Gamecock great A’ja Wilson makes history with NBA 2K25 cover

Gamecock great A’ja Wilson made history as the first WNBA player to serve as the cover athlete for a global edition of NBA 2K, the world-renowned video game company 2K Sports announced Wednesday.

Wilson will grace the WNBA edition cover of NBA 2K25 and share the All-Star edition cover with 2024 NBA Champion Jayson Tatum.

South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley gave her former player a shoutout in a post on X (formerly Twitter): “Super proud of you for raising the bar on and off the court! A true blessing to see your uncommon favor displayed.”

Wilson, of the Las Vegas Aces, and Tatum, of the Boston Celtics, appeared on Wednesday’s episode of JJ Redick’s “The Old Man and the Three” podcast with guest host and retired WNBA Star Sue Bird to share their initial reaction to the news.

“My agent called, and she was like, ‘Hey, you’re going to be on the cover,’” Wilson said, laughing. “And I was like, ‘Oh, wait, no. About time, Ronnie (2K).”

Ronnie Singh, better known as Ronnie 2K, is the digital marketing director for 2K Sports and plays a big role in the production of the game every year, including choosing cover athletes.

“You just dream yourself seeing your face in these spaces,” Wilson said on the podcast. “Then for it to actually be real and happen, I see my face on a potato chip bag and it’s like, ‘Oh my gosh!’ Now I’m in a video game, and now I’m on the cover.”

“Granted, I don’t play video games, and I might start now because my face is on the cover. But it’s just one of those moments where you’re like, ‘Wow, this is something I would dream of doing.’ Like having a shoe. All those different things. And now you’re starting to check off your goal list, it’s been huge. So I’m blessed.”

Regarded by many as the best women’s basketball player in the world, Wilson is living up to her billing this season. She leads the WNBA in points (27), defensive rebounds (8.8) and blocks (2.7) per game. Twenty games into the 40-game season, Wilson has attempted more shots than anyone other than Dallas’ Arike Ogunbowale (386 to Ogunbowale’s 432) and has the league’s seventh best field goal percentage (52.6%).

Wilson finished third in WNBA All-Star fan voting (607,300) behind the Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark (700,735) and Aliyah Boston (618,680). The Aces star will also travel to Paris later this summer in search of another Olympic gold medal with Team USA.

NBA 2K25 will launch Sept. 6 and is currently available for pre-order.