Top 10 Greatest WNBA Players of All Time

She averaged 33.6 PPG in her final college season and 8.9 APG, winning two consecutive AP Player of the Year awards and leading Iowa to back-to-back national championship games. Her 2024 WNBA debut with Indiana Fever set single-season assists records and drew record attendance and viewership, with a 50% increase in league viewership compared to the previous year.

Sheryl Swoopes was the first player signed in WNBA history and became its most decorated star, winning three MVP awards (2000, 2002, 2005) and four championships with the Houston Comets—including an unmatched 4–0 record in Finals appearances. She also earned three Defensive Player of the Year honors, six All-WNBA selections, and three Olympic gold medals. Her 2005 season, where she averaged 18.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.9 steals, remains a benchmark for two-way impact in WNBA history.

A'ja Wilson won back-to-back WNBA MVP awards in 2020 and 2022 and added a third in 2024, becoming only the second player in league history to achieve three MVPs—matching Sheryl Swoopes while doing so at a younger age. She led the Las Vegas Aces to back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023, earning Finals MVP both years and cementing a 6–0 Finals series record. In 2024, Wilson averaged 26.1 points and 9.5 rebounds per game, breaking the single-season scoring record with 1,048 total points, then won Olympic gold in Paris.

Lauren Jackson of Australia won three WNBA MVP awards (2003, 2007, 2010) and a WNBA championship with the Seattle Storm in 2004, posting career averages of 19.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game—one of only three players ever to exceed 19 PPG and 8 RPG over a full career, alongside Breanna Stewart. She was the first international player to win WNBA MVP and the first international inductee into the Basketball Hall of Fame, a 50% faster recognition than typical international honorees. Named to the WNBA's Top 15 Players of All Time, Jackson represented Australia at five Olympics, winning three silvers. Her combination of outside shooting, post play, and defensive intensity made her the most complete big in league history before retirement—a claim backed by her 2.2 blocks per game in her 2007 MVP season.

Breanna Stewart won two WNBA championships with the Seattle Storm (2018, 2020) and was MVP in 2018, adding a second MVP in 2023 with the New York Liberty—a season where she averaged 23.0 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists. Her 2018 postseason, averaging 21.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 3.7 assists, is rated 30% more efficient than Lauren Jackson's best playoff run by Player Efficiency Rating. After a torn Achilles in 2019 ended her EuroLeague season, Stewart returned to produce arguably her finest stretch, culminating in the 2023 MVP.

Tamika Catchings' five Defensive Player of the Year awards are unmatched in WNBA history, a testament to the most relentless on-ball defense the league has ever seen. She anchored the Indiana Fever to their 2012 championship, earning Finals MVP while averaging 17.9 points and 7.6 rebounds in the playoffs. Catchings also won five scoring titles, ranking her second only to Diana Taurasi in career points among active players at her retirement, and her total of 1,074 steals remains third all-time. Overcoming a hearing impairment, she earned four Olympic gold medals and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2020.

Sue Bird is the winningest player in basketball history, with four WNBA championships, five Olympic gold medals, and five EuroLeague titles across 21 seasons. Bird’s 13 All-WNBA selections tie her with Lisa Leslie, yet she never won MVP, a testament to her role as the quietest great. At age 40, she won a gold medal in Tokyo, and her final season in 2022 saw a standing ovation at every arena.