– Dallas Wings’ Paige Bueckers Picked as First Player GMs Would Sign if Starting a Team Today –  

– Wings Chosen as Most Improved Team and Most Fun to Watch – 

– Aces vs. New York Liberty Selected as Most Likely Championship Game of

WNBA Commissioner’s Cup Presented by Coinbase –

NEW YORK, May 5, 2026 – Reigning Kia WNBA Most Valuable Player A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces was selected as the player most likely to win the MVP honor this season, according to the 2026 WNBA GM Survey, which asked the WNBA’s 15 general managers to assess the best teams, players, coaches, offseason moves and more, prior to tip-off of the league’s 30^th season. The Wilson-led Aces were also named the favorite to repeat as WNBA champions. 

WNBA Tip-Off 2026 presented by CarMax begins on Friday, May 8 with three games on ION, highlighted by the inaugural game for the Toronto Tempo, which hosts the Washington Mystics (7:30 p.m. ET). The action continues Saturday with an ABC doubleheader featuring the Dallas Wings visiting the Indiana Fever (1 p.m. ET) and the Aces hosting the Phoenix Mercury in a rematch of the 2025 WNBA Finals (3:30 p.m. ET).

The complete results of the 21^st WNBA GM Survey were posted today at  WNBA.com. The GMs responded to 42 questions and were not permitted to vote for their own team or personnel. Percentages are based on the pool of respondents to that particular question.

Wilson, who last season led Las Vegas to its third WNBA championship in four years while earning a record fourth Kia WNBA MVP Award, received 60 percent of the MVP votes from the GMs. Two-time Kia WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart of the New York Liberty was next with 27 percent, followed by the Fever’s Caitlin Clark and the Atlanta Dream’s Allisha Gray with 7 percent each.

Wilson was also named the league’s best leader (79 percent), best interior defender (73 percent), best overall defensive player (53 percent) and the player who forces opposing coaches to make the most adjustments (60 percent). In addition, she shared the top spot with Aces teammate Chelsea Gray as the player the general managers would trust most to take a game-winning shot (36 percent each).

Las Vegas’ Gray was the choice as the league’s best point guard (73 percent), followed by Clark (20 percent). In addition, the general managers viewed Gray as the best passer (93 percent), the player with the best basketball IQ (93 percent) and the active player who will make the best head coach someday (50 percent).

The Aces received 40 percent of the votes as the team most likely to win the WNBA championship. New York finished second (33 percent), and Atlanta ranked third (27 percent).

The GMs also chose the Aces vs. the Liberty as the most likely matchup (43 percent) in the Championship Game of the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup presented by Coinbase. Las Vegas vs. Atlanta was viewed as the second most likely matchup (29 percent).

Reigning Kia WNBA Rookie of the Year Paige Bueckers of Dallas received 33 percent of the votes as the player the GMs would choose to build around if starting a franchise today. Clark and Wilson tied for second (20 percent each).

The Wings, who selected Azzi Fudd with the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA Draft 2026 presented by State Street Investment Management SPY and signed 2025 Kia WNBA Co-Defensive Player of the Year Alanna Smith as a free agent, were selected as the most improved team (67 percent), followed by the Chicago Sky (20 percent) and the Los Angeles Sparks (13 percent). In addition, Dallas was viewed as the team that will be the most fun to watch (36 percent), followed by Atlanta and Indiana (29 percent each).

Two-time All-Star Angel Reese, acquired by the Dream in an offseason trade with Chicago, and 2025 All-Star Gabby Williams, who signed with the Golden State Valkyries as a free agent, shared the top spot as the player acquisition that will make the biggest impact this season. Reese and Williams each received 27 percent of the vote, followed by 10-time All-Star Nneka Ogwumike, who returned to the Sparks as a free agent (20 percent).

Olivia Miles, who was selected by the Minnesota Lynx as the No. 2 overall pick in the WNBA Draft 2026 presented by State Street Investment Management SPY, received 73 percent of the vote as the player most likely to win the Kia WNBA Rookie of the Year Award, followed by Fudd (20 percent). No. 3 overall pick Awa Fam of the Seattle Storm was viewed as the rookie who will be the best player in five years (67 percent), and Miles finished second (33 percent).

Minnesota head coach Cheryl Reeve was the top choice in multiple coaching categories. Reeve earned 53 percent of the votes as the league’s best head coach, topping Las Vegas’ Becky Hammon (40 percent). Reeve also was viewed as the coach who makes the best in-game adjustments (50 percent), with Hammon in second place (36 percent). Hammon was named the head coach who is the best manager/motivator of people (43 percent), followed by Golden State’s Natalie Nakase, Indiana’s Stephanie White and Phoenix’s Nate Tibbetts (14 percent each).

Among the other highlights from the 2026 WNBA GM Survey:

• The signing of 2023 All-Star and Kia WNBA Most Improved Player Satou Sabally with New York as a free agent was seen as the most surprising move of the offseason (23 percent), followed by Atlanta’s acquisition of Reese and Dallas’ signing of Smith (15 percent each).
• Five-time All-Star Jonquel Jones of New York was voted as the league’s best international player (33 percent), followed by Janelle Salaün, a 2025 WNBA All-Rookie Team selection with Golden State (20 percent).
• France was the unanimous choice as the country (outside of the U.S.) producing the best WNBA talent right now.
• Dallas and Seattle shared the top spot as the team with the most promising young core of talent (31 percent each), followed by Washington (23 percent).
• Sue Bird, a 13-time All-Star, received the most votes as the retired player not coaching in the WNBA who should be (36 percent). Seimone Augustus, Candace Parker and Katie Smith tied for second (14 percent each).
• Golden State was voted as having the best home-court advantage (64 percent). Indiana ranked second (21 percent), and New York was third (14 percent).
• The GMs viewed the implementation of developmental players onto rosters as the change to league operations in 2026 that will require the biggest adjustment (42 percent), followed by the addition of the Tempo and Portland Fire as expansion teams (25 percent).

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