Who's the WNBA's biggest trash-talker? Top athlete? Players dished in our anonymous poll

New York Times

12 hours ago

The WNBA talent pool is deeper than ever. The MVP race features two multi-time winners in A'ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart, a first-time favorite in Napheesa Collier, and several other stars like Alyssa Thomas gunning for the trophy. The last two draft classes have been overflowing with star power and record-breaking performers including Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers.
Advertisement
So how do WNBA players feel about the best of the best in their league? And what do they think about a host of issues facing the league, including expansion, salaries, and collective bargaining negotiations?
To answer those questions, The Athletic's anonymous player poll is back. Our writers spoke with more than 40 players from the start of the 2025 season. All 13 teams are represented, but none of the 30 rookies on rosters are included as the survey attempted to gather veterans' perspectives.
Players were granted anonymity to speak freely. They were also permitted to skip individual questions; as a result, each question shows the total number of responses for full transparency. Players were not allowed to vote for their team or teammates.
Two years ago, this question came down to Stewart vs. Wilson. Now, a different UConn alum takes Stewart's place in the league's hierarchy, as Collier and Wilson were neck-and-neck for the top spot. Wilson is the league's reigning MVP, capturing her third trophy unanimously in 2024 as she set the WNBA's all-time scoring record, and in a relative down year, Wilson is still second in the WNBA in scoring and third in rebounding. The two-time Defensive Player of the Year ceded that crown to Collier last season, however, and Collier looks poised to take another in 2025.
After leading the 2024 postseason in points, rebounds, blocks and steals, Collier is the league's top scorer (23.6 points per game) in 2025 and has led the Minnesota Lynx to the WNBA's best record of 18-4 at the halfway point, as well as the best offensive and defensive ratings.
Stewart was the only other player to get multiple votes, and Allisha Gray and Alyssa Thomas would be the other early front-runners for the All-WNBA first team.
Napheesa Collier, with 3,234 points, ranks 5th all-time in points scored in Lynx franchise history.#MVPhee pic.twitter.com/NQHj0sJslp
— Napheesa Collier Muse (@NapheesaMuse_) July 12, 2025
On Napheesa Collier:
'I love players who make the game look effortless, and her footwork is unreal.'
'Just how she's playing right now and how hard she is to stop.'
'She has had an incredible last couple years. She just hasn't quite gotten there. Last year she had an MVP season, but A'ja had an insane season, and I think (Collier) is continuing to grow this year.'
Advertisement
On A'ja Wilson:
"It's to a point where we think what A'ja is doing is normal. But it's not.'
'She's having another great season at an MVP-level.'
With the retirement of Diana Taurasi, the runaway winner of this category two years ago, there was an opening for the league's preeminent trash talker. Fittingly enough, a member of the Phoenix Mercury filled the void.
Like Taurasi, Thomas backs up her talk with performance. She is the league leader in assists (9.5 per game) and one of three players to post a triple-double in 2025. And when Thomas gets the better of an opponent, she'll let them know.
Although Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese have reputations for trash-talking, neither received more than a vote from their peers.
On Alyssa Thomas:
'She smiles and talks s—, that's the crazy part, it's psycho stuff, she's crazy, man.'
'Everyone knows AT talks s—-. I don't even guard her, and she talks s— to me.'
'She always has something, and she's always talking.'
On Marina Mabrey:
'I just feel like she's always in WNBA scuffles or around them'
— The Athletic's Chantel Jennings contributed to this report.