both AJ Lee and Paige did a lot of barking about wanting people to respect women's wrestlers for their in-ring craft
turns out AJ Lee and Paige became overglorified one-note prostitute characters themselves, no different than the one AJ Lee bitched about before, Nikki Bella.

so no, AJ Lee and Paige don't deserve any credit for ushering in the new Women's Wrestlers era.
That distinction goes to Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, and even Sasha Banks for truly ushering in the era of Women's Wrestlers.