A'Ja Wilson
Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson (22) rushes up the court against Indiana Fever forward Aliyah Boston (7) on Thursday, July 24, 2025, during the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Over the past several weeks, Sophie Cunningham has sparked a wide-ranging conversation about whether or not transgender women should be able to play in women’s sports as she spoke out against what she referred to as “biological men” playing in women’s sports.
While there is not a single transgender woman currently in the WNBA or transgender prospect on the verge of making it to the WNBA, former NBA players Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White have made a mockery of the entire situation by declaring themselves eligible for the WNBA Draft as fake transgender women.
In light of all of that, it sounds like one of the WNBA stars believes that she could beat an NBA star in a game of one-on-one.
‘The score would be 8-11’
Back in late 2024, four-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson went on the Roommates podcast with New York Knicks stars Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart. During the podcast, Wilson responded to a question about who would win in a game of one-on-one between her and Hart.
“The score would be 8-11, me,” Wilson said on the podcast back in December of 2024.
“It’s not happening,” Hart said with a smirk.
“I’m not saying you’re gonna go scoreless,” she said. “8-11, I feel like, is pretty solid.
When Hart wasn’t convinced, Wilson asked him his take on the hypothetical game.
“So what do you think it’ll be, Josh?” Wilson said. “Don’t piss me off.”
“Probably like 11-2,” Hart responded with a laugh.
“You’re sick,” Wilson responded with a laugh. “You’re sick.”
Hart then changed his prediction to make it a bit closer.
“I’ll say, probably like 11-7?” Hart clarified.
It was a playful back-and-forth between the two players who clearly had a lot of respect for each other and enjoyed doing the hour-long podcast together. However, her comments ignited a lot of conversation that is still going on today.
Comments spark debate
During the Club 520 Podcast last year, former NBA star Jeff Teague responded to these comments, insisting that there was no chance that Wilson could beat any player on an NBA roster.
“Not one,” Teague said. “Do y’all know the guys on the bench used to average 40 (points per game) in high school and 20 (points per game) in college?”
Teague said that Wilson would not even beat a player in the G-League or at the college level of the men’s game.
Former NBA star Pat Beverly had a different take. In a social media post during Wilson’s run through the WNBA Finals with the Las Vegas Aces, Beverly suggested that the WNBA Champions could beat an NBA team.
“Idk if it’s the [win] but i really believe this Aces team could beat a NBA team,” Beverly wrote in a post on X, though he later clarified that he meant that the Aces “can beat players off the bench.”
The debate was ignited further recently when Lonzo Ball spoke on the possibility of WNBA players competing with NBA players.
“I mean this as respectfully as possible, but 9th grade Lonzo Ball in the WNBA is going crazy,” Ball said on the Ball in the Family podcast. “I would say after ninth grade, no.
“Look, in the ninth grade, I’m over six feet and I’m dunking. No girl in the WNBA is doing that. I’m going back door and throwing it up. I’m looking like Jordan out there,” he continued. “So I’m gonna just say, and I mean this so respectfully, middle school down, I’ll give it to the WNBA.”
Bryce Underwood
Bryce Underwood
Raiders helmet
Raiders helmet
DiJonai Carrington and Sophie Cunningham
DiJonai Carrington and Sophie Cunningham