"Lot of talent out there not playing" - Aces HC Becky Hammon strongly in favor of WNBA roster expansion amid barrage of injuries

Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon joined those clamoring for a roster expansion in the WNBA. The two-time champion said she was strongly in favor of the motion, amid the barrage of injuries affecting teams.

In an article by Front Office Sports' Annie Costabile on Friday, Hammon cited two main reasons for her support.

“I’m hugely in favor of roster expansion,” Hammon said. “One, there’s a lot of talent out there not playing. Two, just the load on everybody, you can’t add games and not add some way to manage that load.”

Head coach Becky Hammon of the Las Vegas Aces looks on against the Golden State Valkyries in the third quarter at Chase Center on August 06, 2025 in San Francisco, California. - Source: Getty

WNBA teams are capped at 12 players, but many operate with 11 to stay under the $1.5 million salary cap, which makes budgets tight and depth thin.

Also, the WNBA workload has increased, as the league expanded its schedule to 44 games this year. The 2025 season is the longest in league history. Without adding more roster spots, teams had to rely on hardship contracts to manage injuries.

The WNBA will grow to six new teams by 2030. Toronto and Portland will be added in 2026, Cleveland in 2028, Detroit in 2029 and Philadelphia in 2030, thus increasing total league roster spots from 144 to 216. Yet, team roster size has remained unchanged, unless a change comes through the upcoming collective bargaining agreement.

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Becky Hammon comments on the WNBA MVP race

In a postgame press conference on Wednesday, Becky Hammon gave blunt remarks on the MVP narrative surrounding her superstar, A’ja Wilson.

"And it's a little irritating, the [MVP] narrative," Hammon said. "You've got to come into this open-minded every season if you're a voter. And I think there was an early narrative and an early handout. And I feel like, a little bit in 2023, A'ja had a hugely dominant year that year. ... To me, the best teller is efficiency. How efficient are what you're doing?"

Wilson has led a dramatic turnaround for the Aces. Her performances have ignited the Aces' surge to No. 2. During Las Vegas' 12-game winning streak, she’s posted MVP-caliber stats, averaging 23.9 points, 12.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.0 blocks per game.

A'ja Wilson - Source: Getty

The MVP race is arguably between Wilson and Napheesa Collier of the league-leading Minnesota Lynx. The Aces (26-14) are five games behind the Lynx (30-8).