LAS VEGAS -- At some point, Aces forward NaLyssa Smith wanted to discuss her walk with faith since arriving in Southern Nevada.
She's talked about joining forces with "her goat," A'ja Wilson. She's raved about her relationship with coach Becky Hammon. She's discussed the camaraderie at the team's world-class facility.
Lost in the two-month whirlwind since being traded from the Dallas Wings is her appreciation for attending pregame chapel, where pastor Heiden Ratner has helped bring her closer to God while allowing her to strengthen her faith and find solace before games.
"I was going to talk about that eventually, but I think that's been huge," Smith said during media day on Thursday. "This has been the first year that I've got to attend every single chapel just because it fits into my schedule.
"I am a firm believer, and that's why I've been so successful this year, is that I've gotten to grow a bigger relationship with God on and off the court. So I think that has been a huge thing, and why I've been so successful right now."
It's a common theme for two other newcomers to the team who attend chapel regularly.
"Unfortunately, with our job, we don't always have an opportunity to actually go to church," two-time WNBA champion and veteran Jewell Loyd said. "So, luckily, technology and the ability to have that have changed a lot of things for us. Knowing that we have chapel every game, it's just a reset."
Loyd said she's a firm believer that anything that allows her to have mindfulness helps tremendously, especially when being served by people who care, such as Ratner area representative for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Kinsey Minter.
"I think prayer goes a long way, and this team has always been very prayerful, from (coach) Becky (Hammon) to everyone else, so it's nothing new," Loyd added. "I really appreciate going to chapel, just kind of making it a normal ritual. I haven't missed one yet."
Dana Evans, who shared her story with The Sporting Tribune last month, is a devout Christian who relies on chapel to rest her mind before games.
"It's so hard because we're so locked in, and we got so many emotions, but I feel like chapel calms me, and he's really good," Evans said. "It's been amazing, and I'm blessed for the opportunity. He's been really good. He's been amazing. His messages are always on point. He always has great speaking points, so I'm really blessed for that."
HE CAN RELATE
It's Wednesday night before the WNBA Finals, and WALK Church in Southeast Las Vegas is packed for the weekly prayer session. Ratner encourages everyone to grab a prayer card and pray over those with requests, as he begins offering petitions on his own.
Included in his offerings are Southern Nevada's professional sports teams, with a special focus this night on the Aces, two days before they'll take the court opposite the Phoenix Mercury in Game 1, embarking on a quest to win their third title in four years.
Ratner, who recently celebrated the 10th anniversary of WALK church that he founded with his wife, Neena, has established a special bond with the town's beloved franchise as the team chaplain isn't restricted to just game days, when he and Minter deliver messages for both teams during chapel.
For the Aces who attend, the 15-20 minutes pregame has become just as important as their warmup and treatment, not only to hear the Word, but to hear Ratner's specific messages, so unique they say that his analogies reverberate deeply.
"When it comes to him, I feel like he's been in a situation being an athlete, so he understands firsthand what we're going through, the feelings that we may be having," four-time MVP A'ja Wilson said. "And I think the beautiful thing about faith is it can look and come in many different forms and ways, and you just have to have a pinch of it.
"The faith of a mustard seed can take you a long, long way. And he does a great job of just making - between him and Becky - I feel like their analogies and the way that they could just speak the Bible in terms of the ways that you can understand, I'm grateful to have those two people."
W.G. Ramirez/The Sporting Tribune
Kinsey Minter (l) and Heiden Ratner sit courtside during Game 1 of the 2025 WNBA Finals, not too long after serving at chapel to players from the Aces and Mercury.
In helping a clearer picture for the ladies, Ratner, who played basketball, has a special knack for getting their minds right while providing clarity when they need it most.
"He knows everything that kind of goes into it," Loyd said. "It's a lot, and sometimes you can't always understand that if you don't understand, if you haven't been in it. And so he uses a lot of analogies, obviously, in the sports world. I think his ability to just make us feel human, we're in there and we're not basketball players, we're just people. And that's really valuable."
Megan Gustafson said she's come to appreciate how Ratner makes an earnest effort to relate to the players and what they go through regularly through stories he's heard or that he's been through, then tying those stories to the Bible and the different characters and what they went through, per scripture.
"I think that's why it hits so hard, and it's just great," Gustafson said. "And then he applies it to basketball."
Though Wilson is generally going through her on-court warmup when chapel is taking place, she and Ratner usually share a one-on-one moment before the game, something the four-time MVP has come to cherish.
"He's someone (who's) always given time just to pray over me," Wilson said. "And I hope that everyone has somebody out there that's praying over them always. He always takes the time out to pray over me and some of my crucial moments, some of my happy moments, and I love that the most."