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3 records A'ja Wilson could break at the Paris Olympics
A'ja Wilson and Team USA look to continue their dominance in the Olympics with an eighth straight gold medal. The WNBA superstars are again heavily favored to rule the tournament. Wilson, who won gold in Japan in 2021, hopes to add the Paris Summer Games to her collection.
Wilson was a shoo-in for coach Cheryl Reeve’s team for the quadrennial games. She is arguably the leading MVP candidate in the biggest and most popular pro women’s basketball league in the world. She is on track to win the third such award in her career.
A'ja Wilson might be able to carry her WNBA form to the Olympics. If she does that, she could write her name in history.
3 records A'ja Wilson could rewrite in the 2024 Paris Olympics
#3 Most Blocks in a single game
This will be the statistic A'ja Wilson will find the toughest to crack but if there’s someone who can do that, it might be her. Polona Dornik of Yugoslavia holds the record for most blocks in women’s Olympic basketball. She had a mind-blowing nine swats in 1984 against Australia.
The game has changed since Dornik played 40 years ago. Wilson will not have as many opportunities to reject shots as outside shooting is more emphasized now than in 1984. The Las Vegas Aces star, however, doesn’t need to be under the basket to block shots. She can also roam the perimeter to stifle opponents.
A'ja Wilson is a two-time and reigning Defensive Player of the Year in the WNBA. She might be the one to break Polono Dornik’s four-decade single-game blocks in women’s Olympic basketball.
#2 Most Rebounds in a single game
A'ja Wilson is averaging a career-high 12.0 rebounds per game this season in the WNBA. Over the course of a season, her career-best is 9.5 RPG. This statistic might be more doable as the pace of the game is faster, allowing her to have more opportunities to clean the glass.
Uljana Semjonova of the Soviet Union in 1980 hauled down a women’s Olympics basketball record of 21 rebounds versus Bulgaria. 16 years later, Elena Baranova matched it against Australia. Wilson will have a decent chance of surpassing the mark for Team USA.
#1 Most Points in a single game
No player in women’s Olympic basketball history has ever breached the 40-point mark. The closest to do it was Evladiya Slavtchea of Bulgaria. She dropped 39 points against Korea in 1988. Before her, it was Miyako Otsuka of Japan who held the record as she scored 38 points versus Canada in 1976.
A'ja Wilson is averaging 27.2 points per game this season, beating her previous career high by nearly six points. The most she has scored this season is 35 points but she is capable of exploding. Last year, she erupted for 53 points against the Atlanta Dream.
The two-time WNBA champ will have a good chance of taking down Evladiya Slavtchea’s 36-year-old single-game scoring record.
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