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There are hot streaks, and then there's the 10-game heater Chelsea Gray just completed to lead the Las Vegas Aces to their first WNBA title and earn Finals MVP honors.
By the numbers: Gray averaged 21.7 points, 3.8 rebounds and 7.0 assists in 10 playoff games — up from her regular-season averages of 13.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 6.1 assists.
- Gray shot 61.1% from the field in the postseason and 54.4% from deep (on nearly six attempts per game), registering an absurd 72.7% true shooting percentage.
- The four-time All-Star scored 20+ points in seven of the Aces' 10 playoff games after doing so just six times in 35 regular-season games.
The backdrop: Gray, 29, was drafted 11th overall by the Sun in 2014, but didn't debut until 2015 as she recovered from a knee injury sustained during her senior year at Duke.
- She was traded to the Sparks in 2016, helping them win their first title since 2002 as a key reserve. In 2021, she signed with the Aces in free agency and won a championship 19 months later.
- With Gray returning next year alongside league MVP A'ja Wilson, All-Star guard Kelsey Plum and Coach of the Year Becky Hammon, the Aces should be favorites to run it back.