Chennedy Carter scored 18 points in her Las Vegas Aces debut, hinting at a long-awaited reset for the veteran guard after more than 500 days out of the WNBA.
Chennedy Carter's first WNBA game in more than 500 days looked like the dynamic player she was in the league two years ago. The 27-year-old guard scored 18 points to lead the Las Vegas Aces past the Japan women's national team 94-78 in a preseason exhibition Sunday at Michelob ULTRA Arena, finishing with five rebounds and two assists on 5-of-10 shooting in 19 minutes off the bench.
Carter, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2020 WNBA Draft out of Texas A&M, signed a non-guaranteed training camp contract with the defending champions on April 15.
"We added Chennedy Carter, which I wanted, that really downhill player," Aces coach Becky Hammon said earlier in camp. "I had never talked to Chennedy. I know we've had our hands full trying to guard her in the past."
Carter last averaged 17.5 points and shot 48.7% from the field with the Chicago Sky in 2024, including 26 points per game across three meetings against Las Vegas, but went unsigned in 2025 and spent the year playing professionally in Mexico. Concerns about her locker room presence trailed her out of every previous WNBA stop.
Carter is focused on being a cohesive piece on a talented Aces team that is coming off winning the WNBA Finals as opposed to being concerned about her own stats.
"We have Olympians on our team. We have some of the greatest, greatest players and scorers in the world," Carter said. "So it's just being able to play with them is honestly an honor."
The early endorsements from inside the locker room have been just as telling. Three-time champion point guard Chelsea Gray did not hedge postgame.
"She's fast as hell," Gray said. "It's a luxury, dynamic guard. People see the explosiveness that she's able to do offensively. Defensively, she can guard and pick up. I'm excited to have her."
A'ja Wilson, who sat Sunday with right arm soreness that Hammon called precautionary, said earlier in the week that Carter is absorbing the system quickly. Las Vegas faces Dallas on May 3 in Austin before tip-off of the regular season May 9 against the Phoenix Mercury, the team it swept in the 2025 WNBA Finals.
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