Candace Parker Slams Gabby Williams' All-WNBA Snub After Finals MVP

Candace Parker called out the WNBA's All-WNBA voting after Gabby Williams was left off both teams despite leading the Golden State Valkyries to the championship.

Parker made the comments on the 54th episode of Post Moves, the podcast she co-hosts with Aliyah Boston.

The WNBA announced its All-WNBA teams on Oct. 24.

No Golden State Valkyries player made either the first or second team.

One week later, the Valkyries beat the Atlanta Dream 68-63 in Game 7 of the WNBA Finals.

Golden State became the first team in league history to win the championship without an All-WNBA selection that season, according to ESPN.

Gabby Williams was named the WNBA Finals MVP.

She averaged 20.3 points in the playoffs.

Her Finals average was 19.6 points per game.

In Game 7, she went into halftime with just two points and finished with 30.

28 of those points came in the second half.

"Well, that's real tough," Boston said on the podcast.

"That's real tough. They're doing it with the ring."

Parker said she would have put Williams on the All-WNBA second team.

"I think now we are kind of, we are a little bit stat crazy, I think," Parker said.

"And now with so many ways to watch games. I wish a lot more people would watch games."

"And then you could really honestly see impact."

"Because if you didn't look at the impact Gabby Williams was having on the Valkyries and think that she's a first or second team, maybe not first, but second team person, I think you need to go back and watch basketball," Parker continued.

The All-WNBA first team consisted of Caitlin Clark, Olivia Miles, Kelsey Mitchell, Breanna Stewart, and A'ja Wilson.

Wilson was named to the first team for the sixth time.

Stewart made the first team for the seventh time.

Miles, the Rookie of the Year, was the only first-time first-team selection.

She averaged 19.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 6.0 assists for the Minnesota Lynx, who had the league's best record.

The All-WNBA second team consisted of Shakira Austin, Paige Bueckers, Rhyne Howard, Angel Reese, and Jackie Young.

Atlanta had two second-team picks in Howard and Reese, both first-time selections.

Golden State went 32-12 in the regular season.

The Valkyries allowed a league-low 75.1 points per game.

Williams was named an All-Star for the second time this season.

Under the collective bargaining agreement ratified in March 2026, each player on the championship team receives $60,000.

The 2025 champions received $22,908 per player.

The Finals MVP bonus went from $5,000 to $30,000.

Parker read the figures on the show and put Williams' total at $90,000.

Each player on the runner-up Dream receives $20,000, up from $8,521.

A first-team All-WNBA selection is worth $30,000 under the new deal, up from $10,300.

A second-team selection pays $15,000, up from $5,150.

Williams' partner, Marine Johannès of the New York Liberty, was also part of the celebration.

During the championship parade through San Francisco on Nov. 4, Williams called out Johannès' support.

"My partner, who spent the entire finals with me," Williams said as the crowd cheered.

She explained that Johannès helped with her "mood swings" and got her ready to play her best game.

"We don't win if she's not here, everybody," Williams said.

The two met while playing for the French national team in 2021.

Their relationship became public during the WNBA All-Star Weekend in July 2025.

The Valkyries are only in their second season as a team.

Their arrival as an expansion franchise reflects the rapidly growing popularity of the WNBA.

Taking home the trophy in year two set the tone for the franchise and its fans for years to come.

The 2026 regular season drew 3.8 million fans, a league record.

Parker's criticism of the All-WNBA voting raises a question the league will have to answer: can a team win a championship without a single player deemed worthy of All-WNBA honors?

The voting process relies on a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters.

The panel votes based on regular-season performance only.

Postseason performance does not factor into All-WNBA selections.

That means Williams' historic Finals run — including a 30-point Game 7 — had no bearing on the voting.

Parker argued that this is exactly the problem.

She said voters rely too heavily on counting stats rather than watching games to measure impact.

Williams averaged 19.6 points in the Finals, but her defensive presence and playmaking were also critical to Golden State's success.

The Valkyries allowed the fewest points per game in the league during the regular season.

Williams was the anchor of that defense.

Parker, a two-time WNBA champion and three-time MVP, has never been shy about speaking her mind.

Her criticism of the voting carries weight because she is one of the most respected voices in the game.

Boston, a rising star herself, agreed with Parker's assessment.

"They're doing it with the ring," Boston said, meaning the championship validates Williams' value regardless of the snub.

The new CBA significantly increased player compensation across the board.

Williams' $90,000 in postseason and Finals MVP bonuses is a dramatic jump from previous years.