MIAMI (AP) — A'ja Wilson found out Thursday that she was the WNBA's Most Valuable Player.
Bam Adebayo knew long before that.
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Adebayo — the Miami Heat center and longtime partner of Wilson, the Las Vegas Aces star — was asked last week to record some thoughts about his girlfriend winning the award again, which also meant he couldn't give her any hints about the voting results.
The secret was kept, and a fifth MVP award is coming to the home that Wilson and Adebayo share.
“I had nothing to do with that,” Adebayo said.
True, the couple has combined for five MVPs — and Wilson has won all of them. They've been together for a few years, after a close friendship began forming when they were playing for USA Basketball at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. He's a regular at Aces games when his schedule allows; she's a regular at Heat games during her offseasons.
“It’s good to celebrate somebody that honestly deserves it," Adebayo said after he and the Heat beat New Orleans 128-118 in a preseason game Thursday night. "You really can’t put five MVPs into words. You literally just have to sit there and just like admire greatness. So, yeah, can’t wait to get home, get on FaceTime and talk about the moment.”
Wilson has been, without question, the dominant player since she entered the WNBA. Not only does she have five MVPs in her nine pro seasons, but she's actually gotten 54% of all first-place votes over that span.
Wilson has gotten 274 first-place MVP votes in her nine seasons; all other WNBA players in those years, combined, have 233. She tied for seventh in her first season, was eighth in the MVP voting the next year, and then the next seven seasons have gone like this — first, sixth, first, third, first, first and first.
She's also an eight-time All-Star and her career average of 22.1 points per game is the highest in WNBA history. And Wilson was in Miami last season for Adebayo's 83-point game, the second-best single game scoring effort in NBA history.
“I try to do my best to remind her of who she is, and vice versa," Adebayo said. "When you have those types of moments, those need to be celebrated."
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