LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Now that the Olympics are over, members of the Las Vegas Aces have a quick turnaround with the WNBA season expected to resume this week.
"This experience was great," Aces forward A'ja Wilson said.
"I think it was a lot of fun because the fans were involved. I think in Tokyo we didn't really get that experience because it was COVID. This one was just a lot. It really, truly felt like the Olympics. It felt like the world's biggest stage."
The Aces sent six players to Paris. Four of them were part of the U.S. women's Olympic team, which won gold for the eighth straight time.
"To be one of 12...to do that, there's no better feeling than that gold put around your neck," said point guard Chelsea Gray.
But unlike other Olympic athletes, they are in the middle of another season.
Some of the Olympians took practice off on Thursday, but mentally the players say they are already back in game mode.
"We know we have to lock in," Aces guard Jackie Young said. "We know that there's still work to be done here. As professionals, we know we have to flip that switch even though it's a short amount of time."
"I think it's just in our nature to compartmentalize and go on to the next thing," Gray said. "That's what an Olympic season looks like. That's what these practices and these conversations are going to be."
The Aces return to the court with back-to-back games this weekend, starting with the New York Liberty on Saturday.
