WNBA fans are raising questions about A'ja Wilson's late withdrawal from Team USA's roster for the 2026 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup in Berlin.

USA Basketball announced on Monday that Wilson would not play in Berlin because of health reasons.

A source close to the situation told ESPN insider Alexa Philippou that Wilson has not been operating at full strength for weeks.

"A'ja Wilson, the four-time WNBA MVP, has not been 100% for some time, a source close to the situation told ESPN, and there was a concern that the World Cup's grueling schedule could exacerbate the situation," Philippou wrote on X.

In her ESPN report, Philippou noted that Wilson landed on the Las Vegas Aces' injury report twice over the past week due to her back. Despite those listings, Wilson never missed a game because of the issue.

In fact, she played a full 30 minutes and scored 27 points in the Aces' 93-73 victory over the Toronto Tempo on Friday—Las Vegas' final game before the FIBA break.

Wilson herself hinted at this difficult choice earlier in the summer. During a late-July interview with The Dunker Spot, she admitted she was weighing national team duty against the Aces' heavy August calendar and upcoming postseason run.

"I have given it some thought, not going to lie. It has been a thought of mine, just to see how to navigate it all and just the prioritization that would need to go into that. I'm going to see when it gets to that moment and how I feel. My body will tell it all," Wilson said at the time.

Fans question Wilson's motives, timing, and the MVP Race

While Philippou reported the decision as a routine medical precaution, fans on social media questioned it.

"Does her coach or team know?" one fan wondered.

The fan asked in response to Philippou's post, sharing a screenshot of Wilson's most recent 27-point, 8-rebound performance in 30 minutes of playing time against Toronto on Friday.

"She just played meaningless minutes the other night, she just doesn’t give a s*** about Team USA," another commentator wrote.

Throughout her career, durability has been Wilson's trademark. Before this season, she had missed only six regular-season games across seven years.

This summer, she was out for only three games due to an ankle injury and rested on August 9 against the New York Liberty. Outside of those brief pauses, Wilson's average playing time this season is 32 minutes over 37 games.

That's why one fan pointed out that Wilson is choosing "MVP over country."

Like every season in the last few years, Wilson sits at the top of the 2026 WNBA MVP conversation. She is contending for a historic fifth trophy against stars like Caitlin Clark, Olivia Miles, and Kelsey Mitchell.

One fan even wrote, "Caitlin is on every injury report for her back, but she's still playing."

Clark was listed as probable with her own back concern as recently as late August against the Sun. But she joined the 12-player squad in Germany.

"Caitlin v. A'ja [is how Wilson is seeing it]. Caitlin? She doesn't care, but A'ja Wilson does. Caitlin and A'ja playing side-by-side allows us to do a comparison of effectiveness and A'ja knows she cannot win," wrote another fan.

Wilson is not the only missing from the American roster. Phoenix Mercury guard Kelsey Plum was also ruled out after a calf injury cut her season short.

To fill the void left by Wilson and Plum, USA Basketball named Washington Mystics teammates Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen to the final roster.

Written by

Md Saife Fida