3 WNBA Finals storylines to watch, including A'ja vs. Stewie

The 2020 WNBA championship comes down to two teams: the top-seeded Las Vegas Aces and the 2-seed Seattle Storm, both 18-4 on the year.

The Storm are on the hunt for the franchise's fourth title after winning the championship in 2018. Meanwhile, the Aces, who relocated from San Antonio in 2018, are looking for their maiden WNBA Finals trophy.

Game 1 tips off Friday at 7 p.m. ET at the "Wubble" in Bradenton, Florida. Here are three big storylines to watch heading into the best-of-five series:

A'ja vs. Stewie

Third-year Aces forward A'ja Wilson captured 43 of 47 first-place votes en route to 2020 MVP honors. After missing all of 2019 with a ruptured right Achilles tendon, Storm forward and 2018 MVP Breanna Stewart finished second to Wilson this season. At its core, this series is about how these two heavyweight talents elevate their teammates and engage with each other.

Wilson and Stewart only met once this season, as the Seattle star sat out the regular-season finale versus Las Vegas. Stewart had the superior stat line in that Aug. 22 tilt - 29 points, 18 rebounds, and two dimes to Wilson's 23-14-2 - but the Aces won the game 82-74.

Here's the tale of the tape for their seasons:

Offensively, Stewart uses her size and superb shooting touch as one of the league's top floor-spacers, and she can still get it done in the paint. She has a strong claim to being the league's most dynamic offensive player.

Taking threes isn't a part of Wilson's game at this point, nor is it something Bill Laimbeer's team has prioritized; the Aces ranked dead last in 3-point attempts with 11.6 per game, substantially lower than the 11th-ranked Atlanta Dream's output of 16.9.

Wilson has the edge over Stewart as an interior scoring threat, though. The former connected on 72.2% of her attempts within five feet of the basket and 60.4% within eight, according to WNBA Stats. Her mid-range shooting is average but still effective out to the edge of the paint, making Wilson a deep threat by Laimbeerian standards.

Both players leverage their physical tools on the defensive end. Wilson led the league in blocks and anchored the backline in the bubble without her 6-foot-8 frontcourt partner Liz Cambage.

Meanwhile, Stewart terrorizes opponents with her 7-foot-1 wingspan. She can hedge between multiple players and still recover to challenge a shot or erase a passing lane. Watch how Stewart reacts after the Dallas Wings beat the Storm's trap:

Expect to see Wilson guard Stewart. For the Storm, 2019 Defensive Player of the Year Natasha Howard will likely start the game matched up with Wilson, allowing Stewart to reserve her energy for offense.

Hamby's absence hurts

Dearica Hamby has once again been the glue holding a lot of Aces lineups together. She averaged 13 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.7 steals in just over 28 minutes per contest in 2020. As a whole, Las Vegas outscored opponents by 10.1 points per 100 possessions with her on the court in the regular season.

However, the two-time reigning Sixth Woman of the Year will probably miss the WNBA Finals after she suffered a right knee injury in Game 3 of the semifinals versus the Connecticut Sun.

It's easy enough to suggest the Aces should just lean more on the league MVP; Wilson literally played all but 25 seconds between Games 4 and 5 as Vegas extinguished the Sun. But the Storm are far superior to that sub-.500 Connecticut squad.

Ultimately, Wilson will have to work significantly harder without Hamby guarding Stewart for stretches; 30-plus minutes of defending Stewart one-on-one is a crucible.

Meanwhile, Stewart will presumably get to spend more time matched up with center Carolyn Swords, affording her more opportunities to freelance as a help defender. None of this works in Las Vegas' favor.

Is this Bird's final flight?

When it comes to her future, Sue Bird frequently talks about not looking beyond this season. While still productive, even after missing all of 2019 due to injury, she turns 40 on Oct. 16. At some point, the inevitable first-ballot Hall of Famer will hang up her sneakers for good.

Just how imminent is the 11-time All-Star's retirement? It's hard to say. Bird averaged 9.8 points and 5.2 assists while shooting 46.9% on threes this season. She's an excellent complementary piece alongside the Storm's young stars, Stewart and Jewell Loyd. However, Bird made just 11 appearances due to injury and played a career-low 23.4 minutes per game.

From the outside, the 2020 Olympics have always seemed like an opportunity for Bird to cap her incredible playing career with a fifth straight gold medal. With the Tokyo Games pushed to 2021 (if they happen at all), will Bird have another go with the Storm, retire from the WNBA to preserve her body for national team duties, or step away entirely?

Only Bird can answer that question, but fans would be wise to not take her presence in these WNBA Finals for granted.