players are in commercials, being freaking celebrities. You get distracted,” she said in a stinging response that could certainly apply to Wilson, among others.

The two-time defending champs are one loss away from the end of their 2024 season, but the cloud overhead looms much larger in the bigger picture. Their coach is calling out players, and their biggest star is under fire for comments that make for a bad look around the league.

The Aces dynasty appears to be cracking. And the WNBA is ready to move into a new era with or without them.