A’ja Riyadh Wilson, born on August 8, 1996, is an American professional basketball player. She currently plays for the Las Vegas Aces in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). She grew up with a passion for basketball. Her remarkable career has been marked by numerous accolades and achievements.

She played for the South Carolina Gamecocks in college, and helped lead the Gamecocks to their first NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship in 2017, and won the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player award. In 2018, she won a record third straight SEC Player of the Year award, leading South Carolina to a record fourth straight SEC Tournament Championship, becoming the all-time leading scorer in South Carolina women’s basketball history, and was a consensus first-team All-American for the third consecutive season.

Wilson swept all National Player of the Year awards (Wade, AP, Honda, USBWA, Wooden, and Naismith) as the best player in Women’s College basketball for 2018. In the 2018 WNBA draft, she was drafted first overall by the Aces.

Wilson won her first WNBA MVP in 2020, as well as her first Olympic Gold medal in the 2020 Summer Olympics. In 2022, Wilson helped lead the Aces to their first title in franchise history, a feat she repeated in 2023 while earning Finals MVP.

On June 21, 2021, Wilson was named to the 12-player roster for Team USA for the 2020 summer Olympics. She and Team USA went on to win the gold medal in the tournament, defeating Japan 90–75 in the final.

A’ja was born on August 8, 1996, to Roscoe Jr. and Eva Wilson in Columbia, South Carolina. Her unique name carries special significance, her father’s favorite song, “Aja” by Steely Dan. Her middle name Riyadh came from the Saudi Arabian capital where Aja’s maternal aunt was deployed in Operation Desert Storm.

Wilson’s mother, Eva Rakes Wilson, worked as a court stenographer and for the Richland County School District 1 in Columbia, South Carolina. Wilson’s father, Roscoe Wilson, Jr., played college basketball at Benedict College and professionally in Europe for 10 seasons.

Wilson has an older brother, Renaldo, who also played professional basketball overseas. Wilson is a Christian and grew up with strong ties to the religion, one of her grandfathers was a minister. She is currently in a relationship with Josh Cunningham, whom she met in high school.

Wilson majored in mass communications at the University of South Carolina, graduating in May 2018. Wilson established the A’ja Wilson Foundation in 2019 that advocates for preventing bullying and education around dyslexia. She is also a member of the WNBA Social Justice Council.

Wilson is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. She has multiple tattoos, including one for her late-grandmother.
Wilson attended Heathwood Hall Episcopal High School in Columbia, where her talent on the court began to shine. She continued her basketball journey at the University of South Carolina, playing for the Gamecocks.

ABOUT A’ja Wilson’s High School Career: During her high school years, Wilson established herself as a dominant force. Wilson played a total of 119 games after making the varsity team as an eighth-grader. She averaged 24.7 points, 13.9 rebounds, and 4.3 blocks a game throughout her high school career.

She was number 22 and played as a forward. After finishing as a runner-up in her junior year, Wilson led Heathwood Hall to the 2014 state championship as a senior.

Her 35 points, 15 rebounds, and five blocks per game as a senior made her the National High School player of the year in 2014, a Parade and McDonald’s All-American, and the #1 rated ESPN HoopGurlz prospect in 2014. Her skills and determination caught the attention of college recruiters. Wilson committed to play for Dawn Staley at the University of South Carolina.

ABOUT A’ja Wilson’s College Career:

Wilson played in 37 games her freshman year, leading to four single-game freshman records in the SEC and three single-season freshman records in the SEC, and won the SEC Freshman of the year award.

In 2016 as a sophomore, Wilson would win her first SEC Player of the Year award and was a consensus All-American, Wilson led the Gamecocks to a SEC regular season and Tournament Championship.

In 2017, Wilson once again led the Gamecocks to a SEC regular season and Tournament championship, and went on to win the school’s first national championship with a stirring victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the championship game.

She was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament. In 2018, Wilson had her best season statistically, and won all of the National player of the year awards.

She won a record 3rd straight SEC Player of the Year award, and was also a Consensus All-American for the third straight year. Wilson finished her college career at South Carolina as the all-time leading scorer for the school.